Surfers Paradise in Summer

In summer (December, January and February), Surfers Paradise sees average daytime highs around 25°C and overnight lows near 23°C, with 390 mm of rain over about 37 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the wettest season of the year.

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 25°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 44% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels muggy.

Summer is Surfers Paradise's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Surfers Paradise's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
25°C
warmest season of the year
Avg overnight low
23°C
Rainfall
390 mm
37 wet days
Avg wind
18 km/h
Travel score
6.6
3rd-best season
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Surfers Paradise in Summer

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 25°C.

A typical summer day in Surfers Paradise reaches about 25°C and drops to 23°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

15°20°25°30°DecJanFeb

Surfers Paradise weather by month

How the three summer months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan25° / 23°13112.713.66.6
Feb25° / 23°15013.6136.2
Mar25° / 22°1161512.26.4
Apr23° / 20°7312.211.46.7
May21° / 18°9710.710.66.7
Jun19° / 16°949.510.36.6
Jul19° / 15°486.310.47.1
Aug19° / 15°475.6117.4
Sep21° / 17°405.811.87.5
Oct22° / 19°758.712.77.2
Nov23° / 20°829.213.47.1
Dec24° / 22°10911.113.77.0

Cloud cover in Summer

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 44% of the time across summer.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Summer

Any precipitation

Surfers Paradise gets around 390 mm of rain over 37 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Summer

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of summer feels muggy — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Summer

Winds average 18 km/h across summer.

0510152025DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Summer

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 36 min in early December to 12 h 42 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Summer

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 6.4 kWh/m².

02468DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in summer

Hazard calendar for Surfers Paradise

In seasonPeak

In summer, Surfers Paradise overlaps its cyclone season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Surfers Paradise sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.

Cyclone
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is summer a good time to visit Surfers Paradise?

Our two travel scores rate summer for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

6.6
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
5.9
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

summer is a reasonable time to visit Surfers Paradise for sightseeing.

What to pack for Surfers Paradise in Summer

From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In summer, Surfers Paradise sees daytime highs around 25°C and nights near 23°C. Pack rain gear and sun protection. Worth having: light clothes. About 37 days see rain.

rain gearsun protectionlight clothes

Sea temperature near Surfers Paradise in Summer

The nearest coast averages about 26°C across summer — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 23 km away) is warmest in February at about 27°C and coldest in August near 21°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

20°22°24°26°28°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan26Warm
Feb27Warm
Mar26Warm
Apr25Warm
May24Refreshing
Jun23Refreshing
Jul21Refreshing
Aug21Refreshing
Sep21Refreshing
Oct23Refreshing
Nov24Refreshing
Dec25Warm

UV index in Surfers Paradise in Summer

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Surfers Paradise peaks around January 23 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 4 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highModerateHighVery highExtremeJan 23UV 13Jun 18UV 4
UV index (midday)Level
Jan14Extreme
Feb13Extreme
Mar11Extreme
Apr8Very high
May5Moderate
Jun4Moderate
Jul4Moderate
Aug6High
Sep8Very high
Oct10Very high
Nov11Extreme
Dec13Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Surfers Paradise?

Surfers Paradise sits at 28.0°S, 153.4°E, 13 m above sea level, in Australia. The nearest listed city is Gold Coast, 0.0 km away.

Topography around Surfers Paradise

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Surfers Paradise.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Surfers Paradise has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 28 m around an average of 3 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 388 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,317 m.

The land around Surfers Paradise is covered by water (55%) and artificial surfaces (32%) within 3 km, water (51%) and trees (25%) within 16 km, and trees (40%) and water (36%) within 80 km.

3 km
28 m
16 km
388 m
80 km
1,317 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetlandmangroves
Summer weather nearby: Gold Coast 0.0 km · Southport 5.0 km · Labrador 7.0 km · Robina 8.0 km · Nerang 9.0 km · Palm Beach 13 km · Pacific Pines 13 km · Helensvale 13 km

Australia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type I
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 90% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$65,130
2025
Happiness
6.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
0.9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
4.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
none 38%Roman Catholic 20%Protestant 18%other Christian 4%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Surfers Paradise (-28.0027°, 153.43°, elevation 13 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.