Trial Harbour, Australia

No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Arthur River, is 106 km away. Nearest airport: BWT (BWT), 114 km.

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About Trial Harbour

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

The spot faces SW (241°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (61°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits expert surfers. It works in 3–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 250 m out (1 in 24). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 13°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 18°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For expert surfers the best month is usually June, with about 4 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Arthur River, is 106 km away. Nearest airport: BWT (BWT), 114 km. Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 13°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 33 h 50 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to BWT, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Melbourne Airport (MEL).
See flights MDW → BWT · Skyscanner from about £860 returnAd
Getting there. 2 h 20 from the airport to Trial Harbour.
Car hire · Discover CarsAd
Accommodation.
No town nearby
No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Arthur River, is 106 km away. Nearest airport: BWT (BWT), 114 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Trial Harbour · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Trial Harbour · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Trial Harbour on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

Trial Harbour does not suit beginners. 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

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Trial Harbour, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Mon 19Oct	51, good	7 ft11 scrumbling	1,145kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 11 knots	26°C
Tue 20Oct	31, too small	6 ft10 scrumbling	636kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 13 knots	23°C
Wed 21Oct	59, good	8 ft11 scrumbling	1,243kJ	wind from the south-west, 4 knots	18°C
Thu 22Oct	50, good	11 ft12 scrumbling	3,279kJ	wind from the north, 12 knots	26°C
Fri 23Oct	53, good	12 ft12 scrumbling	3,609kJ	wind from the north, 7 knots	26°C
Sat 24Oct	63, good	11 ft11 scrumbling	2,695kJ	wind from the west, 3 knots	16°C
Sun 25Oct	46, fair	11 ft10 smushy	2,139kJ	wind from the west-north-west, 6 knots	14°C
Mon 26Oct	23, poor	11 ft10 smushy	2,328kJ	wind from the south-west, 14 knots	9°C
Tue 27Oct	54, good	9 ft9 scrumbling	1,208kJ	wind from the west, 5 knots	11°C
Wed 28Oct	45, fair	12 ft9 smushy	1,947kJ	wind from the west, 9 knots	13°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 Tue 20 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for expert surfers. Change dates

Tue 20 Oct
Travel out
Fly MDW to BWT, changing at LAX and MEL, then 2h 20 by road. About 33h 50 door to door
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Trial Harbour
Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 8 ft at 11 s, wind 4 kn (8 km/h).
Thu 22 Oct
Surf Trial Harbour
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 11 ft at 12 s, wind 12 kn (23 km/h).
Fri 23 Oct
Surf Trial Harbour
Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 12 ft at 12 s, wind 7 kn (14 km/h).
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Trial Harbour
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 11 ft at 11 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Surf Trial Harbour
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 11 ft at 10 s, wind 6 kn (11 km/h).
Mon 26 Oct
Travel home
Fly MDW to BWT, changing at LAX and MEL, then 2h 20 by road. About 33h 50 door to door

Rough cost

About £1,355–£2,660 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 BWT, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX and MEL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag	£860–£1,785
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		£1,355–£2,660

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

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Surf lessons · GetYourGuide Board and wetsuit hire · GetYourGuide

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