Surf Forecasts:
Driftwoods surf forecast from 12 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 16 Jul, 5AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 9s period, WNW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 16 Jul, 5AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 9s period, WNW swell with 395 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 12 Jul, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 14s period with SSW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Driftwoods this week:
The surf forecast for Driftwoods over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Jul 12) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.5m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 9s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Driftwoods in the next 16 days are 1.6m 9s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 16) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.7m 6s period and expected on Wednesday (Jul 15) at 11PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Sun 12th Jul) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Thu 16th Jul) | 5ft (1.6m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Thu 16th Jul) | 5ft (1.6m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Driftwoods over the next 16 days.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 32°C on Tue afternoon, min 19°C on Sun morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 34°C on Wed afternoon, min 18°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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) | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | S 12 | SW 18 | SW 18 | WNW 8 | WNW 6 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | SW 19 | WNW 17 | WNW 17 | SW 18 | SSE 14 | SSE 12 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 163 | 136 | 104 | 139 | 141 | 68 | 26 | 52 | 109 | 155 | 223 | 213 | 300 | 307 | 216 | 106 | 97 | 95 | 152 | 229 | 213 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | glassy | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross | on | cross-on | glassy |
High Tide | 9:53AM1.46m | 8:23PM2.47m | 10:38AM1.52m | 9:15PM2.51m | 11:20AM1.58m | 10:06PM2.48m | 12:03PM1.64m | 10:56PM2.37m | 12:45PM1.70m | 11:46PM2.18m | 1:27PM1.75m | 00:38AM1.94m | 2:10PM1.80m | 1:34AM1.67m | |||||||
Low Tide | 1:54PM1.11m | 3:56AM-0.12m | 2:53PM1.07m | 4:42AM-0.16m | 3:49PM1.03m | 5:26AM-0.12m | 4:46PM0.99m | 6:08AM-0.01m | 5:45PM0.97m | 6:48AM0.15m | 6:48PM0.96m | 7:27AM0.35m | 7:58PM0.95m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  | | | | |
 | 5:56 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — |
 | — | 8:13 | — | — | 8:13 | — | — | 8:13 | — | — | 8:12 | — | — | 8:12 | — | — | 8:10 | — | — | 8:10 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 24 | 26 | 21 | 27 | 28 | 23 | 28 | 32 | 29 | 32 | 34 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 18 | 27 | 27 | 23 |
Feels °C | 25 | 26 | 21 | 27 | 28 | 23 | 28 | 30 | 25 | 31 | 30 | 25 | 28 | 29 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 18 | 27 | 26 | 23 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | W 4 | W 4 | SSW 12 | SW 18 | WNW 8 | SW 16 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | SSE 15 | SSE 14 | SSE 12 |
| kJ | 163 | 136 | 104 | 139 | 141 | 7 | 5 | 52 | 109 | 155 | 93 | 213 | 300 | 307 | 216 | 106 | 84 | 43 | 121 | 229 | 213 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 9 | S 15 | WNW 9 | NW 9 | WNW 9 | SSW 13 | S 12 | NW 8 | SSW 13 | SW 17 | W 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 19 | WNW 18 | WNW 17 | WNW 17 | SW 18 | WNW 16 | WNW 16 |
| kJ | 27 | 67 | 34 | 22 | 28 | 68 | 26 | 17 | 56 | 77 | 31 | 90 | 89 | 87 | 92 | 104 | 97 | 95 | 152 | 144 | 142 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 18 | WNW 9 | S 16 | W 16 | SW 19 | NW 9 | NW 9 | SW 18 | WNW 14 | W 13 | S 12 | W 13 | WNW 20 | WNW 19 | WNW 19 | SW 19 | SW 14 | SW 17 | WNW 16 | SW 18 | WNW 8 |
| kJ | 25 | 16 | 45 | 19 | 59 | 21 | 20 | 49 | 41 | 32 | 11 | 14 | 38 | 72 | 69 | 94 | 54 | 77 | 146 | 116 | 22 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | WNW 4 | W 5 | WNW 5 | — | WNW 6 | WNW 6 | — | — | ESE 3 | SE 4 | SE 4 | SE 4 | — | WNW 8 | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 18 | 97 | — | 223 | 127 | — | — | 1 | 8 | 14 | 2 | — | 23 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 5 | 8 | 0 | 157 | 8 | 1 | 42 | 7 | 0 | 34 | 42 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 46 | 5 | 5 | 239 | 8 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Barbara | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Driftwoods 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 Driftwoods Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Driftwoods provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Driftwoods can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Driftwoods 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 (Driftwoods) 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 Driftwoods 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.
Driftwoods is 7 km (4 miles) from Isla Vista. If you plan a vacation in Santa Barbara, look for hotels and other accommodation in Isla Vista. Isla Vista has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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