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Wategos Beach, Australia

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

Also within 20 km of Byron Bay

All 14 on Byron Bay's map

Watch this spot We email you when Wategos Beach is worth the trip.

2020-12-19 Wategos Beach, Byron Bay NSW 02
Wategos Beach. Photo: Maksym Kozlenko, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

About Wategos Beach

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

The spot faces NE (26°), so it takes swell from the NE. The wind blows offshore from the SW (206°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 400 m out (1 in 38). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. 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 Byron Bay, 2 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots and 2 wind sports 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 29 h 05 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to Brisbane International Airport (BNE), changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

    See flights MDW → BNE · Skyscanner from about £795 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 2 h 50 from the airport to Wategos Beach.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in Byron BayAd

    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 Byron Bay · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Byron Bay · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Wategos Beach on Google Maps · Directions

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Forecast

Wategos Beach does not suit intermediates. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.

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

DayScoreExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct94 ft7 smushy125kJ21°C
Mon 19Oct265 ft6 smushy123kJ20°C
Tue 20Oct275 ft6 smushy141kJ21°C
Wed 21Oct245 ft6 smushy153kJ20°C
Thu 22Oct54 ft6 smushy114kJ21°C
Fri 23Oct94 ft6 smushy92kJ21°C
Sat 24Oct54 ft5 smushy76kJ23°C
Sun 25Oct43 ft7 smushy85kJ24°C
Mon 26Oct143 ft6 smushy67kJ24°C
Tue 27Oct83 ft6 smushy39kJ22°C
Wed 28Oct92 ft7 smushy21kJ19°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 expert surfers. Change dates

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly MDW to BNE, changing at LAX, then 2h 50 by road. About 29h 05 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 35 of 80.

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Surf Tallow beach

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 5 ft at 6 s, wind 3 kn (5 km/h).

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 4 ft at best.

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 4 ft at best.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 5 ft at best.

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly MDW to BNE, changing at LAX, then 2h 50 by road. About 29h 05 door to door

The plan picks the best of 6 spots near Byron Bay each day: Belongil, Bullies, Byron Bay, Byron Bay - The Wreck, Tallow beach, Wategos Beach.

The trip from Byron Bay, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £1,530–£2,920 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 BNE, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£795–£1,650
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Hire car6 days, shared£110–£180
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£1,530–£2,920

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

Places to eat near Byron Bay

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.