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Backwash, Australia

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

Also within 20 km of Port Macquarie

All 15 on Port Macquarie's map

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

Lighthouse Beach from Tacking Point
Backwash. Photo: Brian Tolagson, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

About Backwash

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

The spot faces E (109°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (289°). 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 gently: 10 m deep about 550 m out (1 in 53). 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 February, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually April, May, June and July, with about 2 good days in 7; in January, November and December, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Port Macquarie, 5.8 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 4 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. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to PQQ, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Brisbane International Airport (BNE).

    See flights MDW → PQQ · Skyscanner from about £810 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 30 min from the airport to Backwash.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in Port MacquarieAd

    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 Port Macquarie · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Port Macquarie · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Backwash on Google Maps · Directions

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

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

DayScoreSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct305 ft7 smushy262kJ21°C
Mon 19Oct234 ft6 smushy140kJ19°C
Tue 20Oct184 ft6 smushy77kJ21°C
Wed 21Oct154 ft6 smushy85kJ21°C
Thu 22Oct83 ft6 smushy60kJ21°C
Fri 23Oct103 ft5 smushy61kJ20°C
Sat 24Oct155 ft6 smushy156kJ24°C
Sun 25Oct225 ft7 smushy163kJ24°C
Mon 26Oct255 ft6 smushy211kJ26°C
Tue 27Oct184 ft7 smushy196kJ21°C
Wed 28Oct82 ft6 smushy22kJ17°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 PQQ, changing at LAX and BNE, then 30 min by road. About 30h 30 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 4 ft at best.

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 4 ft at best.

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 3 ft at best.

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 3 ft at best.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf Middles

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

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

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

The plan picks the best of 10 spots near Port Macquarie each day: Backwash, Flynn's Beach, Lighthouse Beach, Middles, Nobbys beach, North Wall, Oxleys Reef, Palms Wedge, Shelly beach, Town Beach.

The trip from Port Macquarie, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £1,450–£2,795 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 PQQ, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX and BNE, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£810–£1,680
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£15–£25
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£1,450–£2,795

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

Places to eat near Port Macquarie

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.