Shark bay
Surf spot · Australia
Is it worth the trip?
28Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Fri 6: 4 ft swell at 6 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Tue 3 · 14 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 10kJ
- Wind
- NNW 4 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Wed 4 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 18kJ
- Wind
- WNW 7 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Thu 5 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 25kJ
- Wind
- WNW 5 kn
- Temp
- 34°C
Fri 6 · 45 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 126kJ
- Wind
- SSW 5 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Sat 7 · 37 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 146kJ
- Wind
- NW 4 kn
- Temp
- 30°C
Sun 8 · 9 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 27kJ
- Wind
- SSW 12 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Mon 9 · 26 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 262kJ
- Wind
- SSE 6 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Tue 314, too small
- Wed 416, too small
- Thu 519, too small
- Fri 645, fair
- Sat 737, poor
- Sun 89, too small
- Mon 926, poor
- Tue 1055, fair
- Wed 1139, poor
- Thu 1231, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces Etakes swell from the E
- Offshore: Wwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–13 ftof swell
- Water 23 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
Shark bay 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 | 14, too small | 2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 10kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 4 knots | 28°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 16, too small | 2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 18kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 7 knots | 27°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 19, too small | 2 ft7 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 25kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 5 knots | 34°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 45, fair | 4 ft6 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 126kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots | 23°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 37, poor | 4 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 146kJ | wind from the north-west, 4 knots | 30°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 9, too small | 2 ft7 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 27kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 12 knots | 20°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 26, poor | 6 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 262kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 6 knots | 22°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 55, fair | 4 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 160kJ | wind from the north-west, 5 knots | 27°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 39, poor | 4 ft8 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 163kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 9 knots | 29°C |
| Thu 12Nov | 31, too small | 3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 30kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 4 knots, offshore | 26°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 NovHigh 04:02 +0.3 mLow 09:38 −0.4 mHigh 16:10 +0.7 mLow 23:01 −0.6 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 05:08 +0.4 mLow 10:56 −0.4 mHigh 17:13 +0.7 mLow 23:49 −0.6 m
- Thu 5 NovHigh 06:02 +0.5 mLow 12:02 −0.5 mHigh 18:07 +0.6 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).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar2of 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
- Jul1of 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
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Wed 4 Nov
- Dec1of 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
Shark bay 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
1 place
- Evans Head - Main Beach 0.2 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Shark bay
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces E (69°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (249°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–13 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 1.0 km out (1 in 100). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 21°C in July, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 27°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Evans Head, 0.7 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot and 1 wind sports spot.
Water about 23°C: 2 mm shorty. 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$1,860–US$3,520 each
about US$1,860–US$3,520 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 2 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to BNE, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$892–US$1,850 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$148–US$242 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$356–US$597 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$322–US$597 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$141–US$235 |
| Total | about US$1,860–US$3,520 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: 3 towns
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 5 min by car · 6 places to stay
about US$134/nightcountry average
About Evans Head its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Ballina on Booking.com
about 55 min by car · 29 places to stay
- Beds in Iluka on Booking.com
about 1h by car · 15 places to stay
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 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 29h 50m
About 29h 50m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → BNE, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), then 3h 40m by road
Flights MDW → BNE 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.