Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 21 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 22 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 8s period, SE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Tuesday 21 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 7s period, S swell with 297 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 22 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 8s 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 Wednesday (Jul 22) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.1m and 8s period. 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 1.8m 7s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Jul 21) at 11PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 3s period and expected on Tuesday (Jul 21) at 8AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Wed 22nd Jul) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 11PM (Wed 22nd Jul) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 11PM (Tue 21st Jul) | 6ft (1.8m) 7s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let me tell you what I see for the next few weeks around here. Honestly, it’s a pretty grim stretch of days for a paddle. The first real chance of anything surfable doesn’t show up until Sunday the 26th, and even then, it’s barely a whisper.
We’ve got a solid week of nothing but small, messy, and blown-out conditions. From Tuesday the 21st all the way through to Saturday the 26th morning, it’s just a whole lot of poor surf. The winds are mostly cross-shore or cross-onshore, with speeds up to 19 mph, and the swell is tiny, if it’s even there at all. That’s a five-day gap with absolutely nothing to get excited about.
Now, there’s a brief moment on the morning of Sunday the 26th at Croatan. It’s a beach and jetty break, a beginner-friendly spot. We’re looking at some swell from the ESE at 2 feet, with a period of 8 seconds. The combined energy is a weak 57, so it’s not gonna have much push. But the wind goes glassy, dead calm. That’s a massive positive. The water temperature is about average for the time of year, so no major surprises there. You’ll get a few ridable, very ordinary waves, but you won’t be sharing them with many people – the crowds are only “often” here, so it might be a quiet little session. It’s a one-out-of-ten kind of day, but for a beginner or someone who just needs to get wet, it’s the best on offer.
After that, it’s back to the same old story. Small, weak, and mostly onshore until the very end of the forecast. The morning of Saturday the 1st of August has another moment of glassy conditions with a 3-foot, 8-second ESE swell. That’s the other standout, but it’s still a very small wave. The rest of the first week of August is just tiny, weak, and choppy. For the experienced surfers, there’s nothing here. The setup is more interesting for the kite surfers if the wind picks up, but for a paddle, it’s a long wait for small, clean waves.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 84mm), heaviest during Tue night. Warm (max 33°C on Tue afternoon, min 21°C on Thu morning). Winds increasing (light winds from the SSW on Mon night, fresh winds from the SW by Wed afternoon). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 13mm), heaviest on Fri night. Warm (max 24°C on Thu night, min 22°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 21 | Wednesday 22 | Thursday 23 | Friday 24 | Saturday 25 | Sunday 26 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SSE 5 | ESE 8 | S 5 | SSE 7 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | NE 6 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ESE 8 | ESE 7 | ESE 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 5 | 6 | 43 | 176 | 138 | 109 | 136 | 84 | 187 | 90 | 94 | 61 | 39 | 31 | 30 | 33 | 40 | 33 | 32 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | glassy | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 1:21AM0.87m | 2:10PM1.05m | 2:11AM0.79m | 3:05PM1.03m | 3:08AM0.74m | 4:02PM1.02m | 4:12AM0.72m | 4:58PM1.03m | 5:15AM0.73m | 5:50PM1.05m | 6:09AM0.76m | 6:37PM1.08m | |||||||
Low Tide | 7:44AM0.09m | 8:39PM0.22m | 8:30AM0.13m | 9:36PM0.24m | 9:18AM0.17m | 10:33PM0.25m | 10:10AM0.20m | 11:29PM0.24m | 11:04AM0.20m | 00:21AM0.21m | 11:58AM0.18m | 1:06AM0.17m | |||||||
 |  | |  |  |  | |  |  |  | | |  | | |  | |  | | |
 | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — |
 | 8:20 | — | 8:19 | — | — | 8:17 | — | — | 8:17 | — | — | 8:16 | — | — | 8:15 | — | — | 8:15 | — |
mm | — | — | — | 30 | 7 | — | 31 | 14 | 2 | — | — | — | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | 2 | 3 | 1 |
Temp °C | 26 | 29 | 33 | 28 | 25 | 28 | 25 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 23 |
Feels °C | 29 | 29 | 32 | 29 | 25 | 27 | 26 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 21 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 25 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 25 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 4 | ESE 8 | — | — | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 7 | SE 8 | SE 8 | NE 6 | ESE 7 | ESE 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 |
| kJ | 3 | 6 | — | — | 138 | 109 | 136 | 84 | 36 | 18 | 31 | 32 | 24 | 31 | 30 | 33 | 40 | 33 | 32 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 8 | — | — | — | — | WNW 3 | — | — | SE 8 | S 7 | — | SSE 5 | ESE 8 | NE 6 | NE 5 | SSE 4 | SSE 6 | NNE 5 | NE 4 |
| kJ | 2 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | 31 | 8 | — | 2 | 39 | 15 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 1 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 12 | E 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | NE 5 | NE 5 | — | — |
| kJ | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 3 | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 5 | SSW 4 | S 5 | SSE 7 | SW 4 | — | — | NNE 4 | NE 6 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | — | — | SE 3 | WSW 3 | N 5 | — | S 3 |
| kJ | 5 | 16 | 43 | 176 | 15 | — | — | 24 | 187 | 90 | 94 | 61 | — | — | 6 | 1 | 7 | — | 5 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 881 | 1132 | 1132 | 797 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 138 | 242 | 176 | 299 | 260 | 78 | 176 | 79 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 138 |
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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