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Nelson
Windsurf spot · Australia
Is it worth the trip?
76Good out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 2: 12 kn gusting 15, side-onshore, Water: waves 1.8 m
Mon 2 · 93 out of 100
- Wind
- SSE 12 kn
- Gusts
- 15kn
- Shore
- side-on
- Water
- 1.8 mwaves
- Air
- 16°C
Tue 3 · 0 out of 100
- Wind
- S 5 kn
- Gusts
- 7kn
- Shore
- on
- Water
- 1.8 mwaves
- Air
- 15°C
Wed 4 · 91 out of 100
- Wind
- W 15 kn
- Gusts
- 22kn
- Shore
- side
- Water
- 2.0 mwaves
- Air
- 14°C
Thu 5 · 80 out of 100
- Wind
- W 13 kn
- Gusts
- 17kn
- Shore
- side
- Water
- 2.4 mwaves
- Air
- 15°C
Fri 6 · 79 out of 100
- Wind
- WNW 16 kn
- Gusts
- 21kn
- Shore
- side
- Water
- 3.0 mwaves
- Air
- 16°C
Sat 7 · 75 out of 100
- Wind
- SSW 12 kn
- Gusts
- 19kn
- Shore
- on
- Water
- 2.9 mwaves
- Air
- 12°C
Sun 8 · 45 out of 100
- Wind
- SSE 14 kn
- Gusts
- 18kn
- Shore
- side-on
- Water
- 2.2 mwaves
- Air
- 14°C
Tap a day for wind, gusts, shore and air. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 149, fair
- Mon 293, good
- Tue 30, poor
- Wed 491, good
- Thu 580, good
- Fri 680, good
- Sat 775, good
- Sun 845, fair
- Mon 90, poor
- Tue 1086, good
The spot in six facts
- Faces Sopen to the S
- Best wind: W or Ealong the shore
- Avoid: Nblows out to sea
- Open seato the swell
- Water 15 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
- Best Nov–Jan4 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know gusts, offshore wind, tides or your skill.
| Day | Score | Wind | Gusts | Shore | Water | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 49, fair | wind from the west-south-west, 12 knots | 15kn | side-on | 1.5 mwaves | 16°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 93, good | wind from the south-south-east, 12 knots | 15kn | side-on | 1.8 mwaves | 16°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 0, poor | wind from the south, 5 knots | 7kn | on | 1.8 mwaves | 15°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 91, good | wind from the west, 15 knots | 22kn | side | 2.0 mwaves | 14°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 80, good | wind from the west, 13 knots | 17kn | side | 2.4 mwaves | 15°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 80, good | wind from the west-north-west, 16 knots | 21kn | side | 3.0 mwaves | 16°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 75, good | wind from the south-south-west, 12 knots | 19kn | on | 2.9 mwaves | 12°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 45, fair | wind from the south-south-east, 14 knots | 18kn | side-on | 2.2 mwaves | 14°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 0, poor | wind from the north-east, 8 knots | 13kn | offnot safe | 1.3 mwaves | 20°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 86, good | wind from the west-north-west, 14 knots | 18kn | side | 1.1 mwaves | 18°C |
Wind is the day's best reading, mean and gusts, in knots; the arrow points where it blows to. Shore "off" blows out to sea. More
Tide
- Sun 1 NovHigh 04:39 +0.4 mLow 10:59 +0.1 mHigh 12:42 +0.1 mLow 20:57 −0.4 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 05:14 +0.3 mLow 11:09 +0.1 mHigh 12:37 +0.1 mLow 21:19 −0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 05:55 +0.2 mLow 11:32 +0.1 mHigh 12:15 +0.1 mLow 21:28 −0.2 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
best Nov–Jan
Good windsurf days in a typical week, each month, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).
- Jan4of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug3of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep3of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct3of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov4of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec4of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast. Reanalysis wind misses some local thermal winds, so a spot known for an afternoon breeze may do better than this.
Map
the spot and its town
Nelson on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Nelson
Known for kitesurfing and windsurfing, by the OpenStreetMap map of the area. The shore faces S, so wind from the N blows out to sea (our estimate from the coastline).
Water about 15°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
A spot for kitesurfing and windsurfing, as OpenStreetMap maps it, on a shore facing S. Wind from the S blows onshore, wind from the N blows out to sea, and wind from the W or E runs along the shore. It is exposed to the open sea. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 550 m out (1 in 53). The sea is about 14°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 18°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For windsurfing at intermediate level the best months are usually January, November and December, with about 4 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Nelson. Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.
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$1,750–US$3,380 each
about US$1,750–US$3,380 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, stay, food.
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 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to MGB, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX and MEL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$978–US$2,030 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$94–US$154 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$355–US$596 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$322–US$596 |
| Total | about US$1,750–US$3,380 |
Kit hire is not priced yet: we have no sourced price, so it is not in it. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Nelson
1 min by car · 12 places to stay
about US$134/nightcountry average
About Nelson its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$134 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 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 32h 35m
About 32h 35m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → MGB, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Melbourne Airport (MEL), then 1h by road
Flights MDW → MGB on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
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.