Cobden Tiphead, New Zealand

No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Greymouth, 4 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: HKK (HKK), 36 km.

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About Cobden Tiphead

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated. Facts: verified, surf details 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). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually January, February, March and April, with about 3 good days in 7; in September and October, about 1. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Greymouth, 4 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: HKK (HKK), 36 km. Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.

Water about 14°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 29 h door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to CHC, changing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
See flights MDW → CHC · Skyscanner from about £765 returnAd
Getting there. 3 h 05 from the airport to Cobden Tiphead.
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Accommodation.
No town nearby
No stay checked for this site yet: Greymouth, 4 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: HKK (HKK), 36 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Cobden Tiphead · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Cobden Tiphead · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Cobden Tiphead on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

The score for intermediates, coloured as on the area pages:GoodFairPoorToo bigToo small

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Cobden Tiphead, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	48, good	4 ft6 smushy	146kJ	wind from the west-north-west, 3 knots	13°C
Mon 19Oct	25, poor	4 ft6 smushy	122kJ	wind from the south-west, 10 knots	14°C
Tue 20Oct	47, fair	4 ft6 smushy	93kJ	wind from the north, 3 knots	14°C
Wed 21Oct	50, good	4 ft11 ssoft	292kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 2 knots, offshore	14°C
Thu 22Oct	30, poor	4 ft9 smushy	211kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 11 knots	14°C
Fri 23Oct	47, fair	4 ft7 smushy	134kJ	wind from the south-east, 2 knots, offshore	15°C
Sat 24Oct	37, fair	6 ft11 ssoft	705kJ	wind from the west, 4 knots	14°C
Sun 25Oct	0, too big	6 ft12 ssoft	909kJ	wind from the north-east, 5 knots	14°C
Mon 26Oct	17, poor	4 ft11 smushy	354kJ	wind from the north, 18 knots	15°C
Tue 27Oct	0, too big	9 ft9 smushy	1,353kJ	wind from the west, 20 knots	14°C
Wed 28Oct	12, poor	5 ft8 smushy	325kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 20 knots	14°C

Day scores here are the conditions out of 80; a trip's score on the results is the same conditions out of 100. The journey never scores. The forecast reaches about 10 days. Energy is the swell's power in kJ per metre of wave, from its height and interval: it grows with the square of each, so a long-period swell hits far harder than a short one the same size. The word under the swell is the wave's shape, our estimate from the sea floor. Wind is in knots: 10 kn is about 19 km/h. The arrow points where the wind blows to; offshore wind, blowing from the land out to sea, is green and says so.

Your trip, day by day

6 nights from Mon 19 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for intermediate surfers. Change dates

Mon 19 Oct
Travel out
Fly MDW to CHC, changing at SFO, then 3h 05 by road. About 29h door to door
Tue 20 Oct
Surf Cobden Tiphead
Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 4 ft at 6 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Cobden Tiphead
Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 4 ft at 11 s, offshore wind.
Thu 22 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 33 of 80.
Fri 23 Oct
Surf Cobden Tiphead
Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 4 ft at 7 s, offshore wind.
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Cobden Tiphead
Best 13:00 to 16:00 local time: 6 ft at 11 s, wind 4 kn (7 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Travel home
Fly MDW to CHC, changing at SFO, then 3h 05 by road. About 29h door to door

Rough cost

About £1,230–£2,415 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book. No town nearby, so no stay is in it.

Rough cost per person for this trip
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	£765–£1,585
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Hire car	6 days, shared	£100–£170
Food	7 days eating out	£230–£430
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£100–£165
Total		£1,230–£2,415

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026: where they come from. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra.

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