Surf Forecasts:
Driftwoods surf forecast from 24 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 26 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 16s period, SW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 30 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 9s period, WNW swell with 344 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 23 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 18s period with SW 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 (Aug 23) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.4m and 18s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 13s. Another secondary swell of 0.8m and 5s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Driftwoods in the next 16 days are 1.5m 9s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 30) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.8m 6s period and expected on Sunday (Aug 30) at 11PM.
| Wave Type | Time (PDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Sun 23rd Aug) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 18s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Wed 26th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Sun 30th Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Driftwoods over the next 16 days.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 36°C on Tue afternoon, min 25°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 35°C on Wed afternoon, min 24°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Sun 23 | Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 18 | SW 17 | SW 17 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | SSE 11 | S 10 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 | SW 16 | SW 18 | SSW 17 | WNW 9 | WNW 6 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 79 | 112 | 109 | 98 | 135 | 130 | 91 | 89 | 140 | 147 | 142 | 123 | 106 | 197 | 94 | 90 | 246 | 197 | 237 | 201 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross | off | on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-on | cross | cross-off |
High Tide | 7:17PM1.97m | 9:31AM1.49m | 7:57PM2.04m | 9:50AM1.54m | 8:34PM2.09m | 10:09AM1.59m | 9:10PM2.11m | 10:30AM1.66m | 9:45PM2.07m | 10:51AM1.73m | 10:22PM1.99m | 11:14AM1.81m | 11:01PM1.86m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:46AM0.33m | 1:52PM1.16m | 3:15AM0.27m | 2:29PM1.07m | 3:42AM0.25m | 3:05PM0.98m | 4:07AM0.27m | 3:43PM0.89m | 4:32AM0.32m | 4:22PM0.81m | 4:56AM0.41m | 5:03PM0.74m | ||||||||
 |  | | | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | | | | | |
 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — |
 | 7:37 | — | — | 7:36 | — | — | 7:35 | — | — | 7:34 | — | — | 7:31 | — | — | 7:30 | — | — | 7:30 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 31 | 28 | 31 | 32 | 29 | 33 | 36 | 29 | 35 | 35 | 30 | 32 | 33 | 28 | 33 | 33 | 29 | 34 | 36 | 27 |
Feels °C | 32 | 28 | 30 | 31 | 26 | 31 | 33 | 26 | 34 | 34 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 28 | 32 | 32 | 27 | 32 | 34 | 22 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 13 | SW 18 | W 5 | SW 17 | SW 17 | WNW 5 | S 13 | SSE 12 | WNW 7 | WNW 7 | SSE 12 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | WNW 8 | S 9 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | SSW 16 | SW 16 |
| kJ | 57 | 112 | 11 | 98 | 135 | 27 | 55 | 85 | 54 | 69 | 142 | 90 | 87 | 197 | 94 | 43 | 116 | 169 | 171 | 201 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 18 | SSW 14 | SW 18 | SSW 12 | S 13 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SSE 12 | SSE 12 | WNW 8 | SSE 11 | S 10 | S 11 | S 10 | W 10 | SW 18 | SSW 17 | S 16 | S 16 |
| kJ | 79 | 65 | 109 | 28 | 55 | 130 | 91 | 89 | 140 | 147 | 62 | 123 | 106 | 82 | 47 | 33 | 246 | 197 | 127 | 124 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | S 14 | S 14 | SSE 10 | S 13 | SSE 10 | W 15 | SW 16 | SW 16 | WNW 5 | SW 14 | SW 14 | W 11 | W 10 | SW 16 | S 18 | S 17 | S 9 | S 8 |
| kJ | 9 | 15 | 37 | 36 | 10 | 55 | 10 | 40 | 124 | 119 | 25 | 74 | 73 | 39 | 32 | 69 | 152 | 91 | 14 | 6 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 7 | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | W 4 | WNW 5 | — | WNW 5 | WNW 5 | WNW 7 | — | WNW 5 | — | — | — | — | WNW 8 | WNW 6 | — | WNW 9 | WNW 6 |
| kJ | 55 | 33 | 19 | 15 | 36 | — | 36 | 78 | 43 | — | 33 | — | — | — | — | 90 | 53 | — | 237 | 166 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 8 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 17 | 0 | 47 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 42 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Barbara | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | ||||||||||||||||||||
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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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