November is Manly's quiet sweet spot. The school term is on, there are no public holidays, the water is warming, and the summer crowds haven't arrived. It opens with the last weekend of Surf + Sound and a Melbourne Cup Tuesday. The middle belongs to the ocean, with the council's Ocean Festival running snorkel tours, talks and a breakfast at Shelly Beach. The month ends with the first hints of Christmas.
Here's everything worth your time in Manly this November, in date order.
The Surf + Sound Finale — Saturday 31 October and Sunday 1 November
The festival that took over the wharf for three weekends finishes on the first day of the month, and the last weekend is the biggest.
- The Boardrider Battle finals on Main Beach, both days. Free to watch.
- GANGgajang in the Felons Barrel Room on Sunday 1 November, $59, 18+.
- Winston Surfshirt, closing the festival with a free hometown show at a secret spot on Manly Wharf on Sunday night.
The same weekend, the council's new Sounds of Manly fills the town centre with free live entertainment across five spots: The Corso, Rialto Square, Market Lane, Sydney Road and the Town Hall forecourt. Our Surf + Sound guide has the full program and what's sold out.
Sculpture by the Sea at Bondi also finishes on Monday 2 November: 100 free sculptures on the coastal walk to Tamarama. If you've been meaning to go, this is your last weekend.
Melbourne Cup Day — Tuesday 3 November
The race that stops the nation stops Manly too. The village's three best-known Cup lunches:
| Venue | Time | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q Station, Boilerhouse Kitchen & Bar | 11:30am–3:30pm | $189 + fees | Sparkling on arrival, canapés, three-course shared lunch, three-hour drinks package, live music, sweeps, best dressed |
| Manly Bowling Club, Raglan Street | 12–3pm | $80 | Two courses, two drinks, sweeps, the races on the big screen. 18+, limited to 60 guests |
| Manly Skiff Club, East Esplanade | 12–3:30pm | $185 members / $195 | Sold out. Tables of 5 to 22; there's a wait list |
Book the first two now; both are small and both will fill. If you'd rather keep it casual, every pub in town will have the race on, and the cove beaches are blissfully empty that afternoon.
Q Station Sunset Sessions — Saturdays 7 and 21 November
Live music at The Glasshouse on North Head, 3:30–7pm, with food and wine and the harbour turning gold below you. These sell out, and when they do there are no walk-ups, so book and pre-order your food. After November, the next ones are 5, 12, 19 and 27 December. Our North Head and Q Station guide covers the shuttle, parking and the walk up.
The Ocean Festival — Saturday 7 to Sunday 15 November
The highlight of the month, and the one most visitors don't know about. Northern Beaches Council's Ocean Festival is in its 33rd year, and this year's theme is the marine protected areas. Manly's is Cabbage Tree Bay, between the beach and Shelly Beach. Almost everything is free.
- Binnovation on The Corso, Friday 6 to Wednesday 11 November. A free "find the right bin" challenge about how street litter ends up in the ocean. Kids love it.
- Science by the Sea at The Manly Club, Monday 9 November, 6–9pm. Short talks from marine scientists on shark technology, eDNA and Sydney's corals, then pizza and questions with the presenters. Free, but numbers are limited, so book.
- Guided snorkel tours with Ecotreasures: Tuesday 10, Thursday 12 and Saturday 14 November, 9:30–10:30am. A guided snorkel at Shelly Beach and Cabbage Tree Bay with local eco guides. You book directly with Ecotreasures, and the promo code LOVEOCEAN takes $10 off the Flexi Manly snorkel ticket. If it's your first time, start with our blue groper and snorkelling guide.
- Manly's Little Penguins, Thursday 12 November, 6:30–7:30pm. A free online talk with Dr Lisa O'Neill, who has monitored the Manly colony for more than 20 years. Register online.
- Kelp in the City, Friday 13 November, 10:30–11:30am. Marine scientist Annemie Rose Janssen on how Sydney's underwater kelp forests are adapting to city life. At The Boathouse Shelly Beach, free, bookings required.
- Breakfast by the Bay, Sunday 15 November, 9–11am. Drop in at the Shelly Beach boat ramp for breakfast with the Friends of Cabbage Tree Bay, the volunteers who look after the reserve. Free, no commitment.
Two worthwhile extras just outside Manly: a rockpool discovery and microplastics survey at Fairlight rockpool on Saturday 7 November, 2–4pm, and the Best of Ocean Film Festival screening free on Dee Why beachfront on Saturday 14 November. Activities start from 6pm, the films start at 7:30pm, and a bean bag costs $15.
Remembrance Day — Wednesday 11 November
The council's service at the Manly War Memorial on The Corso starts at 10:45am, ahead of the minute's silence at 11. Everyone is welcome, and there's a chance to lay a private tribute. A second service runs at the same time at the war memorial park at Manly Dam.
Last Month at MAG&M — Until Sunday 29 November
Both shows at Manly Art Gallery & Museum on West Esplanade close at the end of the month. Michael Muir: The Shape of Colour is a survey of a decade of vivid, dream-like landscapes from one of the Northern Beaches' best-known painters. Girly in Manly has four artists on femininity, care and place. Both are free, two minutes' walk from the ferry.
- Masterclass #2 with Michael Muir — Monday 16 November, 10am–3pm. The second full-day painting class, added due to demand: colour, form and composition, working in gouache or acrylic.
- Life Drawing Studio — Tuesdays 3 and 17 November, 6:30–8:30pm. Untutored, all levels, 18+, $32. You must book; the last session of the year is 1 December.
Chronos: Australian Ceramics from 1933* continues until March 2027.
Manly Village Public School Markets — Saturday 21 November
The third-Saturday markets at Darley Road and Wentworth Street, from 8am: vintage clothes, homewares, crafts and food, a block back from The Corso. It's also a Sunset Session day, so you can do markets in the morning, the beach at lunch and North Head for golden hour.
Santa Arrives at Q Station — Friday 27 November
The first sign of Christmas: Santa on the Beach photo sessions on the sand at Quarantine Beach, with the harbour behind you, 4–7pm, $199 a session. It's booked by appointment, and there are two more dates in December (6 and 13). The rest of the village's Christmas program usually lands in early December.
The Water and Weather in November
November is late spring and the start of the warm stretch. The ocean usually climbs from about 19°C to 21°C over the month, the evenings are long, and the sun sets after 7:30pm by the end of it. It's also when Sydney's spring storms start, so check our conditions page before you head out and read whether it's safe to swim in Manly for the flags, rips and the after-rain rule.
The last humpbacks of the southbound migration pass through in the first half of the month. The wildlife guide has where to look for them, and for Manly's little penguins and the blue groper.
Markets Every Weekend
The Manly markets run all month: the craft and design market on Sydney Road every Saturday and Sunday, and the fresh produce market on Sundays. Plus the school markets on the 21st.
Weekly Events
- Felons trivia, Tuesdays from 7pm, free, bookings essential; Barrel Room trivia, Wednesdays, registration from 7pm.
- Felons run club, Wednesdays: meet 6:15pm for a 6:30pm start. A free 5km run or walk from the wharf, with refreshments at the finish.
- Manly Skiff Club: steak night on Mondays, trivia on Wednesdays from 7pm, and live music on the deck on Sundays from 2 to 5pm.
- Jazz at 1979 on the wharf, Thursdays: doors at 6pm, live jazz from 8pm.
- Felons Sunday community day from 11am, with free face painting for kids.
- Quarantine Station history tour, Saturdays at 3pm: 90 minutes, $45 adults or $158 for a family of four.
For happy hours all week, see our Manly happy hours guide.
Coming Up — December
Chromatic Luminosity, a show of contemporary abstract painting, opens at MAG&M with a free launch on Friday 4 December, 6–8pm. The Q Station Sunset Sessions run through December, and the school markets return on 19 December. The council's Christmas choral concert and the 9pm family fireworks for New Year's Eve are both on the calendar, and our summer guide will have the details as they're confirmed. Then the surf comes back on 15–16 January with the Manly Surf Open.
The Bottom Line
November is the best month to see Manly before summer takes it over. Come for the Surf + Sound finale on the 1st if you want a party. Come for the Ocean Festival week (7–15 November) if you want the real Manly: snorkel Cabbage Tree Bay with a guide, hear the scientists who study it, and have breakfast with the volunteers who look after it, almost all of it free.
