Surf Forecasts:
Birsay Bay surf forecast from 20 Oct 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 25 Oct, 9PM (local time) - 25ft (7.5m), 13s period, WNW swell with cross-onshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 25 Oct, 9PM (local time) - 25ft (7.5m), 13s period, WNW swell with 17,414 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 21 Oct, 4PM (local time) - 6.5ft (2.0m), 12s period with W swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Birsay Bay this week:
The surf forecast for Birsay Bay over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Oct 21) at 4PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 2.0m and 12s period. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Birsay Bay in the next 16 days are 7.5m 13s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Oct 25) at 9PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.4m 6s period and expected on Saturday (Oct 24) at 10PM.
| Wave Type | Time (BST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4PM (Wed 21st Oct) | 6.5ft (2.0m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 9PM (Sun 25th Oct) | 25ft (7.5m) 13s |
| Most Powerful | 9PM (Sun 25th Oct) | 25ft (7.5m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Birsay Bay over the next 16 days.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 9mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Very mild (max 12°C on Tue night, min 9°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (near gales from the SE on Tue afternoon, light winds from the ESE by Wed afternoon). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 43mm), heaviest during Fri afternoon. Very mild (max 11°C on Fri morning, min 8°C on Fri night). Winds increasing (light winds from the WSW on Sat morning, severe gales from the WSW by Sun morning). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 20 | Wednesday 21 | Thursday 22 | Friday 23 | Saturday 24 | Sunday 25 | Monday 26 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 13 | WNW 13 | W 13 | W 12 | W 12 | W 13 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | W 11 | W 11 | W 12 | WNW 16 | W 13 | W 12 | WSW 11 | W 14 | W 14 | WNW 12 | NW 11 | W 11 | W 11 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 2653 | 2085 | 1538 | 988 | 1214 | 2371 | 2352 | 1372 | 757 | 914 | 1392 | 7693 | 2507 | 1392 | 1301 | 7418 | 7430 | 13898 | 1565 | 915 | 326 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | off | off | off | off | off | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-off | off | cross | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross | off | cross-off |
High Tide | 5:18PM2.31m | 6:13AM2.20m | 6:11PM2.47m | 6:56AM2.40m | 6:52PM2.66m | 7:31AM2.61m | 7:28PM2.85m | 8:03AM2.81m | 8:03PM3.02m | 8:35AM2.99m | 8:39PM3.17m | 9:07AM3.12m | 9:17PM3.25m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 10:52AM1.33m | 11:54PM0.98m | 12:02PM1.15m | 00:40AM0.74m | 12:49PM0.94m | 1:17AM0.49m | 1:27PM0.72m | 1:51AM0.27m | 2:04PM0.50m | 2:26AM0.09m | 2:40PM0.32m | 3:02AM-0.01m | 3:18PM0.17m | 3:39AM-0.02m | |||||||
 |  |  |  | | | |  |  | |  |  | | |  | | | | | | | |
 | 8:00 | — | — | 8:03 | — | — | 8:04 | — | — | 8:07 | — | — | 8:10 | — | — | 7:12 | — | — | 8:15 | — | — |
 | — | 5:53 | — | — | 5:51 | — | — | 5:47 | — | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:43 | — | — | 4:39 | — | — | 5:37 | — |
mm | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | 3 | 1 | 2 | — | 3 | 20 | 10 | — | — | 6 | 2 | 2 | — | — | 2 | 7 |
Temp °C | 11 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 13 |
Feels °C | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | -2 | -3 | -4 | -7 | -2 | 4 | 2 | 6 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 13 | WNW 13 | W 13 | W 12 | W 12 | ESE 9 | E 8 | WNW 12 | W 11 | W 11 | W 12 | E 8 | W 13 | W 12 | NNW 13 | W 14 | W 14 | — | NW 11 | W 11 | W 11 |
| kJ | 2653 | 2085 | 1538 | 988 | 1214 | 28 | 5 | 1372 | 757 | 914 | 1392 | 20 | 2507 | 1392 | 92 | 7418 | 7430 | — | 1565 | 915 | 326 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | E 10 | — | ENE 11 | — | — | N 9 | NW 10 | N 8 | N 8 | — | N 6 | N 6 | E 10 | N 12 | N 10 | — | W 11 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 |
| kJ | — | — | 8 | — | 11 | — | — | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | — | 76 | 23 | 2 | 69 | 54 | — | 1510 | 559 | 201 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | N 8 | N 10 | N 9 | — | NNW 11 | NNW 12 | — | NNW 12 | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | 23 | 56 | — | 27 | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | SSE 5 | SE 5 | SE 4 | W 13 | WNW 12 | WNW 12 | S 3 | S 4 | — | WNW 16 | — | S 3 | WSW 11 | — | W 14 | WNW 12 | — | — | S 4 |
| kJ | 114 | 163 | 88 | 73 | 7 | 2371 | 2352 | 907 | 5 | 18 | — | 7693 | — | 4 | 1301 | — | 3753 | 13898 | — | — | 15 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 475 | 119 | 119 | 84 | 0 | 480 | 249 | 62 | 8 | 59 | 279 | 411 | 70 | 19 | 471 | 626 | 570 | 480 | 53 | 119 | 53 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Orkney Islands | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Birsay Bay surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Birsay Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Birsay Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Birsay Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Birsay Bay surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Birsay Bay) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Birsay Bay may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Are you planning a holiday in Orkney Islands? If you are looking for accommodation near Birsay Bay, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Orkney Islands, consider staying in Kirkwall which is 26 km (16 miles) away. Other places in and around Orkney Islands where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Scrabster which is 58 km (36 miles) away and Wick, 79 km (49 miles) away.
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