Surf Forecasts:
Croatan surf forecast from 11 Aug 2026:
- Most powerful swell: Monday 17 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 4s period, S swell with 46 kJ wave energy.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Croatan this week:
The most powerful waves expected at Croatan in the next 16 days are 1.1m 4s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 17) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 4s period and expected on Monday (Aug 17) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | - | - |
| Best Surf | - | - |
| Most Powerful | 2AM (Mon 17th Aug) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 4s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Croatan over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what’s cooking at Croatan.
Right off the bat, the next week and a half is a tough one. We’re looking at a long stretch of flat to tiny, junky surf that’s just not worth paddling out for. From Tuesday the 11th all the way through to Wednesday the 20th of August, it’s a big gap with nothing rideable – mostly knee-high slop with weak energy (values between 4 and 30), short periods under 8 seconds, and onshore or cross-shore winds that’ll leave the surface chopped.
The first real glimmer of hope comes on Thursday morning, the 20th of August. Croatan wakes up glassy – light SW wind, clean as a whistle – with a waist-high 2ft swell pushing in from the east, a 10-second period giving it a bit of shape. The combined energy is 78, so it’s not pumping, but it’s surfable after all that flatness. This is the best session of the whole outlook, and crowds are likely here, so expect company.
We get a tiny window again on Sunday the 23rd of August with a 4ft NNE swell, but that’s short-period stuff (4 seconds) and a cross-off wind in the morning. It’s not clean enough to get excited about, and the energy is still weak. The water temp is normal for this time of year, no major anomaly to report.
Honestly, for the next two weeks, the tiny, weak pulses with short periods and mostly cross or onshore winds mean this is more of a kite-surfing setup on the afternoons when the breeze picks up, rather than a proper paddle session. Keep your expectations low and watch for a change in the forecast.
- Rusty
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 6mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Warm (max 33°C on Mon night, min 22°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 4mm), mostly falling on Thu night. Warm (max 28°C on Sun afternoon, min 23°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 11 | Wednesday 12 | Thursday 13 | Friday 14 | Saturday 15 | Sunday 16 | ||||||||||||||
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 6 | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | SSE 4 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SSE 6 | SSE 7 | SE 7 | SE 7 | NE 5 | NE 5 | ESE 8 | SE 3 | S 4 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 9 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 14 | 9 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 9 | 6 | 12 | 46 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | off | cross-off | glassy | off | cross-off | cross-on | cross | off | on | off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-off |
High Tide | 6:57AM1.05m | 7:27PM1.31m | 7:52AM1.12m | 8:17PM1.30m | 8:44AM1.17m | 9:05PM1.27m | 9:33AM1.21m | 9:50PM1.21m | 10:21AM1.21m | 10:33PM1.13m | 11:07AM1.20m | 11:16PM1.04m | |||||||
Low Tide | 1:02AM0.01m | 12:59PM-0.07m | 1:52AM-0.04m | 1:56PM-0.09m | 2:39AM-0.07m | 2:48PM-0.08m | 3:23AM-0.08m | 3:38PM-0.04m | 4:05AM-0.06m | 4:28PM0.02m | 4:47AM-0.02m | 5:19PM0.10m | |||||||
 |  | |  | | |  | | |  |  | |  | | | | | | | |
 | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — |
 | 8:00 | — | 8:00 | — | — | 7:59 | — | — | 7:57 | — | — | 7:55 | — | — | 7:54 | — | — | 7:53 | — |
mm | — | — | — | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 33 | 29 | 33 | 24 | 26 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 32 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 25 | 28 | 28 |
Feels °C | 34 | 32 | 35 | 22 | 25 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 34 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 24 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 25 | 27 | 27 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 6 | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | SSE 4 | SE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 3 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SSE 6 | SSE 7 | SE 7 | SE 7 | SSE 7 | NE 5 | NE 5 | NE 5 | ESE 8 |
| kJ | 9 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 14 | 9 | 13 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 6 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | SE 6 | E 9 | SE 8 | — | SE 6 | E 7 | ESE 8 | SE 3 | E 10 | E 13 | ESE 8 | E 12 | E 12 | SE 8 | SSE 6 | ESE 8 | — | NE 5 |
| kJ | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | — | 1 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 6 | — | 1 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | E 9 | E 8 | E 8 | SE 6 | E 8 | S 5 | NE 4 | NE 4 | E 8 | E 7 | E 10 | E 7 | — | E 12 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | — | — |
| kJ | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | 3 | 7 | 6 | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 3 | — | — | WNW 3 | WNW 3 | NNW 3 | SSE 3 | — | — | S 3 | WSW 3 | N 3 | NNE 4 | NE 4 | NE 5 | ESE 3 | SSE 5 | SE 3 | S 4 |
| kJ | 1 | — | — | 6 | 4 | 2 | 3 | — | — | 4 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 46 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 294 | 299 | 2696 | 242 | 242 | 1664 | 1289 | 2065 | 1147 | 260 | 176 | 242 | 242 | 335 | 526 | 484 | 927 | 1137 | 697 |
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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