WorldAustralia › Queensland › Farnborough

Farnborough 40.2

#4754 of 5756 surf spots in the world · 🇦🇺 Australia · Queensland · near Yeppoon

Very consistent, wind is the enemy here, no off season.

Works all yearWarm waterBeginner friendlyBeginner
Surf score40.2 /100
Surfable days88% of the year
Clean days0% groundswell + friendly wind
Groundswell1% period 11 s+
Typical size0.9 m 3.1 ft median
Water24°C a rash vest or 2 mm

Best time to surf Farnborough

The best time to surf Farnborough is February, March, July. It rarely works. In February the water sits around 28°C, so pack boardshorts, and the typical wave is 1.0 m. The nearest airport is ROK (51 km) and the nearest town is Yeppoon (14 km).

MonthSurfableCleanSizeWaterSuit
Jan96%0%1.0 m28°Cboardies
Feb94%2%1.0 m28°Cboardies
Mar90%1%1.1 m27°Cboardies
Apr92%0%1.2 m25°Cboardies
May93%0%1.2 m23°Cvest
Jun78%0%0.9 m21°C2mm
Jul79%1%0.8 m20°C2mm
Aug77%0%0.8 m20°C2mm
Sep78%0%0.8 m22°C2mm
Oct93%1%0.8 m25°Cvest
Nov90%0%0.9 m27°Cboardies
Dec94%0%1.0 m28°Cboardies

What is under Farnborough

Eight kilometres out along its swell window the sea floor drops to 71 m.

Depth 8 km out71 m
Depth 4 km out46 m

Measured, not estimated: NOAA ETOPO 2022 global relief at 15 arc-seconds, about 460 m per cell, sampled along this spot’s own swell window. At that scale the survey sees passes and channels; it cannot see a reef ledge, so nothing here is said about how the wave breaks.

Why 40.2

Seven parts, each normalised 0 to 1 and multiplied by its weight; the sum is scaled so the best spot in the world scores 100. Wave quality and what the spot does on its best days carry more than half of it, which is what separates this from a ranking of where the water is warm.

Wave quality 34.7%
4.0
Best days 22.4%
7.5
Clean days 18.4%
0.0
Consistency 10.2%
10.2
Season spread 4.1%
4.1
Water comfort 6.1%
5.0
Access 4.1%
3.9

The detail

Faces 90° with 47% open water around it. Friendly morning wind 44% of days. Mean peak period 6.3 s. Days over 3 m: 0%. On its best tenth of days it reaches 1.7 m, with a peak period of 8 s. Mellow days (0.4 to 1.2 m): 68%. Months that work: 12 of 12. Coordinates -23.003, 150.773 (OpenStreetMap).

What it costs to be here

Living here
€1,840/ month
typically €1,620 – €2,060
Rent, one bedroom€970
Groceries€385
Eating out€220
Getting around€130
Phone + internet€140
Renting by the month, cooking most days, local transport.
One month here
€3,600/ month
typically €3,170 – €4,030
Somewhere to stay€2,120
Eating out€755
Car, transfers, fuel€490
Data + extras€230
Short stays, eating out, a car or transfers.
49% cheaper if you live here instead of visiting

Estimate: World Bank PPP price level for Australia (2025, United States = 1.00) applied to a fixed surfer basket, then adjusted for how remote the spot is. Your own number moves with the season and how you live.

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