Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 3 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 4 Sep, 8PM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 5s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Monday 7 Sep, 5PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 10s period, ENE swell with 214 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 4 Sep, 8PM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 5s period with S 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 Friday (Sep 04) at 8PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.7m and 5s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 4s. Another secondary swell of 0.3m and 8s 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 10s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Sep 07) at 5PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.0m 4s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 10) at 2AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 8PM (Fri 4th Sep) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 5s |
| Best Surf | 8PM (Fri 4th Sep) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 5s |
| Most Powerful | 5PM (Mon 7th Sep) | 3.5ft (1.0m) 10s |
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 the cards for the next couple of weeks.
Alright, let's be straight with you. The next 16 days are looking pretty flat for the most part. We've got a real gap in the action here. Honestly, there's no standout, no real "go" button in this whole window. The water's warm though, at 81°F, which is a couple of degrees warmer than you'd usually expect for this time of year – feels like a bath out there.
The first real whisper of anything happens on the morning of Monday the 7th of September. Croatan (United States) will see a bump to 4ft from the ENE, but it's a short period windswell at 7 seconds, and the wind is a nasty cross-onshore breeze at 12 mph. It's going to be a choppy, messy mess. The energy is moderate at best (109), but it's just not surfable. The afternoon actually sees the swell jump a bit more, with a 3ft ENE swell and a longer period of 10 seconds, pushing the energy up to 228 – that's a solid moderate push. But the wind swings directly onshore, ruining any chance of a clean wave. It's a write-off.
The rest of the week into the second week is a sad story of tiny, weak waves. We get a few mornings with a light offshore, like the 14th of September with a 2ft SE swell and a clean cross-off breeze, but the swell is just too small to get excited about. The energy is weak (38). There's a glassy morning on the 13th of September, but again, it's only 1ft. It's the kind of stuff that'll have you staring at a flat ocean.
The last few days of the forecast, from the 17th of September onwards, we see the swell trying to build again, but the period is shockingly short – 4 and 5 seconds. It's just wind chop. The energy creeps up to 155 on the afternoon of the 18th, but it's a direct onshore wind and a 3ft mess. It's hard to recommend this for anyone but a kite surfer, honestly.
So, to sum it up: there's no best day. The entire 16-day window is a bust for any decent paddle surfing. The waves are either too small, too onshore, or both. It's one of those quiet periods for the area. Don't hold your breath, but you know how it goes – forecasts can change.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Fri night. Warm (max 35°C on Fri afternoon, min 23°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 25°C on Sun afternoon, min 23°C on Sun morning). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | |||||||||||||||
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 9 | ESE 9 | S 4 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | SSE 6 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | NE 4 | ESE 8 | NE 8 | ENE 5 | ENE 7 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | NE 9 | ESE 9 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 45 | 30 | 20 | 13 | 17 | 26 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 30 | 44 | 102 | 214 | 109 | 83 | 54 | 33 | 32 | 19 | 8 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | off | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | glassy | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 12:57PM1.22m | 1:18AM0.93m | 1:58PM1.20m | 2:22AM0.91m | 3:06PM1.19m | 3:34AM0.92m | 4:18PM1.20m | 4:45AM0.98m | 5:24PM1.23m | 5:49AM1.06m | 6:20PM1.25m | 6:45AM1.15m | 7:10PM1.26m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 7:36PM0.20m | 7:31AM0.11m | 8:40PM0.21m | 8:34AM0.12m | 9:45PM0.20m | 9:40AM0.10m | 10:49PM0.17m | 10:47AM0.08m | 11:48PM0.12m | 11:51AM0.04m | 00:41AM0.06m | 12:50PM0.00m | 1:28AM0.01m | ||||||||
 |  |  | | |  | | | | | |  | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:35 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:37 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — |
 | — | 7:29 | — | — | 7:28 | — | — | 7:25 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:23 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:21 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 30 | 32 | 31 | 30 | 35 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 26 | 24 | 25 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 26 | 25 |
Feels °C | 33 | 35 | 33 | 31 | 36 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 26 | 22 | 23 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 23 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 9 | ESE 9 | S 4 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | SSE 6 | ESE 8 | ENE 7 | NE 4 | ESE 8 | ESE 9 | S 5 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | ENE 10 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | NE 9 | ENE 8 |
| kJ | 45 | 30 | 20 | 13 | 17 | 26 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 109 | 83 | 54 | 33 | 32 | 19 | 7 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 6 | NE 6 | ESE 8 | ENE 6 | ENE 5 | ESE 8 | ENE 6 | ESE 8 | ESE 3 | E 8 | — | S 5 | — | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 5 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 |
| kJ | 8 | 8 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 6 | — | 1 | — | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 8 | 8 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | ENE 6 | SSW 4 | NE 5 | E 5 | SSE 6 | S 6 | SSE 3 | — | S 5 | — | — | — | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | E 10 | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | — | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 2 | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | SSE 2 | W 3 | W 3 | — | WSW 3 | N 3 | NNE 3 | SE 3 | NE 5 | NE 8 | ENE 5 | ENE 7 | ENE 10 | ESE 5 | — | SE 5 | SE 5 | SW 2 | SSE 3 | S 4 |
| kJ | — | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 30 | 44 | 102 | 214 | 10 | — | 6 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 38 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 196 | 0 | 540 | 1231 | 294 | 299 | 2301 | 138 | 1142 | 439 | 270 | 255 | 228 | 137 | 137 | 2208 | 0 | 0 | 2696 | 1957 |
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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