Surf Forecasts:
Matara surf forecast from 20 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 21 Aug, 8PM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 14s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Saturday 22 Aug, 8AM (local time) - 6.5ft (2.0m), 17s period, S swell with 2,318 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 21 Aug, 8PM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 14s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Matara this week:
The surf forecast for Matara over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 21) at 8PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.5m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 0.8m and 19s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Matara in the next 16 days are 2.0m 17s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Aug 22) at 8AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.3m 6s period and expected on Thursday (Aug 20) at 2PM.
| Wave Type | Time (+0530) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 8PM (Fri 21st Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 8PM (Fri 21st Aug) | 5ft (1.5m) 14s |
| Most Powerful | 8AM (Sat 22nd Aug) | 6.5ft (2.0m) 17s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Matara over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. We’ve got the full 16-day window for Matara to look at. Let’s cut through the noise and talk about when you should actually be paddling out.
Right off the bat, we’re not getting the cleanest start. The first few days from Thursday, 20th August, through to the end of the weekend see some decent sized swell, but the wind is a bit of a pain – it’s cross-offshore, which is workable, but the real killer is the commentary saying it’s “marginal surf forecast or questionable tide conditions.” The waves are there, but the quality is just not there for a standout session. The water temp is sitting at 82°, which is bang on average for the time of year, so no surprises there.
The pick of the entire outlook, and I mean the absolute standout, is shaping up to be Monday, 31st August. The morning is looking powerful with a solid 10ft SSW groundswell. The period is a very long 18 seconds, so this is proper, deep-water energy. The wind is cross-offshore. That’s a recipe for a serious session. But a word of caution: at 10ft, this is strictly for the experienced crew. If you’re a beginner, stay on the beach and watch the show. The afternoon drops a bit to 8ft, but still very solid.
Another day to have circled on the calendar is Sunday, 30th August. The afternoon session is looking sweet with a 7ft SSW groundswell and a very long, 21-second period. That’s a dream period for a point break, and with cross-offshore wind, it’ll be clean. This is a promising precursor to the Monday pulse.
The week that follows (1st September onwards) will keep pumping, with consistent 6ft to 8ft SSW swell running, but the wind stays cross-offshore. It’s consistent, but nothing quite touches the quality of that 30th/31st August window. The crowds at Matara can be an issue sometimes, so if you can get out on that Sunday 30th or Monday 31st, you’ll be laughing.
So, to sum it up: the first week is a bit of a write-off for quality, but the second week, specifically the 30th of August and the 31st of August, are the real deal. Don’t sleep on that Sunday afternoon.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 37mm), heaviest during Thu night. Warm (max 29°C on Sat afternoon, min 25°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 8mm), mostly falling on Mon afternoon. Warm (max 29°C on Sun morning, min 25°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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) | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | S 14 | S 17 | S 15 | S 15 | S 14 | S 14 | S 13 | S 13 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | S 15 | S 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 2523 | 2252 | 1460 | 1257 | 1063 | 809 | 1392 | 1589 | 1142 | 843 | 782 | 573 | 499 | 778 | 1037 | 978 | 549 | 236 | 715 | 525 | 651 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 5:27PM0.34m | 6:21AM0.38m | 5:00PM0.29m | 7:24AM0.33m | 2:42AM0.29m | 12:37PM0.37m | 1:47AM0.33m | 1:07PM0.42m | 1:52AM0.38m | 1:32PM0.47m | 2:07AM0.42m | 1:56PM0.50m | 2:26AM0.47m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 12:04PM0.21m | 11:31PM0.17m | 12:41PM0.26m | 11:06PM0.22m | 8:17PM0.22m | 6:15AM0.27m | 7:39PM0.17m | 6:58AM0.22m | 7:46PM0.13m | 7:25AM0.17m | 8:01PM0.08m | 7:50AM0.13m | 8:19PM0.04m | ||||||||
 | |  | | |  |  | |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — |
 | — | 6:19 | — | — | 6:19 | — | — | 6:19 | — | — | 6:17 | — | — | 6:17 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:16 | — |
mm | 2 | 3 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 4 | 1 | — | 2 | — | — | 5 |
Temp °C | 28 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 26 | 29 | 29 | 26 | 29 | 29 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 26 |
Feels °C | 29 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 28 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | S 14 | S 13 | S 15 | S 15 | S 14 | S 14 | S 13 | S 13 | S 12 | SSW 16 | S 15 | S 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
| kJ | 2523 | 2252 | 1460 | 1257 | 1063 | 747 | 1392 | 1589 | 1142 | 843 | 782 | 573 | 416 | 778 | 1037 | 978 | 549 | 236 | 715 | 525 | 610 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | W 8 | W 9 | W 10 | W 10 | S 19 | S 17 | S 17 | S 26 | S 24 | S 21 | S 20 | S 18 | SSW 17 | S 12 | W 11 | W 10 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 8 | SSW 19 |
| kJ | 22 | 44 | 51 | 50 | 247 | 809 | 376 | 13 | 173 | 323 | 373 | 404 | 499 | 344 | 58 | 54 | 79 | 106 | 77 | 53 | 651 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WNW 11 | — | S 24 | S 22 | W 10 | W 9 | W 9 | S 26 | S 24 | SW 20 | SW 19 | SW 18 | WNW 10 | WNW 10 | — | — | W 10 | W 10 | W 9 | SSW 12 | W 8 |
| kJ | 40 | — | 11 | 36 | 47 | 41 | 39 | 13 | 173 | 15 | 14 | 49 | 33 | 58 | — | — | 71 | 68 | 61 | 115 | 49 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 5 | WSW 5 | W 6 | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | W 6 | W 6 | W 7 |
| kJ | 109 | 106 | 97 | 80 | 62 | 39 | 43 | 68 | 64 | 68 | 74 | 52 | 49 | 64 | 60 | 50 | 69 | 53 | 80 | 74 | 86 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 176 | 1884 | 177 | 674 | 893 | 391 | 177 | 391 | 177 | 176 | 784 | 177 | 177 | 893 | 177 | 176 | 763 | 177 | 177 | 784 | 177 |
Best forecast wave conditions in West Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
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 Matara 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 Matara Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Matara provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Matara can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Matara 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 (Matara) 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 Matara 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.
Matara is 2 km (1 miles) from Matara. If you plan a holiday in West Sri Lanka, look for hotels and other accommodation in Matara. Matara has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest