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  • OZ Surfing on the cheap?
  • back2basics
    Free Member

    anyone got any experience, looking for july, campsite + surf hire + lesson type thingy, no mega waves, intermediate i guess.

    web points me to the Gold Coast, which has lots of high rise, although not my thing , if it means its cheap….

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Don’t forget July is mid winter down there. Ok that’s might be comparable to our summer, but that’s why Cornwall’s full of Austrailian surf bums through our summer. But check the climate as the north/south of OZ have different seasons.

    Considdered Portugal? Friends keep going back so it must be good. And You’d save £500 and 48 hours of flights. They stayed with a surf holiday company so accomodation, food, and a landrover to take them to the best beaches that day were included.

    nickjb
    Free Member

    That whole coastline has good surf, miles and miles of it. We drove up most of it from Sydney to well above Brisbane and there were surfers in most bays. Byron Bay had a bit of a Newquay feel to it. It seems to be where all the students go during the holidays. Plenty of camp sites and pretty cheap.

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    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/journal/eight-greatest-surfing-spots-in-australia.htm
    http://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/banzai/surf/galleries/photo/-/12216804/australia-s-best-surf-beaches/12216806/
    http://www.westernaustralia.com/en/Things_to_See_and_Do/Must_See_and_Do/Pages/Top_10_Surfing_Spots.aspx

    Worth noting that best &

    no mega waves, intermediate i guess.

    don’t always go together. We went to Bells (not a surfer) and there were only gnarly dudes there it looked brutal.
    Will be cold down in the south but should still be shorts n t-shirt weather up north.
    Best bet would be to find a good surf forum

    jaylittle
    Free Member

    campsites arent as cheap as you may expect. Did a WHV two years ago with my girlfriend and we could pay upto $40 per night (two man tent).

    konabunny
    Free Member

    Don’t forget July is mid winter down there. Ok that’s might be comparable to our summer, but that’s why Cornwall’s full of Austrailian surf bums through our summer. But check the climate as the north/south of OZ have different seasons.

    July will be BALTIC in all of the surf spots named above. You don’t hear much about surfing in the tropics, don’t know if thereis a reason for that.

    Camping isn’t cheap at sites, hire isn’t either.

    Girl I went t school with is a surf pro in morrocco – I would imagine that would be cheaper on every metric.

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    also to say the exchange rate is against you for this part of the world (I don’t find the cost of living too bad though)

    July will be BALTIC in all of the surf spots named above. You don’t hear much about surfing in the tropics, don’t know if thereis a reason for that.

    The missus auntie still gets out every week for a swim or surf in Victoria (all year) though she is a bit bonkers

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLS5t0NdtRI[/video]

    RichPenny
    Free Member

    Weather in NSW is 12 to 15 C atm, so not exactly baltic. Qld will be plenty warmer than that, have been in July and 25 deg is normal, no?

    headfirst
    Free Member

    Why not head to Bali instead, much cheaper and warmer.

    back2basics
    Free Member

    thats bad news about campsite prices!
    hmmmm we’d want some warmth as its a long way to go to get a “scottish summer” feel like here in the highlands 🙂

    thats for the tip on surf forums – I’ll see what they think too.
    i guess flying to OZ via US or ASIA might open up something like BALI
    it might be an ideal CHEAP as a stopover for 5 days out before continuing on….
    how cheap is US at the moment, california must have 1 or 2 surf spots 😉 😉

    konabunny
    Free Member

    Weather in NSW is 12 to 15 C atm, so not exactly baltic.

    No actual icebergs but the idea of flying to the other end of the earth to fall off a surfboard in 13 degree water doesn’t appeal. In fact the idea of driving across town to do it doesn’t appeal…

    RichPenny
    Free Member

    Thats not the sea temperature….

    back2basics
    Free Member

    hmmm so it seems the further north the coast you go, the better the weather but less surf spots….
    Cairns for example, looks perfect but no surfing 🙁

    I’ve spent the morning looking at campsites too, and as said previously above, dam they can be expensive, despite it being “winter” its high season rates! doh!

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    I’ve spent the morning looking at campsites too, and as said previously above, dam they can be expensive, despite it being “winter” its high season rates! doh!

    Where do you think people go to avoid the cold bits!

    teenrat
    Full Member

    Thats because of the great barrier reef. Onc you get north of brisbane ( around magnetic island) , the reef starts so no swell at the shore!

    headfirst
    Free Member

    hmmm so it seems the further north the coast you go, the better the weather but less surf spots….
    Cairns for example, looks perfect but no surfing

    there’s this thing called the Great Barrier Reef…you might’ve heard of it…it stops the waves getting to the coast up North.

    I said it before and I’ll say it again – if you’re interested in surfing all summer long in shorts then….

    GO TO BALI

    Ditch the tent and stay in a losmen for less than Ozzie campsite prices. You’ll be surrounded by Ozzies anyway!

    pedroball
    Free Member

    You could try the Sunshine Coast? Noosa Heads, Coolum have great surf – quieter than the Gold Coast (which isn’t easier) and a more laid back feel to the place. At least it was 15 years ago… We camped there in April time and it was like a good summer here, surfing in boardies.

    How about South Africa? Good time of year then for weather and surf. Not sure what sort of waves you’re looking for but if you like right hand point breaks, there is J Bay, Mossell Bay, Victoria Bay…

    headfirst
    Free Member

    How about South Africa? Good time of year then for weather and surf. Not sure what sort of waves you’re looking for but if you like right hand point breaks, there is J Bay, Mossell Bay, Victoria Bay…

    Great surf – not for beginners at that time of year – but distinctly average weather – like a poor English summer, unless you head up to Durban. This is according to my mum and step-dad who spend the UK winter in their house near Cape Town.

    bigrich
    Full Member

    takes me 15 minutes to get to Bells from my office. Bloody freezing (10C) outside, so not happening.

    teenrat
    Full Member

    As above, RSA is cheap. Coffee bay backpackers – free surfing lessons from the RSA national amateur surfing champ – that was 10 years ago though! Just looked on their website and my, the prices have gone up- its now 40 rand for a 2 hr lesson inc board. (about £3)

    pedroball
    Free Member

    “Great surf – not for beginners at that time of year – but distinctly average weather – like a poor English summer, unless you head up to Durban. This is according to my mum and step-dad who spend the UK winter in their house near Cape Town.”

    I agree re the point breaks, but there are still lots of decent beach breaks around, particularly around Cape Town. Also, the best steaks and wine in the world. I must have lucked out as the weather was generally pretty good when I’ve been there. Getting all misty eyed about J Bay now…

    ransos
    Free Member

    Thanks to the exchange rate, Australia is very expensive full stop. Even if you find cheap surfing, you’ll be paying a fortune for meals, accommodation etc.

    back2basics
    Free Member

    well thanks everyone, helped a great deal, so canning the idea of OZ now (was going to go for other reasons too) but just too expensive and not great weather,

    going to look at surfing in northern spain, and then biking in picos europas area and pairofknees, oops i mean Pyrenees 🙂

    zokes
    Free Member

    Cairns for example, looks perfect but no surfing

    Plenty of things to eat you, kill you, or eat you and kill you though…

    The sign on the esplanade warns you not to go onto the mud flats for three reasons:

    1) Quicksand
    2) Strong currents
    3) Crocodiles.

    I reckon they could have saved themselves some ink and not bothered with the first two!

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