Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 27 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 29 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 6s period, SSE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Monday 3 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.4m), 8s period, SE swell with 232 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 29 Jul, 2AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 6s period with SSE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Croatan this week:
The surf forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Jul 29) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.0m and 6s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 6s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Croatan in the next 16 days are 1.4m 8s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 03) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.4m 3s period and expected on Wednesday (Jul 29) at 2AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Wed 29th Jul) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 6s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Wed 29th Jul) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 6s |
| Most Powerful | 2AM (Mon 3rd Aug) | 4.5ft (1.4m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what's on offer for the Croatan area.
Straight up, I gotta be honest with you – the next couple of weeks are looking pretty flat and quiet. We've got a solid 16-day window, but the first six days are a total write-off. From Monday the 27th of July right through to Saturday the 1st of August, the surf is just too small and messy to bother with. You're looking at tiny 1ft to 3ft waves with weak combined swell energy (35 to 50), and the winds are all over the shop. It's a proper dry spell.
Things start to look a little less hopeless on Monday the 3rd of August. The morning session shows a bit of life with the swell bumping up to 3ft from the SE, and the combined energy actually hits 96 – the highest we'll see in this whole run. The wind is a clean cross-offshore from the WSW, so it'll be tidy. It's still not pumping, but it's the most surfable it's been all week. After that, it's back to small, weak, and onshore junk for the rest of the week and into the next.
The only real standout in this whole long-range forecast is a glassy little window on the morning of Monday the 10th of August. Swell will be tiny, maybe 1.0ft, but it's from the ENE with a period of 10 seconds, offering a little bit of groundswell shape. The combined energy is weak (31), but the wind is offshore from the WNW at a light 6 mph. For a small-wave board, you might find a clean little ripple. It's a long way out, so don't hold your breath, but it's the only glimmer of clean, offshore conditions we've got.
Honestly, there's not much to get excited about. Croatan is a beach/jetty setup that's fairly consistent, so this blank run feels a bit more normal for the area during a slow summer pattern. It won't stay this way forever, and forecasts can change, but right now, I'd leave the board in the car for a while.
Stay tuned, Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 47mm), heaviest during Tue night. Warm (max 28°C on Tue afternoon, min 22°C on Mon morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Thu afternoon, min 23°C on Thu morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Monday 27 | Tuesday 28 | Wednesday 29 | Thursday 30 | Friday 31 | Saturday 1 | Sunday 2 | |||||||||||||||
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) | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SSE 6 | SE 8 | SE 7 | SE 8 | SE 7 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 7 | SE 4 | SSE 4 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SE 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 22 | 22 | 19 | 21 | 22 | 68 | 45 | 25 | 28 | 19 | 28 | 23 | 20 | 43 | 23 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 34 | 49 | 232 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | glassy | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 7:20PM1.10m | 7:40AM0.86m | 8:00PM1.12m | 8:21AM0.91m | 8:39PM1.13m | 9:02AM0.95m | 9:17PM1.12m | 9:42AM0.99m | 9:55PM1.11m | 10:21AM1.02m | 10:33PM1.08m | 11:02AM1.06m | 11:13PM1.04m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 12:48PM0.16m | 1:45AM0.13m | 1:34PM0.13m | 2:22AM0.09m | 2:17PM0.11m | 2:57AM0.06m | 2:58PM0.10m | 3:32AM0.03m | 3:40PM0.11m | 4:08AM0.02m | 4:22PM0.12m | 4:45AM0.02m | 5:09PM0.14m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:05 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — |
 | — | 8:15 | — | — | 8:14 | — | — | 8:13 | — | — | 8:12 | — | — | 8:10 | — | — | 8:09 | — | — | 8:08 | — |
mm | 4 | 10 | 2 | — | — | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
Temp °C | 25 | 26 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 26 | 25 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 27 | 26 | 24 | 26 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 25 | 26 | 28 | 27 |
Feels °C | 27 | 28 | 26 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 22 | 26 | 27 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 28 | 30 | 29 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SSE 6 | SE 8 | SE 7 | SE 8 | SE 7 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 7 | NE 6 | ESE 8 | NE 5 | NE 5 | NE 5 |
| kJ | 22 | 22 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 68 | 45 | 25 | 28 | 19 | 28 | 23 | 20 | 43 | 23 | 13 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | ENE 6 | NE 6 | N 3 | E 9 | E 9 | E 8 | N 3 | E 8 | NE 8 | NE 4 | NNE 5 | NE 6 | ESE 9 | SSE 6 | — | — | — |
| kJ | 13 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 4 | — | — | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | E 9 | — | NE 6 | NE 6 | E 8 | E 6 | NE 8 | E 6 | NE 6 | ESE 9 | — | ENE 5 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | — | 3 | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | S 3 | S 3 | S 3 | SSE 4 | WSW 3 | NW 3 | — | — | NNW 3 | — | SSW 2 | NNE 4 | — | — | — | SE 4 | SSE 4 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SE 8 |
| kJ | — | 5 | 6 | 5 | 22 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 4 | — | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | 12 | 11 | 34 | 49 | 232 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 563 | 78 | 748 | 1231 | 1142 | 0 | 165 | 175 | 78 | 175 | 467 | 78 | 78 | 324 | 95 | 292 | 622 | 585 | 352 | 927 | 16 |
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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 Croatan 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 Croatan Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Croatan provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Croatan can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Croatan 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 (Croatan) 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 Croatan 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.
Croatan is 7 km (4 miles) from the city of Virginia Beach. If you plan a vacation in Virginia, look for hotels and other accommodation in Virginia Beach. Virginia Beach has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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