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Shelly's, Australia

Stay in Emerald Beach: see the trip Its beds, the way there and every spot near it.

Also within 20 km of Emerald Beach

All 32 on Emerald Beach's map

Watch this spot We email you when Shelly's is worth the trip.

2020-12-22 Emerald Beach, New South Wales 3
Shelly's. Photo: Maksym Kozlenko, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

About Shelly's

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

The spot faces SE (115°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (295°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 750 m out (1 in 75). 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 26°C in January, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually April, May, June and July, with about 2 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Emerald Beach, 0.4 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 9 surf spots.

Water about 22°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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Book the trip

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

  1. Fly. MDW to CFS, changing at LAX and BNE.

    See flights MDW → CFS · Skyscanner from about £805 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 40 min from the airport to Shelly's.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in Emerald BeachAd

    Typical prices for a double room that month, not a quote.

    Room photos are examples, not these hotels (credits).

    See all places to stay on Booking.com →

    Closest towns to stay in

    Typical prices for a double room that month, not a quote. Drives are estimates.

  4. Hire and lessons.

    Surf lessons in Emerald Beach · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Emerald Beach · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Shelly's on Google Maps · Directions

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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.

Forecast

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

DayScoreSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct504 ft7 smushy138kJ20°C
Mon 19Oct443 ft6 smushy57kJ18°C
Tue 20Oct524 ft6 smushy109kJ20°C
Wed 21Oct544 ft6 smushy110kJ21°C
Thu 22Oct394 ft6 smushy83kJ19°C
Fri 23Oct434 ft5 smushy70kJ21°C
Sat 24Oct454 ft6 smushy107kJ24°C
Sun 25Oct413 ft6 smushy86kJ27°C
Mon 26Oct394 ft6 smushy76kJ23°C
Tue 27Oct453 ft7 smushy88kJ22°C
Wed 28Oct242 ft6 smushy22kJ16°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

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly MDW to CFS, changing at LAX and BNE, then 40 min by road. About 30h 30 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf Shelly's

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 6 s, wind 5 kn (10 km/h).

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Surf Shelly's

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 6 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Shelly's

    Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 4 ft at 6 s, wind 9 kn (16 km/h).

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Surf Cripplers Rip

    Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 3 ft at 6 s, offshore wind.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf Shelly's

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 6 s, wind 7 kn (13 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly MDW to CFS, changing at LAX and BNE, then 40 min by road. About 30h 30 door to door

The plan picks the best of 5 spots near Emerald Beach each day: Back Sandy, Cripplers Rip, Front Emerald, Sandy back reef, Shelly's.

The trip from Emerald Beach, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £1,460–£2,815 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book.

WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to CFS, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX and BNE, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£805–£1,670
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£30–£55
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, shared£240–£395
Food7 days eating out£245–£455
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about £85 to fly your own£105–£175
Total£1,460–£2,815

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

Places to eat near Emerald Beach

Within 2 km of the town centre, listed by how complete the listing is (website, opening hours, cuisine) and whether two sources name it. Not a judgement of the food: we have no reviews. Listings © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) and Overture Maps Foundation. Credits

Book the trip

Getting thereAd

Flights · Skyscanner Car hire · Discover Cars

Where to stayAd

Places to stay · Booking.com

In the waterAd

Surf lessons · GetYourGuide Board and wetsuit hire · GetYourGuide

Links marked Ad may pay us a small commission if you book. You pay the same price, and it never changes a score.