Box Head Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Newcastle, Australia)

Forecast
- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
Maps
Live
Weather State
Spot Information

Box Head Surf Guide

Box Head in Newcastle is an exposed point/Rivermouth break. Winter is the optimum time of year for surfing here. Works best in offshore winds from the northeast. Groundswells and windswells are equally likely and the ideal swell direction is from the south.The break here is a left hand point. Best around low tide. Unlikely to be too crowded, even when the surf is up. Beware of rips, rocks and sharks.

Box Head Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Point/river	4	inconsistent	22.5°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Box Head:

The best conditions reported for surf at Box Head occur when a South-southeast swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Northeast.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Box Head (for consistent clean waves)?

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Box Head with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of January. Clean surfable waves are typically found 1% of the time in January while 7% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 92% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

92%

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Box Head Location Map

Interactive Box Head surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The closest passenger airport to Box Head is Kingsford Smith International Airport (Sydney) Airport (SYD) in Australia, 47 km (29 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Box Head is Sydney Bankstown Airport (BWU), also in Australia, 53 km (33 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

Box Head Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Wednesday, 6 May 2026, 17:12 Local Time

m, °C	Wednesday 06
ft, °F	1PM	4PM	7PM	10PM
Wave (m)	S	S	S	S
Period (s)	8	7	7	7
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- off	cross- off	off	cross- off

Tides at Box Head

Current tide and informaton

For Ettalong, Australia, 3 km from Box Head.

Next High Water: 11:47pm | 0.95m

Next Low Water: 06:59am | 0.16m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

Box Head Sea Temperature

Sunny with pleasantly warm air temperatures (feeling like 20.0 °C once we account for wind), and similar sea temperatures (22.5 °C). Wear boardshorts or a shorty, or better still a thin summer wetsuit to keep the UV off.

Today, many surfers would wear a shorty.

Current Temp*: 22.5°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

View Sea Temp Map

Swell History at Box Head

Surf stats for Box Head, see the swell variation by month or season on the history page here.

Average Swell

View Swell Statistics

Wind History at Box Head

Wind stats for Box Head, see the variation in direction and stength by month or season on the history page here.

Average Wind

View Wind Statistics

Box Head Reviews:

Interactive Porthcawl Point location map. View nearby buoy information, live wind conditions and surrounding roads, paths and locations to help find new breaks. Click the buoys or wind icon to view more information.

Ratings

Based on 3 votes.

Overall:4.0
Quality on a good day:4.0
Consistency of Surf:1.0
Difficulty Level:3.5
Wind and Kite Surfing:5.0
Crowds:4.0
...

See all 18 ratings

Review

Impartial reviews submitted by Surf-Forecast users.

Moggy from Australia

“Box head is an exceptionally long left sandbar at the entrance to Brisbane Waters. it only breaks a few times a year on large South Swells. A large crew frequent the break whenever it works, and most buddy up with a PWC for quick access back to the peak after each ride. Inside section can be quite hollow on lower tides, but competition for waves is fierce.”

Other Nearby Breaks Closest To:

Discover surf breaks near Box Head. Click below to view there surf guides.