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Charleston Surf Forecast
/ West Coast South Island (17 surf breaks) /
Charleston surfForecast / West Coast South Island / New Zealand
12 Day Weather and Surf, issued 5 pm Friday 02 May 2025 NZST
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Charleston this week:
The surf forecast for Charleston over the next 12 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (May 02) at 9PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.4m and 12s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Charleston in the next 12 days are 3.5m 16s and forecast to arrive on Friday (May 09) at 12AM. Winds are predicted to be glassy at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.5m 11s period and expected on Friday (May 09) at 3AM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 9PM (Fri 2nd May) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 12AM (Fri 9th May) | 11ft (3.5m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 12AM (Fri 9th May) | 11ft (3.5m) 16s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Charleston over the next 12 days.
Fri 02 | Saturday 03 | Sunday 04 | Monday 05 | Tuesday 06 | Wednesday 07 | Thursday 08 | Friday 09 | Saturday 10 | Sunday 11 | Monday 12 | Tuesday 13 | Wed 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | |
Rating (10 max) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wave Height (m) & direction (?) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Period(s) (?) | 12 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
Wave (?)Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Energy (?) | 589 | 585 | 571 | 836 | 910 | 811 | 1680 | 1428 | 1110 | 865 | 604 | 1204 | 1321 | 841 | 2189 | 2481 | 1715 | 1173 | 4183 | 5341 | 4270 | 3691 | 2880 | 4007 | 5786 | 6568 | 4295 | 4066 | 2909 | 1929 | 1380 | 812 | 569 | 461 | 299 | 1753 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wind State (?) onshore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore offshore glassy | cross- off | off | glass | glass | cross- off | off | on | off | glass | glass | off | glass | cross- on | cross- off | glass | glass | cross- off | cross- off | cross- off | glass | cross- off | cross | cross | cross- off | cross | cross- off | cross- off | cross- on | glass | cross- off | cross | cross- off | glass | glass | cross- on | cross |
High Tide / height (m) | 2:30AM 2.65 | 3:07PM 2.44 | 3:34AM 2.48 | 4:15PM 2.29 | 4:44AM 2.37 | 5:27PM 2.23 | 5:54AM 2.33 | 6:33PM 2.25 | 6:55AM 2.35 | 7:28PM 2.31 | 7:45AM 2.41 | 8:13PM 2.40 | 8:28AM 2.48 | 8:52PM 2.49 | 9:07AM 2.55 | 9:28PM 2.57 | 9:43AM 2.60 | 10:02PM 2.63 | 10:19AM 2.64 | 10:37PM 2.67 | 10:54AM 2.65 | 11:12PM 2.68 | 11:31AM 2.63 | |||||||||||||
Low Tide / height (m) | 8:16PM 0.45 | 8:52AM 0.45 | 9:17PM 0.62 | 9:58AM 0.60 | 10:24PM 0.74 | 11:07AM 0.69 | 11:33PM 0.78 | 12:14PM 0.69 | 12:37AM 0.76 | 1:11PM 0.65 | 1:32AM 0.69 | 1:59PM 0.58 | 2:18AM 0.61 | 2:40PM 0.50 | 2:58AM 0.53 | 3:18PM 0.44 | 3:36AM 0.46 | 3:53PM 0.40 | 4:12AM 0.41 | 4:29PM 0.38 | 4:48AM 0.39 | 5:04PM 0.40 | 5:24AM 0.40 | |||||||||||||
Fri 02 | Saturday 03 | Sunday 04 | Monday 05 | Tuesday 06 | Wednesday 07 | Thursday 08 | Friday 09 | Saturday 10 | Sunday 11 | Monday 12 | Tuesday 13 | Wed 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sunrise | - | - | 7:24 | - | - | 7:24 | - | - | 7:26 | - | - | 7:26 | - | - | 7:28 | - | - | 7:28 | - | - | 7:30 | - | - | 7:31 | - | - | 7:31 | - | - | 7:33 | - | - | 7:33 | - | - | 7:35 |
| Sunset | 5:37 | - | - | 5:37 | - | - | 5:36 | - | - | 5:35 | - | - | 5:32 | - | - | 5:31 | - | - | 5:30 | - | - | 5:30 | - | - | 5:29 | - | - | 5:28 | - | - | 5:27 | - | - | 5:25 | - | - |
 |  |  | | | | | |  | | | | | | | | | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | |
Rain (mm) | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 11 | 9 |
| Temp. °C | 13 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 12 |
| Feels °C (?) | 10 | 6 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 15 | 11 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 6 |
Short Range Forecast: Mostly dry. Very mild (max 16°C on Sun morning, min 9°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 3-6 Weather Summary Mostly dry. Very mild (max 17°C on Thu morning, min 13°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 6-9 Weather Summary Mostly dry. Very mild (max 16°C on Thu afternoon, min 12°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | Long Range Forecast: Heavy rain (total 20mm), heaviest during Wed morning. Very mild (max 16°C on Sun afternoon, min 11°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (calm on Tue morning, fresh winds from the SSW by Wed morning). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Charleston 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 Charleston Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Charleston provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 12 days. A general guide to surfing at Charleston can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Charleston 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 (Charleston) 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 Charleston 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.
Charleston is 167 km (104 miles) from the city of Nelson. If you plan a holiday in West Coast South Island, look for hotels and other accommodation in Nelson. Nelson has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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