Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 11 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: Tuesday 15 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 8s period, ENE swell with 151 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 1.2m 8s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 15) at 11PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.7m 3s period and expected on Monday (Sep 14) at 11AM.
| 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 | 11PM (Tue 15th Sep) | 4ft (1.2m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Yo, this is Rusty, checkin' in from the coast. First off, this outlook is a bit of a tough pill to swallow. We're looking at a solid 16-day window starting now, September 11th, and honestly, for a beginner-friendly spot like Croatan, it's a long wait for anything good. The first real nod comes on Monday, September 21st, so we've got a dry spell of over a week where the conditions just aren't worth paddling out for most of us. The water temperature is sitting at a very warm 80°, which is much warmer than normal for this time of year.
For Croatan, the best of what's on offer hits on Wednesday morning, September 23rd. We've got a clean 8ft swell pushing in from the east, with a gentle cross-offshore breeze from the NNW making for some clean lines. The combined energy is strong at 1462, which means there's some real push behind it. But look, 8ft is getting into expert territory for this beach/jetty setup, so keep that in mind. It's a grovel for the average bloke, but for the guys who know what they're doing, it'll be a session. Crowds are often an issue here, so expect company.
Now, a quick note on the other potential highlight: the morning of Tuesday, September 22nd, is showing a massive 10ft east swell with light wind, but the forecast flat out says it's too big for this break. So we'll leave that one for another day.
The rest of the window is a mix of onshore chop, cross-shore junk, and small weak swell. The weeks out are showing some big numbers again—like Friday, September 25th with a huge 12ft groundswell from the ENE—but again, it's flagged as too big for Croatan. It's a spot that just can't handle that kind of juice. Keep an eye on the longer-range forecasts, but for now, my advice is to be patient or look elsewhere.
Stay safe, keep your wax on, and don't fight the ocean on a bad day.
Rusty
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 17mm), heaviest on Sat night. Warm (max 29°C on Fri afternoon, min 23°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummarySome drizzle, heaviest during Mon morning. Warm (max 26°C on Mon morning, min 21°C on Tue night). Mainly fresh winds. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Friday 11 | Saturday 12 | Sunday 13 | Monday 14 | Tuesday 15 | Wednesday 16 | Thursday 17 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | SE 10 | ESE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | NNE 5 | NE 5 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | E 7 | E 8 | E 8 | E 7 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 17 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 32 | 23 | 36 | 41 | 40 | 31 | 61 | 74 | 39 | 57 | 123 | 130 | 107 | 79 | 105 | 93 | 54 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | off | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on |
High Tide | 8:22AM1.28m | 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 | ||||||||
 |  |  | | | |  | |  |  | | | | |  | | | |  | | | |
 | 6:41 | — | — | 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 | — | — | 2 | — | — | 10 | 1 | 4 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 28 | 29 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
Feels °C | 31 | 30 | 28 | 30 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 31 | 29 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 23 | 23 | 25 | 29 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 9 | SE 9 | NE 5 | ENE 5 | ESE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | E 14 | E 14 | ENE 8 | E 7 | E 8 | E 8 | E 7 |
| kJ | 17 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 7 | 9 | 36 | 41 | 40 | 31 | 31 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 4 | 4 | 107 | 79 | 105 | 93 | 54 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 5 | E 8 | NNE 3 | NE 4 | ESE 9 | SE 10 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | ENE 5 | E 5 | SSE 6 | E 15 | E 15 | E 15 | E 14 | — | E 14 | E 13 | E 13 | E 12 | E 13 |
| kJ | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 32 | 23 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | — | 4 | 4 | 13 | 12 | 12 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | — | E 11 | E 8 | — | E 9 | E 8 | E 8 | — | E 5 | — | — | — | E 15 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 1 | — | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 5 | — | — | — | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 3 | — | — | SE 2 | SE 3 | S 4 | SSE 4 | — | — | N 3 | NNE 5 | NE 5 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | — | — | — | — | SE 6 |
| kJ | 1 | — | — | 1 | 9 | 9 | 2 | — | — | 11 | 61 | 74 | 39 | 57 | 123 | 130 | — | — | — | — | 11 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 138 | 1239 | 138 | 916 | 1137 | 0 | 0 | 78 | 0 | 138 | 294 | 878 | 481 | 481 | 33 | 1132 | 481 | 619 | 252 | 1129 | 481 |
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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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