Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 12 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 12 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 9s period, SE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 16 Sep, 2PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 8s period, ENE swell with 147 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 12 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 9s period with SE 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 Saturday (Sep 12) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.4m and 9s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 5s. 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 1.0m 8s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 16) 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 0.4m 3s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 13) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Sat 12th Sep) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 9s |
| Best Surf | 11PM (Sat 12th Sep) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 2PM (Wed 16th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let's call it like it is. This stretch is a bit of a bummer. We only have Croatan to look at, and for the next 16 days, the surf is mostly a no-go.
There's a big gap of nothing good right from the start. The first time you might even consider it is on Sunday, September 13th. The waves are tiny, just 1ft to 2ft from the ESE with a short period of 9 to 10 seconds. The energy is weak. But, on Sunday morning we get a clean offshore wind from the W, and Sunday afternoon goes glassy. For a wave that small, that's as good as it gets. It's surfable but nothing special. After that, it's back to poor conditions for most of the following week.
The water temp is 80°, which is a good 5° warmer than normal. That’s very unusual, so forget the wetsuit.
We get a little more swell around Tuesday, September 15th and Wednesday the 16th, with waves building to 3ft from the NE. The energy gets into the moderate range, but the wind is a messy cross-onshore at 12-15 mph. It’ll be too choppy to enjoy.
The same pattern holds for the weekend of the 20th and 21st. The swell pushes up to 4ft to 5ft from the NE and E, and the energy gets strong. But it's paired with onshore winds and rain, keeping the "poor surf conditions" label. It’s just not clean.
Then, in the second week, around September 22nd and 23rd, the swell runs 5ft to 6ft from the ENE. The energy gets very strong. But the wind is howling from the NE at 25 to 28 mph, creating a total mess. It would be big enough for experts only, but with that wind, it’s going to be a washing machine. At that point, you might as well leave the surfboard at home; it's a kite-surfing day at Croatan. The last few days of the month see the swell drop and the strong onshore winds continue.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 21mm), heaviest during Sat night. Warm (max 29°C on Fri afternoon, min 23°C on Sun morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummarySome drizzle, heaviest during Mon afternoon. Warm (max 24°C on Mon afternoon, min 20°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Fri 11 | Saturday 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SE 8 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | SE 10 | ESE 10 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | NE 5 | NE 6 | NE 6 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | E 8 | ENE 8 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 17 | 20 | 20 | 32 | 23 | 36 | 41 | 32 | 31 | 31 | 82 | 69 | 95 | 132 | 140 | 147 | 120 | 87 | 80 | 45 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | off | glassy | glassy | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-off |
High Tide | 8:39PM1.21m | 9:07AM1.30m | 9:21PM1.16m | 9:51AM1.29m | 10:02PM1.09m | 10:33AM1.25m | 10:43PM1.02m | 11:15AM1.20m | 11:24PM0.95m | 11:58AM1.14m | 00:08AM0.88m | 12:44PM1.08m | 00:56AM0.83m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:33PM-0.01m | 2:51AM-0.02m | 3:18PM0.03m | 3:30AM0.00m | 4:03PM0.08m | 4:09AM0.05m | 4:48PM0.15m | 4:49AM0.12m | 5:35PM0.22m | 5:31AM0.20m | 6:25PM0.28m | 6:18AM0.27m | 7:18PM0.33m | |||||||
 |  |  | |  |  | | | | |  | | | | | |  | | | | |
 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:45 | — | — | 6:46 | — | — | 6:47 | — | — |
 | 7:17 | — | — | 7:15 | — | — | 7:15 | — | — | 7:13 | — | — | 7:12 | — | — | 7:09 | — | — | 7:07 | — |
mm | — | 1 | — | — | 9 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 29 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 25 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 24 |
Feels °C | 31 | 28 | 30 | 30 | 28 | 28 | 31 | 30 | 29 | 22 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 18 | 19 | 22 | 24 | 25 | 27 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 8 | SE 9 | NE 5 | NE 5 | ENE 5 | ESE 10 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | E 8 | ENE 8 |
| kJ | 17 | 20 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 36 | 41 | 32 | 31 | 31 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 132 | 140 | 147 | 120 | 87 | 80 | 45 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | NE 4 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | SE 10 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | — | E 15 | E 15 | E 15 | E 14 | E 14 | E 14 | E 13 | E 13 | E 12 | SE 5 |
| kJ | 1 | 3 | 20 | 32 | 23 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | — | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 12 | 7 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | E 11 | — | — | E 9 | SSE 4 | E 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | E 13 |
| kJ | — | 2 | — | — | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 13 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | N 2 | — | — | SE 3 | SSE 4 | WSW 2 | S 5 | — | N 3 | NNE 4 | NE 5 | NE 6 | NE 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | SSW 2 |
| kJ | 1 | — | — | 8 | 7 | 1 | 7 | — | 2 | 30 | 82 | 69 | 95 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1242 | 138 | 643 | 1137 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 176 | 467 | 878 | 481 | 481 | 255 | 465 | 378 | 252 | 258 | 1047 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Virginia | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
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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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