Farewell Spit Surf Break

Lat Long: 40.51° S 172.76° E

Farewell Spit Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 11 am 04 Aug 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's Farewell Spit sea temperature is
13.8° C
0.6° 

Farewell Spit surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


Farewell Spit surf forecast from 4 Aug 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Wednesday 5 Aug, 12AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 14s period, W swell with cross-offshore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Saturday 8 Aug, 12AM (local time) - 7.5ft (2.3m), 9s period, NW swell with 885 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 5 Aug, 12AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 14s period with W swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Farewell Spit this week:

The surf forecast for Farewell Spit over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 05) at 12AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.3m and 14s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Farewell Spit in the next 16 days are 2.3m 9s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 08) at 12AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.4m 5s period and expected on Monday (Aug 10) at 6PM.

Wave TypeTime (NZST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+)12AM (Wed 5th Aug)4.5ft (1.3m) 14s
Best Surf12AM (Wed 5th Aug)4.5ft (1.3m) 14s
Most Powerful12AM (Sat 8th Aug)7.5ft (2.3m) 9s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Farewell Spit over the next 16 days.


Short Range Forecast

Light rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Tue afternoon. Very mild (max 11°C on Tue morning, min 7°C on Tue night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the ENE on Tue morning, calm by Thu morning).

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Heavy rain (total 49mm), heaviest during Sat afternoon. Very mild (max 13°C on Fri night, min 11°C on Fri morning). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the N on Sat afternoon, light winds from the SSE by Sun afternoon).

Tuesday
4
Wednesday
5
Thursday
6
Friday
7
Saturday
8
Sunday
9
Monday
10
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
2
0
3
1
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
1.1
W
16
1.8
W
14
1.3
W
14
0.9
W
13
0.7
W
13
0.7
W
15
0.4
WSW
14
0.4
WSW
13
0.2
W
19
0.8
WNW
9
1.5
NW
9
2.3
NW
9
2.1
NW
8
1.8
NW
8
1.4
NNW
8
1.3
NNW
8
0.6
W
14
0.7
W
17
0.9
W
16
0.9
W
15
0.8
W
14
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
605
1340
682
280
166
209
66
58
29
90
382
885
567
378
257
186
138
268
402
348
264
Wind (km/h)
25
SW
20
NE
15
ESE
10
E
15
NNW
15
SSE
10
ESE
15
WNW
15
W
25
NW
30
NW
35
NW
25
WNW
45
N
30
W
20
W
20
W
25
E
35
ESE
35
ESE
45
ESE
Wind State
cross-off
cross-on
cross-off
cross
cross-on
off
cross-off
cross-on
cross
cross-on
cross-on
cross-on
cross-on
on
cross
cross-off
cross
cross
cross-off
cross-off
cross-off
High Tide
1:34PM2.98m
1:51AM3.04m
2:19PM2.89m
2:40AM2.91m
3:13PM2.79m
3:38AM2.77m
4:18PM2.71m
4:50AM2.68m
5:35PM2.70m
6:09AM2.68m
6:51PM2.81m
7:24AM2.80m
7:59PM3.00m
Low Tide
7:43PM0.43m
8:11AM0.39m
8:31PM0.55m
9:01AM0.52m
9:28PM0.68m
10:02AM0.64m
10:37PM0.77m
11:14AM0.70m
11:56PM0.76m
12:31PM0.65m
1:12AM0.63m
1:40PM0.51m
2:17AM0.43m
clear
rain showers
part cloud
part cloud
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
cloud
light rain
rain showers
heavy rain
rain showers
clear
clear
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
part cloud
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:31
7:31
7:30
7:28
7:26
7:26
7:24
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:37
5:38
5:39
5:40
5:42
5:43
5:44
 mm
3
4
12
15
18
Temp °C
11
11
9
8
10
9
8
10
11
12
12
13
12
12
12
13
13
12
10
11
11
Feels °C
4
6
2
4
5
5
5
6
6
5
5
7
7
4
5
10
9
7
3
3
1
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
How to use the Wavefinder 
submit an eyeball surf report

Quick surf report for Farewell Spit:

join our community of surf reporters

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 Farewell Spit 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 Farewell Spit Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Farewell Spit provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Farewell Spit can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Farewell Spit 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 (Farewell Spit) 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 Farewell Spit 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.

Are you planning a holiday in Nelson - West Coast? If you are looking for accommodation near Farewell Spit, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Nelson - West Coast, consider staying in Nelson which is 96 km (60 miles) away.

Nearest locationNearest