Australia’s 8 best surfing spots from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean

Australia is a legend in the world of Surfing. The Pacific Ocean roars on one side, while the Indian Ocean, with its warm waters, caresses the other.

The land down under is home to right-hand point break, mellow log waves, and slab barrels with the power to smash boards into two pieces. There’s also a lot of beach between. The world has also been blessed with some of the best surfers: Gilmore Fitzgibbons and Fanning, to name just a few.

No matter whether you’re on the talcum-white beaches of Western Australia or the rainforest-fringed coasts of Queensland. This curated list includes all of these and more.

Margaret River, Western Australia

The best Indian Ocean Breaks for the A-list

J-Bay is right up there with Waimea and Trestles. Margaret River has a place on the A-list of surf destinations. The 70-mile stretch of craggy coastline spills from lush bushlands to breezy Winelands. Western Australia is home to a number of breaks that can provide you with the ride of a lifetime.

Mainbreak is the star of the show. The Mainbreak is a swell-sucking A-frame with right and lefts, which invites playful turns and curves cutbacks. It’s no surprise that the World Surf League Margaret River Pro is held there every spring. The Box is a fast, shallow wave with a bullet chamber.

Don’t be depressed if you’re not in the same company as Kelly Slater and Co. Margaret River’s coast road is full of surf spots. Cowaramup Bay has beginner waves, and Smiths Beach offers intermediate wedges. What’s the downside? Sharks.

How to get to Margaret River: Margaret River can be reached by driving down the Forrest Highway from Perth.

Burleigh Heads (Queensland)

The best surf spots on the Gold Coast

The south channel swells hit the rocks at Burleigh Heads and are bent by the sand deposits from Tallebudgera Creek. When the surf gods are intoxicated with ambrosia, they can connect four separate wave sections to provide 300-meter rides. This is rarer than the rainbow eucalyptus.

Most of the people wait on The Point at Burleigh Heads. This is a right-hand reeling that offers barrels for almost all rides.

Burleigh is mainly populated by locals, with the occasional traveler on an East Coast Australia adventure. Beginners will not want to play at Burleigh, but there are other more welcoming beaches to the north and to the south. Head to Palm Beach or Surfers Paradise.

Driving to Burleigh Heads from Gold Coast: Drive 15 minutes south on Sunshine Boulevard.

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Bells Beach, Victoria

Best for lines with consistent spacing

Lines roll into Bells Beach in such an order that they could rival a British Post Office. The right-hander is fuelled by the almost constant winter storms in the Southern Ocean’s lower latitudes. They form peeling rights when they reach the Victorian coast just south of Torquay.

Bells Bowl is the bomb of the bunch. It is a spot that can withstand swells of up to 20 feet and was where Simon Anderson first demonstrated the thruster fin set-up in the early 1980s. This changed the face of performance surfing forever.

The location of Bells is a sight to behold. There’s no time for awe. Winkipop is a gun-like complex located on the northeastern end of the beach. You can also find flagship stores for the Australian brands born here, like Ripcurl and Quiksilver.

How to get to Bells Beach: Drive the Great Ocean Road, just outside of Torquay. Bells Beach is the first beach you will see.

Lennox Head, New South Wales

The best for right-hand point break

Lennox Head is one of the best right-handers in the world. Since the 1960s, it has been a magnet to rippers and professionals because of its ability to tame the largest southeast swells coming up from the Southern Ocean. These wrap around the rocks, creating beefy shoulders. They can stretch from hollow to open face. It’s a great place for cutting backs and doing bottom turns on a ride lasting 200 meters.

Lennox Head can mellow enough for intermediates to enjoy it on occasion. Consider sitting further down in the line, where the takeoff will be less difficult, and the ride won’t be as intense. Beware: the entry point into Lennox has a reputation for being solid with super-slippery stones that have dented fiberglass plenty of times.

Getting To Lennox Head Melbourne and Sydney have direct flights to the nearby Ballina Byron Gateway Airport. Brisbane can be reached in just under two hours by driving up the M1.

Kangaroo Island, South Australia

The best spot to find remote bays or beaches that need a 4X4

Kangaroo Island is known for its honey-making hives, sweet white wine, and epic surf. The sites are so diverse that you’ll need a 4WD to get around. They range from the multi-level beach peaks at Vivonne Bay, where it’s common to see dolphins surfing with you, to the more difficult reefs in Hanson Bay.

This off-radar island, which South Australia fragments, has a lot fewer people. In the autumn, when conditions are favorable for south swells and northerly off-shores, it can be a bit busy. This is a great place for surfers looking to get away.

How to get to Kangaroo Island: Take the ferry from Cape Jervis, south of Adelaide.

Byron Bay, New South Wales

The best for “Endless Summer,” cruising waves, and “Endless Summer vibes

Bruce Brown, the Endless Summer star, was responsible for the resurgence of Byron Bay. Bruce Brown’s reels depicted a planet where teal-green water oozed from pretty rocks and into sandy bays dotted with gnarled trees.

You can choose from a variety of waves. Tallows is a great spot to catch swell when the rest of the coast is flat. Broken Head, a Queensland-style point wave with a right shoulder, is for experienced surfers. The Pass is a fun, all-person wave, which is the highlight of Byron. It’s always busy and always fun.

Now, thousands come to get a slice. It’s not only surfers. In this town, you’ll find flower-draped hippies wishing for the Summer of Love to return, influencers wearing the latest eco-friendly beachwear, and businesspeople whizzing around in Porsches. The town is so well-known that many say Byron has passed its glory days, but the winter swells from April to September still make a lot of noise.

Getting To Byron Bay Flights to Ballina Byron Gateway Airport are available from Sydney and Melbourne. The car ride from the terminals to town takes about 30 minutes.

Noosa, Queensland

Point breaks are best under eucalyptus trees.

Noosa has a god-like reputation around the world. It takes either a cyclone system off New Zealand or really powerful southern waves to create a swell that curls around the headlands. But when that happens…

Noosa Heads, a group of five strategically positioned headlands that are all grouped, generates a series of near-perfect right-hand points. Some of them are connected for the best sessions. But it is Tea Tree Bay, at low tide, that turns out the goods. With sometimes hollow, playful walls of water, this place is all about cruising rides.

Noosa is known for its laid-back Sunshine Coast atmosphere and escape into nature. The kauri and eucalyptus creep up to the Pacific in this land. You’ll be surfing in the Noosa National Park.

How to get to Noosa? Fly in at the Sunshine Coast Airport. Public buses will take you directly to Noosa within a few minutes.

Bondi Beach, New South Wales

The best place to learn how to surf

Any WSL pro would laugh at you and their protein shake if you asked them about surfing Bondi. These waves are mostly sandbanks, which close out anything above head height. The waves are always crowded. The flying foam board is always busy, with surf schools and city slickers looking to get their first drop-in.

You don’t come here for the quality. You come to Bondi for the vibe. There are backpackers with fresh faces, tattooed motorcyclists, New Age meditators, and family picnickers here. They all meet and mingle where the salt spray from the Pacific spirals into the suburbia of Sydney. Even though the waves are small, it’s no surprise that this place has become legendary among Aussie surfers.

There are many surf schools in this area, but Let Go Surfing is one of the most popular. The school has a 25-year teaching history and offers packages for adults and families.

How to get to Bondi Beach: Bondi Beach is a suburb of Sydney. From Central, take the city Illawarra Line all the way up to Bondi Junction. About 30 minutes.