Cobden Tiphead
Surf spot · New Zealand
Is it worth the trip?
44Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sat 7: 4 ft swell at 6 s
Tue 3 · 36 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 110kJ
- Wind
- N 11 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Wed 4 · 38 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft11 ssoft
- Energy
- 477kJ
- Wind
- N 3 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Thu 5 · 40 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 243kJ
- Wind
- N 9 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Fri 6 · 15 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 136kJ
- Wind
- N 21 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Sat 7 · 68 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 95kJ
- Wind
- WNW 3 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Sun 8 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft11 ssoft
- Energy
- 1,047kJ
- Wind
- S 1 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Mon 9 · 58 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 598kJ
- Wind
- ESE 6 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Tue 336, poor
- Wed 438, poor
- Thu 540, poor
- Fri 615, poor
- Sat 768, good
- Sun 80, too big
- Mon 958, fair
- Tue 1071, good
- Wed 1143, too small
- Thu 1264, good
The spot in five facts
- Faces Wtakes swell from the W
- Offshore: Ewind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 16 °C3/2 wetsuit
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Cobden Tiphead does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 3Nov | 36, poor | 4 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 110kJ | wind from the north, 11 knots | 15°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 38, poor | 5 ft11 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 477kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 16°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 40, poor | 4 ft10 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 243kJ | wind from the north, 9 knots | 15°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 15, poor | 4 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 136kJ | wind from the north, 21 knots | 16°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 68, good | 4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 95kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 3 knots | 15°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft11 ssoft8 ft at break (est.) | 1,047kJ | wind from the south, 1 knot | 15°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 58, fair | 6 ft10 ssoft7 ft at break (est.) | 598kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 6 knots, offshore | 17°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 71, good | 4 ft10 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 293kJ | offshorewind from the east, 3 knots, offshore | 17°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 43, too small | 3 ft11 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 145kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 3 knots | 16°C |
| Thu 12Nov | 64, good | 4 ft11 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 311kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 3 knots | 16°C |
| Fri 13Nov | 80, good | 4 ft11 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 334kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 1 knot | 14°C |
Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More
Tide
- Tue 3 NovLow 00:01 −1.0 mHigh 06:21 +0.9 mLow 12:31 −0.9 mHigh 18:50 +1.0 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 01:13 −1.0 mHigh 07:32 +0.9 mLow 13:40 −1.0 mHigh 19:58 +1.0 m
- Thu 5 NovLow 02:17 −1.1 mHigh 08:34 +1.0 mLow 14:41 −1.0 mHigh 20:57 +1.1 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Best time to go
No month stands out
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan3of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr3of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun3of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov2of 7: a trip from Wed 4 Nov
- Dec2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot and its town
Cobden Tiphead on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for beginners: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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More surf near here
2 places
- The tip 0.3 km away
- Blaketown wedge 1.4 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Cobden Tiphead
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces W (292°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (112°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 1.6 km out (1 in 161). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 13°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 19°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Greymouth, 4.1 km away (8 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.
Water about 16°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,770–US$3,360 each
about US$1,770–US$3,360 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 3 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to CHC, estimated from distance and season, changing at SFO, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$858–US$1,780 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$134–US$228 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$342–US$563 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$302–US$563 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$134–US$221 |
| Total | about US$1,770–US$3,360 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Greymouth
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
8 min by car · 18 places to stay
about US$127/nightcountry average
About Greymouth its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$127 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 3 November 2026.
Getting there: about 29h
About 29h door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → CHC, changing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), then 3h 05m by road
Flights MDW → CHC on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.