These small islands, in the hundreds, have very light winds for most of the year round, and at the same time they are directly exposed to the ground swells traveling all the way from the stormy seas down south the Roaring Forties, until they hit Indonesian coral reefs 3.000 miles (5.500 km) away, therefore with exceptionally long periods, sometimes over 20 seconds! The only region in Indonesia not affected by the trade winds is located at the so called Intertropical Convergence Zone (aka the Doldrums), a “belt” around the Earth spreading 2º north to 2º south of the Equator and characterized by light winds.Īnd the only Indonesian islands situated at the Doldrums and at the same time receiving the Indian Ocean super-consistent swells are the archipelagos of Mentawai, Telo, Nias, Hinako and Banyak.

But most of the Indonesian archipelago is exposed to the trade winds, blowing from the southeast from April to October, and from the northwest during the rest of the year. To avoid windy conditions you either surf early in the morning (before 9 a.m.) or you go to a light winds region. But to find great surf you need to take into account two other major factors: winds and crowds. There are exceptionally good waves in several of Indonesia’s islands: Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, etc.

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