A question that has plagued great minds for years, is exactly how to determine what conditions are most conducive to people heading to the beach. This has been especially puzzling in Australia.
Assessing preferences of beach users for certain aspects of weather and ocean conditions: case studies from Australia.
Zhang F, Wang XH. Int J Biometeorol. 2012 Jun 2. [Epub ahead of print]
Three well-known Australian beaches, Surfers Paradise Beach (Gold Coast), Narrowneck Beach (Gold Coast) and Bondi Beach (Sydney), were selected for analysis of beach user preferences for certain weather and ocean conditions. Regression methods were used to determine how the numbers of visitors to these beaches are affected by these conditions. Actual visitor numbers were counted at three times during the day over several months at each beach with the aid of web cameras. The corresponding weather and ocean conditions were obtained from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology and local government agencies. Weekly and seasonal factors were also considered. The conditions preferred by beach users, as found in this study, are: no precipitation, higher temperatures, light-to-moderate wind speed (less than 30 km/h) and low wave height (up to 1.25 m). This study, the first to provide an analysis of beach user preferences for both weather and ocean conditions, shows that ocean conditions play a significant role in explaining the demand for beach recreation in Australia. It is therefore necessary for tourism management authorities or local governments to provide accurate and timely weather and ocean information to local, domestic and international beach users.
A more serious burning need is to determine why the question was even asked. Perhaps they don’t have the same Parks Canada surf conditions updates we have here on PEI, and they are trying to develop funding for such a service. Damned if I know.