Surf Forecasts:
Lyall Bay surf forecast from 20 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 21 Aug, 12AM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 12s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Monday 24 Aug, 12PM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 13s period, SSW swell with 1,127 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 20 Aug, 3PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 8s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Lyall Bay this week:
The surf forecast for Lyall Bay over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 20) at 3PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.6m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 17s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Lyall Bay in the next 16 days are 1.8m 13s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 24) at 12PM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 3.0m 8s period and expected on Thursday (Aug 27) at 9AM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 3PM (Thu 20th Aug) | 5ft (1.6m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 12AM (Fri 21st Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 12s |
| Most Powerful | 12PM (Mon 24th Aug) | 6ft (1.8m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Lyall Bay over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Right, let’s have a look at what’s coming up for Lyall Bay. We’ve got a bit of a mixed bag over the next couple of weeks, with a few solid windows of clean surf, but plenty of gaps where it’s not worth paddling out.
It’s a slow start. Thursday 20 August is pretty ordinary – cloudy, a light cross-on breeze, and the swell’s just over 5ft but with a weak combined energy of 730, so not much punch. The water’s sitting at 54°, which is about average for this time of year, nothing unusual. Thursday afternoon goes glassy, but the swell period drops to 8 seconds – short and weak (467 energy). Not worth getting excited about.
Friday 21 August is where things pick up. Morning sees a clean 5ft south swell with a long 16-second period, and a light offshore NNE breeze. The combined energy hits 1086 – that’s moderate to strong, and it’s shaping up nicely. This is one of the better windows, with decent power and clean lines. The swell’s from the south, which is what Lyall Bay likes to see. The afternoon stays offshore but the wind picks up to 18 mph, making it a bit harder to manage.
Then we hit a dry spell. From Saturday 22 August right through to the end of the month, the wind howls from the northwest and west-northwest, often 25–31 mph. Swell drops to under 3ft, and the energy falls away to just 38–23. It’s blown out, messy, and not worth a look. That’s a solid week of nothing.
Monday 24 August brings a brief return – morning offshore with a 5ft SSW swell, 14-second period, and 957 energy. Clean, but the wind’s already up to 15 mph, so it’s a bit of a battle. The afternoon freshens off more. After that, it’s back to strong winds and poor surf until the very end of the month.
Sunday 30 August shows a glimmer: morning offshore with a 5ft SSW swell, 12-second period, and 624 energy. Gentle breeze, clean conditions. Solid, but not a standout.
Now, the real highlight – Monday 31 August. This is the one to circle. Morning: 7ft SSW swell, 14-second period, offshore N wind, with a massive 2907 combined energy. That’s strong, powerful groundswell. The afternoon is even better: 8ft, 15-second period, light offshore, 2447 energy. This is excellent surf for experienced surfers – clean, powerful, and well-shaped. The long period will make for some nice lines, but it might break a bit straight at the beach, so keep that in mind.
Tuesday 1 September keeps it going with an 8ft south swell, 12-second period, and 2117 energy, but the wind is a fresh 18 mph offshore, making it tricky to get in. Still, for the experienced crew, it’s worth a paddle.
From Wednesday 2 September, the swell jumps to 10ft with a strong offshore, but the energy is 3191 – that’s very powerful. This is expert-only territory, maxing out the break. After that, the swell settles back to 5–7ft through to Friday 4 September, with clean offshore winds and moderate energy, but nothing else that jumps out as a standout.
Overall, the best bet is Monday 31 August – clean, powerful, and well-directed. The Friday 21 August morning is a solid runner-up. The rest of the window is either blown out or too big for the average punter.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Sat night. Very mild (max 13°C on Sat afternoon, min 9°C on Thu morning). Winds increasing (calm on Thu afternoon, near gales from the NW by Sat night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 14°C on Sun morning, min 10°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (light winds from the NNW on Sun night, strong winds from the NW by Mon night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | |||||||||||||||
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) | S 12 | S 8 | S 12 | S 16 | S 13 | S 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | S 10 | S 9 | SSW 7 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
678 | 363 | 628 | 1065 | 547 | 316 | 191 | 184 | 71 | 30 | 15 | 139 | 939 | 860 | 519 | 376 | 194 | 120 | 79 | 104 | 96 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | glassy | cross-off | off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 10:50AM1.63m | 11:13PM1.57m | 11:37AM1.61m | 11:56PM1.55m | 12:22PM1.59m | 00:39AM1.51m | 1:05PM1.58m | 1:24AM1.48m | 1:46PM1.56m | 2:09AM1.44m | 2:27PM1.54m | 2:54AM1.42m | 3:09PM1.52m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 5:16PM0.66m | 5:28AM0.69m | 6:02PM0.68m | 6:09AM0.71m | 6:44PM0.69m | 6:48AM0.72m | 7:25PM0.70m | 7:27AM0.73m | 8:05PM0.70m | 8:07AM0.73m | 8:46PM0.71m | 8:51AM0.72m | 9:30PM0.72m | ||||||||
7:05 | — | — | 7:03 | — | — | 7:01 | — | — | 7:00 | — | — | 6:58 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | |
— | 5:44 | — | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:45 | — | — | 5:46 | — | — | 5:47 | — | — | 5:49 | — | — | 5:50 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
Feels °C | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 8 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 12 | S 8 | S 12 | S 16 | S 13 | S 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | S 10 | S 9 | SSW 7 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | S 10 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 |
678 | 363 | 628 | 1065 | 547 | 316 | 191 | 184 | 71 | 30 | 15 | 139 | 939 | 860 | 519 | 376 | 194 | 70 | 79 | 104 | 96 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 8 | S 17 | S 16 | ESE 12 | S 16 | ESE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | E 13 | E 13 | E 13 | NW 8 | ESE 14 | ESE 14 | ESE 14 | ESE 14 | S 14 | SSW 14 | S 9 | SE 14 | SE 13 |
32 | 92 | 198 | 15 | 125 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 10 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 103 | 120 | 25 | 7 | 7 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 11 | ESE 11 | SE 12 | E 9 | ESE 11 | SE 12 | E 14 | E 15 | — | S 16 | S 15 | ESE 13 | — | — | — | ESE 14 | ESE 14 | ESE 14 | ESE 14 | — | ESE 13 |
20 | 12 | 22 | 6 | 23 | 5 | 4 | 4 | — | 5 | 4 | 18 | — | — | — | 40 | 20 | 20 | 20 | — | 17 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | NNW 3 | NNW 5 | NNW 6 | NW 6 | NW 7 | NW 7 | NW 5 | WNW 5 | NW 8 | NNW 5 | NNW 4 | NW 5 | NW 6 | NW 6 | NW 6 | NNW 5 | NW 7 |
— | — | — | — | 9 | 135 | 363 | 244 | 595 | 309 | 110 | 29 | 15 | 63 | 28 | 106 | 275 | 350 | 154 | 128 | 261 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 54 | 63 | 63 | 126 | 116 | 64 | 3 | 0 | 38 | 59 | 77 | 63 | 63 | 54 | 59 | 3 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Wellington | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Lyall Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Lyall Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Lyall Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Lyall Bay 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 (Lyall Bay) 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 Lyall Bay 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.
Lyall Bay is 6 km (4 miles) from the city of Wellington. If you plan a holiday in Wellington, look for hotels and other accommodation in Wellington. Wellington has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.











