Mahia Reef Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Gisborne and Mahia, New Zealand)

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- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
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Spot Information

Mahia Reef Surf Guide

Mahia Reef in Mahia is a sheltered reef break that does not work very often with no particular seasonal pattern. The best wind direction is from the east southeast. Windswells and groundswells in equal measure and the best swell direction is from the south. There is a left hand reef break. Good surf at all stages of the tide. Unlikely to be too crowded, even when the surf is up. Watch out for rocks.

Mahia Reef Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Reef	2	inconsistent	15.6°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Mahia Reef:

The best conditions reported for surf at Mahia Reef occur when a South swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the East-southeast.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Mahia Reef (for consistent clean waves)?

juneBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Mahia Reef with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of June. Clean surfable waves are typically found 5% of the time in June while 25% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 70% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

25%

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

70%

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Mahia Reef Location Map

Interactive Mahia Reef surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The closest passenger airport to Mahia Reef is Gisborne Airport (GIS) in New Zealand, 48 km (30 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Mahia Reef is Whakatane Airport (WHK), also in New Zealand, 154 km (96 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

Mahia Reef Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Tuesday, 5 May 2026, 14:29 Local Time

m, °C	Tuesday 05			Wed
ft, °F	3PM	6PM	9PM	0AM
Wave (m)	S	S	S	S
Period (s)	18	17	16	15
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- off	cross	cross- on	cross- on

Tides at Mahia Reef

Current tide and informaton

For Waikokopu, New Zealand, 4 km from Mahia Reef.

Next High Water: 08:30pm | 1.67m

Next Low Water: 02:49am | 0.46m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

Mahia Reef Sea Temperature

The water temperature (15.6 °C) at Mahia Reef is quite cool. If the sun shines as we have forecast, it should feel warm enough to surf in a good spring wetsuit. Effective windchill factor of (15.0 °C) will make the air and water feel about the same temperature.

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit.

Current Temp*: 15.6°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite