Charleston Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(West Coast South Island, New Zealand)

Forecast
- Hourly Forecast
- 12 Day Forecast
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Weather State
Spot Information

Charleston Surf Guide

Charleston on the West Coast is a reasonably exposed beach/River Bar break that has fairly consistent surf and can work at any time of the year. The best wind direction is from the east southeast. Windswells and groundswells in equal measure and the ideal swell angle is from the west southwest. The beach breaks are all lefts. Good surf at all stages of the tide. Unlikely to be too crowded, even when the surf is up. Take care of the strong rips here.

Charleston Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Beach/river bar	5	fairly consistent	54°F*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Charleston:

The best conditions reported for surf at Charleston occur when a West-southwest swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the East-southeast.

Hourly Forecast

12 Day Forecast

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

juneBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Charleston with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of June. Clean surfable waves are typically found 35% of the time in June while 48% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 17% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

35%

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

blown out

48%

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

too small

17%

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

Explore Charleston Location Map

Interactive Charleston 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 Charleston is Westport Airport (WSZ) in New Zealand, 21 km (13 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Charleston is Hokitika Airport (HKK), also in New Zealand, 98 km (61 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (ft)
Live Wind Speed (mph)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (ft)
Wind Speed (mph)

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

Charleston Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

12 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Monday, 28 July 2025, 04:07 Local Time

m, °C	Monday 28
ft, °F	3AM	6AM	9AM	12PM
Wave (ft)	WSW	WSW	WSW	WSW
Period (s)	14	12	14	13
Wind (mph)
Wind State	cross- off	cross- off	cross- off	cross- off

What does Charleston look like?

Latest photos from Charleston. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Credit: Peter Crowley Credit: Peter Crowley Credit: Alex Casey Credit: Alex Casey Credit: Rob Davies

Tides at Charleston

Current tide and informaton

For Charleston, 0 miles from Charleston.

Next High Water: 12:59pm | 9ft

Next Low Water: 06:52am | 1ft

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

Charleston Sea Temperature

The water temperature (12.1 °C) at Charleston is quite cold. If the sun shines as forecast, it should feel warm enough to get away with a good sealed spring wetsuit but you won't overheat in a winter wetsuit, gloves boots and a hood. Effective windchill factor of (13.0 °C).

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit, a neoprene hood, gloves and boots.