Pennington Bay, Australia

No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Kingscote, 25 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: KGC (KGC), 25 km.

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About Pennington Bay

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated. Facts: verified, surf details estimated.

The spot faces SE (154°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (334°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–12 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 1.3 km out (1 in 125). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 14°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 20°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually April, May and June, with about 2 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Kingscote, 25 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: KGC (KGC), 25 km. Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 15°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 30 h 45 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to Adelaide International Airport (ADL), changing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
See flights MDW → ADL · Skyscanner from about £875 returnAd
Getting there. 2 h 25 from the airport to Pennington Bay.
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Accommodation.
No town nearby
No stay checked for this site yet: Kingscote, 25 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: KGC (KGC), 25 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Pennington Bay · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Pennington Bay · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Pennington Bay 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 Pennington Bay, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	17, too small	2 ft10 ssoft	61kJ	wind from the north-north-east, 9 knots	27°C
Mon 19Oct	53, good	3 ft10 ssoft	206kJ	wind from the north, 12 knots, offshore	23°C
Tue 20Oct	36, fair	3 ft10 smushy	195kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots	18°C
Wed 21Oct	41, fair	4 ft9 smushy	210kJ	wind from the south-east, 8 knots	18°C
Thu 22Oct	67, good	4 ft13 ssoft	431kJ	wind from the north-north-east, 11 knots, offshore	26°C
Fri 23Oct	44, fair	4 ft12 smushy	393kJ	wind from the south, 6 knots	23°C
Sat 24Oct	26, poor	4 ft12 smushy	345kJ	wind from the south-west, 12 knots	17°C
Sun 25Oct	44, fair	4 ft9 ssoft	231kJ	wind from the north-west, 16 knots, offshore	16°C
Mon 26Oct	18, poor	6 ft9 smushy	439kJ	wind from the south-west, 11 knots	14°C
Tue 27Oct	5, poor	4 ft7 smushy	156kJ	wind from the south, 16 knots	14°C
Wed 28Oct	0, poor	–	–	–	–

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 ADL, changing at SFO, then 2h 25 by road. About 30h 45 door to door
Tue 20 Oct
Surf Pennington Bay
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 3 ft at 10 s, wind 7 kn (13 km/h).
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Pennington Bay
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 4 ft at 9 s, wind 8 kn (15 km/h).
Thu 22 Oct
Surf Pennington Bay
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 4 ft at 13 s, offshore wind.
Fri 23 Oct
Surf Pennington Bay
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 4 ft at 12 s, wind 6 kn (11 km/h).
Sat 24 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 31 of 80.
Sun 25 Oct
Travel home
Fly MDW to ADL, changing at SFO, then 2h 25 by road. About 30h 45 door to door

Rough cost

About £1,370–£2,695 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 ADL, estimated from distance and season, changing at SFO, full-service airlines, with a hold bag	£875–£1,820
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Hire car	6 days, shared	£110–£180
Food	7 days eating out	£245–£455
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£105–£175
Total		£1,370–£2,695

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

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In the waterAd

Surf lessons · GetYourGuide Board and wetsuit hire · GetYourGuide

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