Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 30 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Tuesday 1 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 1ft (0.3m), 12s period, ESE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 2 Sep, 2PM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 10s period, ESE swell with 88 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 1 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 1ft (0.3m), 12s period with ESE 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 Tuesday (Sep 01) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.3m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 7s. Another secondary swell of 0.6m and 4s is also forecast. 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 0.7m 10s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 02) at 2PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 5s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 03) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Tue 1st Sep) | 1ft (0.3m) 12s |
| Best Surf | 11PM (Tue 1st Sep) | 1ft (0.3m) 12s |
| Most Powerful | 2PM (Wed 2nd Sep) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, surfers, Rusty here. Let's be straight with you: the next couple of weeks are looking pretty flat and grim for Croatan. We've got a long stretch of nothing on the cards, so don't be holding your breath for any hero waves just yet.
The water's sitting at 80°, which is a touch warmer than usual for this time of year – at least that's something to enjoy while we're all just floating around.
Looking at the whole 16-day window, there's a real gap in quality surf. From this Sunday the 30th all the way through to at least the end of the first week of September, it's small and poor. We're talking ankle-to-knee high dribble at best, with onshore breezes messing up what little is there. There are a couple of cleaner mornings with a cross-off breeze, like Monday the 31st and Tuesday the 1st, but the waves are still just too small to get excited about. It's flat, it's weak, and the atmosphere is dead.
The only real pulse, if you can call it that, shows up mid-period. On Monday the 7th of September, we see the surf bump to around 4ft. But here's the catch – it's coming with a stiff onshore easterly wind and a short, junky 5-second period. It's not going to be clean; it's going to be a mess. The period stays short and the onshore wind sticks around for Tuesday the 8th as well, but it's just not going to have any shape. This is more of a blown-out, bumpy mess than anything you'd want to paddle out into.
The second week just kind of fades away again. By the 13th and 14th, it's pathetic – flat, onshore, and just not worth the drive. There isn't a standout day in this whole forecast. It's a blank period. Still, Croatan is fairly consistent, so this kind of run doesn't usually last forever. Forecasts can and do change, so we'll keep an eye on it. Right now, though, I'd find something else to do.
That's it from me. Keep the waxed up for another day.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastSome drizzle, heaviest during Wed morning. Warm (max 31°C on Tue afternoon, min 25°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 17mm), heaviest on Thu night. Warm (max 37°C on Thu afternoon, min 23°C on Sat morning). Winds increasing (light winds from the ESE on Wed afternoon, fresh winds from the NNE by Thu night). | |||||||||||||||||||
Sun 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | ||||||||||||||
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 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 7 | ESE 7 | SE 7 | SE 7 | ESE 12 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | SSE 5 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | NNE 4 | NNE 4 | NE 5 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 13 | 16 | 23 | 56 | 19 | 12 | 24 | 46 | 64 | 85 | 47 | 31 | 30 | 37 | 13 | 23 | 12 | 17 | 13 | 10 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-off | glassy | cross-on | cross-off | glassy | on | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | off | cross | cross | on |
High Tide | 10:06PM1.12m | 10:32AM1.22m | 10:49PM1.07m | 11:16AM1.23m | 11:34PM1.02m | 12:04PM1.23m | 00:23AM0.97m | 12:57PM1.22m | 1:18AM0.93m | 1:58PM1.20m | 2:22AM0.91m | 3:06PM1.19m | 3:34AM0.92m | |||||||
Low Tide | 4:01PM0.09m | 4:12AM0.02m | 4:47PM0.11m | 4:54AM0.04m | 5:38PM0.14m | 5:40AM0.06m | 6:35PM0.17m | 6:32AM0.09m | 7:36PM0.20m | 7:31AM0.11m | 8:40PM0.21m | 8:34AM0.12m | 9:45PM0.20m | |||||||
 |  | | |  | | | |  | | | |  |  | |  | | | |  | |
 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — |
 | 7:35 | — | — | 7:34 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:29 | — | — | 7:28 | — | — | 7:25 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | 15 | — | 2 | — | — | — | 1 |
Temp °C | 27 | 26 | 28 | 30 | 27 | 29 | 31 | 29 | 30 | 33 | 31 | 31 | 37 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 26 | 23 | 25 | 24 |
Feels °C | 28 | 28 | 31 | 31 | 27 | 32 | 34 | 30 | 33 | 36 | 33 | 31 | 38 | 24 | 29 | 30 | 28 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | NE 5 | ESE 7 | SE 7 | ESE 13 | SE 9 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | SSE 5 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | NE 5 |
| kJ | 13 | 16 | 23 | 1 | 19 | 12 | 17 | 20 | 64 | 85 | 47 | 31 | 30 | 37 | 13 | 16 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 10 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 5 | SE 3 | NE 5 | E 9 | — | ESE 8 | ESE 13 | ESE 12 | SE 7 | — | E 6 | NE 6 | ENE 6 | SE 8 | S 6 | SE 8 | NE 4 | E 6 | E 7 | ESE 8 |
| kJ | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | 7 | 17 | 46 | 7 | — | 1 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 6 | 23 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | NE 5 | — | E 9 | — | — | — | — | S 4 | — | — | — | — | ENE 6 | — | — | — | — | — | E 9 |
| kJ | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 4 | — | — | SE 7 | S 4 | WSW 2 | SE 7 | S 4 | WSW 3 | — | S 5 | SSW 3 | S 3 | WSW 4 | N 3 | NNE 4 | — | NNE 4 | NNE 4 | — |
| kJ | 4 | — | — | 56 | 6 | 1 | 24 | 14 | 1 | — | 27 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 4 | — | 17 | 13 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1274 | 138 | 1063 | 1137 | 138 | 138 | 1258 | 0 | 0 | 1258 | 204 | 14 | 175 | 175 | 292 | 356 | 294 | 1664 | 2601 | 1952 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Virginia | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | ||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
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 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.
Nearest