Surf Forecasts:
Dondra surf forecast from 12 Jul 2026:
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 12 Jul, 2PM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 10s period, W swell with 524 kJ wave energy.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Dondra this week:
The most powerful waves expected at Dondra in the next 16 days are 1.7m 10s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Jul 12) at 2PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.5m 6s period and expected on Tuesday (Jul 14) at 2PM.
| Wave Type | Time (+0530) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | - | - |
| Best Surf | - | - |
| Most Powerful | 2PM (Sun 12th Jul) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Dondra over the next 16 days.
Alright folks, Rusty again with the imperial update for Dondra.
Quiet start on the horizon. The first week’s surf is flat and windblown. Cross-off winds from the west at 15–18 mph are the main story, keeping the ocean messy and the waves in the 2–3 ft range. Because Dondra is a reef break that rarely gets consistent action, this slow stretch makes sense for the area.
Water temps are running about 82°, which is normal, so you can’t blame the sea temperature for holding back the surf. The first week barely has more than a few salvagable sessions — each rating being “marginal” or “poor.” On July 18th and 19th, it’s outright “poor,” so save your energy.
The only day worth pointing to is July 20th (Monday). That morning a long-period S swell arrives at 5 ft with an 18-second period, and combined energy around 1879. The afternoon pushes to 6 ft S swell (16-second period) with max energy of 1899. This qualifies as the best on offer, but the cross-off wind from the west at 15 mph will still chop the surface up. It’s still a long way off, so consider it promising but not locked in.
After that brief action, the swell fades quickly into the low-to-mid 3 ft range, with drop-off happening fast through the end of the month. Dondra is not a break that fires reliably, so a slow run isn’t out of the ordinary here. Only the boldest should pencil in the 20th, and even then, don’t expect glassy perfection.
That’s the story from here.
Rusty
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Sun morning. Warm (max 29°C on Sun morning, min 26°C on Tue night). Mainly fresh winds. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 4mm), mostly falling on Thu night. Warm (max 29°C on Wed morning, min 26°C on Wed night). Mainly fresh winds. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 12 | Monday 13 | Tuesday 14 | Wednesday 15 | Thursday 16 | Friday 17 | Saturday 18 | |||||||||||||||
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) | W 10 | W 9 | S 12 | W 7 | S 11 | S 12 | SSW 18 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 16 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 474 | 502 | 365 | 271 | 371 | 464 | 438 | 427 | 402 | 403 | 468 | 506 | 482 | 482 | 482 | 367 | 362 | 347 | 272 | 225 | 222 |
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-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 1:04PM0.50m | 1:44AM0.37m | 1:51PM0.52m | 2:27AM0.41m | 2:31PM0.54m | 3:06AM0.45m | 3:06PM0.54m | 3:43AM0.48m | 3:39PM0.53m | 4:19AM0.49m | 4:09PM0.52m | 4:54AM0.49m | 4:39PM0.49m | 5:28AM0.48m | |||||||
Low Tide | 7:52PM0.11m | 7:21AM0.13m | 8:28PM0.07m | 8:11AM0.10m | 9:01PM0.04m | 8:54AM0.09m | 9:33PM0.02m | 9:34AM0.09m | 10:04PM0.01m | 10:11AM0.10m | 10:33PM0.01m | 10:46AM0.12m | 11:02PM0.02m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | |  | |  | | | | | | |  | | | | | | | |
 | 5:58 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — |
 | — | 6:25 | — | — | 6:25 | — | — | 6:25 | — | — | 6:25 | — | — | 6:25 | — | — | 6:25 | — | — | 6:25 | — |
mm | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
Temp °C | 29 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 29 | 29 | 26 | 29 | 29 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 26 |
Feels °C | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 27 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 12 | S 12 | S 12 | SSW 12 | S 11 | S 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 11 | S 11 | S 11 | S 11 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SW 14 | S 8 | S 8 |
| kJ | 304 | 377 | 365 | 237 | 371 | 464 | 408 | 342 | 287 | 284 | 235 | 223 | 482 | 482 | 482 | 367 | 362 | 347 | 272 | 124 | 113 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | S 12 | SSW 19 | SSW 18 | SSW 18 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 15 | SSW 16 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | S 9 | S 7 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 |
| kJ | 40 | 29 | 28 | 108 | 295 | 377 | 438 | 427 | 402 | 403 | 468 | 506 | 170 | 170 | 131 | 98 | 98 | 61 | 61 | 225 | 222 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 15 | SW 15 | SSW 20 | SSW 21 | SE 8 | SE 8 | — | SSE 13 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SE 9 | WNW 10 | WNW 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SE 8 |
| kJ | 54 | 33 | 77 | 151 | 24 | 17 | — | 33 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 33 | 29 | 17 | 17 | 11 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 10 | W 9 | W 6 | W 7 | W 8 | W 7 | W 7 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | WSW 5 | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 |
| kJ | 474 | 502 | 214 | 271 | 248 | 173 | 168 | 176 | 135 | 137 | 108 | 89 | 94 | 94 | 84 | 198 | 188 | 160 | 162 | 130 | 121 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 174 | 395 | 175 | 174 | 175 | 175 | 175 | 174 | 175 | 174 | 174 | 175 | 174 | 167 | 175 | 174 | 174 | 395 | 174 | 803 | 175 |
Best forecast wave conditions in West Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Dondra 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 Dondra Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Dondra provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Dondra can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Dondra 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 (Dondra) 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 Dondra 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.
Dondra is 8 km (5 miles) from Matara. If you plan a holiday in West Sri Lanka, look for hotels and other accommodation in Matara. Matara has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest