Ilbaritz - Bora Bora Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Look, I’ll be straight with ya – this is a tough run for Ilbaritz - Bora Bora. We’re looking at a full 16-day window, and frankly, there’s no good surf on offer to get excited about. It’s a proper dry spell, with nothing that shapes up as a proper session. When it’s this quiet, it’s not unusual for the area – sometimes the ocean just goes to sleep.

The water’s sitting at a very unusual 76°, which is a couple of degrees above what you’d normally expect for the time of year, so you can leave the wetsuit at home.

We start on Friday, July 31st with a tiny 2ft swell from the NW, 8-second period. It’s cross-onshore, light wind, but the combined energy is a weak 54 – barely a ripple. That’s the story right through the first week: tiny waves, under 3ft, mostly from the NW with short period. A bit of glass on Tuesday the 4th and Thursday the 6th means the water’s flat and clean, but still 1.0ft or 0.7ft – not worth paddling out for.

Into the second week, we finally see a pulse of size. On Sunday, August 9th, the swell bumps up to 5ft from the WNW, 9-second period, with combined energy hitting 424 – moderate. The morning has a light NE cross-off breeze, so it’s clean. The forecast says "expect good surf conditions" for that morning session, and with the swell direction matching the optimum W, it’s the only time in the whole outlook that looks worth a look. Still, it’s a reef break that can be a bit inconsistent, and crowds are likely here. Monday the 10th pushes up to 7ft, but the wind swings cross-onshore and the energy jumps to 559 – it’s mushy and marginal.

Beyond that, it’s all downhill. By Tuesday the 11th, the swell drops back under 7ft with onshore winds, and from the 12th onward we’re back to knee-high slop, weak energy, and moderate to strong cross-onshore breezes, even some storm risk on the 14th. There’s no standout second-week option; anything on the 9th is your only real highlight, and even that’s a gamble on consistency.

So, the pick of a pretty empty bunch is the Sunday, August 9th morning at Ilbaritz - Bora Bora itself. It’s a reef break, exposed to the W, with a clean 5ft, 9-second groundswell. Light offshore vibes from the NE. The energy is moderate. It’s not perfect, but it’s the only window where things line up. After that, you’re waiting a long time for a change that doesn’t come.

Signing off – Rusty.

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