New Brighton Beach Surf Break

Lat Long: 43.47° S 172.72° E

New Brighton Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 11 pm 21 Aug 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's New Brighton Beach sea temperature is
9.8° C
0.6° 

New Brighton Beach surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


New Brighton Beach surf forecast from 21 Aug 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Monday 24 Aug, 3AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 14s period, SSE swell with cross-offshore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Wednesday 26 Aug, 6PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 17s period, SE swell with 138 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 24 Aug, 3AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 14s period with SSE swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for New Brighton Beach this week:

The surf forecast for New Brighton Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 24) at 3AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.4m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 0.2m and 14s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at New Brighton Beach in the next 16 days are 0.5m 17s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 26) at 6PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.0m 4s period and expected on Sunday (Aug 23) at 9AM.

Wave TypeTime (NZST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 3AM (Mon 24th Aug)1.5ft (0.4m) 14s
Best Surf 3AM (Mon 24th Aug)1.5ft (0.4m) 14s
Most Powerful 6PM (Wed 26th Aug)1.5ft (0.5m) 17s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for New Brighton Beach over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you – this stretch of coast is looking pretty quiet. The next 16 days are a real test of patience, with a big gap of nothing much on offer. There’s a tiny window of clean, weak surf right at the start, but then it’s a long dry spell until the end of the first week. Even then, it’s nothing to write home about.

We start off on Monday, August 24th at New Brighton Beach. Early morning will see a tiny 0.3 ft swell pushing in from the SSE with a period of 14 seconds. That’s a long period groundswell, which means it’ll have some shape for a long ride, but it’s a real ankle-snapper. The magic is the wind: glassy offshore from the WSW, dead clean. The water is about average for this time of year. The combined wave energy is weak (61). It’s not a stand-out, but it’s the only clean option.

After that, we hit a long, bleak stretch. From Monday afternoon right through to the end of the month, there’s nothing worth paddling for. The winds get messy, the swell disappears or turns into short-period wind chop, and the scores are all zero. It’s a full week of looking at a flat, bumpy ocean.

Then, on Friday, August 28th, we get a brief moment of hope. Early morning at New Brighton Beach, the wind goes dead calm – glassy conditions. The swell is still tiny, 0.4 ft from the SE with a 12-second period. The combined energy is still very weak (58). It’s glassy, but there’s just no power in the water. It’s a “surfable” morning if you’re desperate, but it’s not a recommendation.

The blank spell continues after that. There’s a few more weak swells in early September, but the wind is always on it, or the swell is too short period to do anything. The 5th of September has a bump in combined energy (135) but it’s pinned to a fresh cross-shore wind that will chop it to pieces. It’s a mess.

So, the honest truth is: there’s no standout session in this 16-day window. The best you’ll get is a weak, clean knee-high wave on the 24th and a glassy, but powerless, morning on the 28th. For the rest, park the board and check the forecast in a few days.

Rusty.

Short Range Forecast

Some drizzle, heaviest during Sat night. Very mild (max 15°C on Sat morning, min 6°C on Fri night). Winds decreasing (near gales from the WNW on Sun morning, calm by Mon morning).

Days 5-7 Weather Summary

Moderate rain (total 17mm), heaviest on Wed night. Very mild (max 17°C on Tue afternoon, min 8°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the NNW on Tue morning, light winds from the SE by Thu morning).

Saturday
22
Sunday
23
Monday
24
Tuesday
25
Wednesday
26
Thursday
27
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
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)
0.6
ENE
5
0.2
SSE
11
0.8
N
4
1
NNE
5
0.5
NE
9
0.2
E
14
0.2
E
14
0.3
SSE
14
0.3
SSE
14
0.2
E
14
1
N
4
0.2
E
14
0.2
E
14
0.4
SSE
15
0.3
SSE
16
0.4
SE
11
0.4
SE
16
0.3
SSE
12
0.4
SE
16
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
18
11
18
52
39
15
16
41
36
16
36
15
15
87
51
29
63
27
64
Wind (km/h)
10
WNW
15
NNW
30
NNW
35
N
50
WNW
40
WNW
10
WSW
5
WSW
10
NNW
25
NNW
30
NNW
30
NW
10
SW
15
NE
25
ENE
10
E
5
ESE
15
NE
25
ENE
Wind State
cross-off
cross
cross
cross
cross-off
cross-off
off
off
cross
cross
cross
cross-off
cross-off
on
on
cross-on
cross-on
on
on
High Tide
00:01AM1.66m
12:31PM1.76m
00:50AM1.65m
1:18PM1.77m
1:36AM1.66m
2:03PM1.79m
2:20AM1.68m
2:45PM1.82m
3:01AM1.70m
3:26PM1.84m
3:42AM1.72m
4:06PM1.86m
Low Tide
6:01AM0.43m
6:34PM0.49m
6:48AM0.44m
7:21PM0.48m
7:34AM0.42m
8:07PM0.46m
8:18AM0.39m
8:51PM0.43m
9:02AM0.35m
9:34PM0.38m
9:45AM0.31m
10:17PM0.34m
clear
cloud
cloud
rain showers
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
heavy rain
light rain
light rain
part cloud
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:13
7:11
7:09
7:07
7:07
7:05
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:51
5:52
5:52
5:53
5:54
5:55
 mm
1
14
2
1
Temp °C
9
15
15
13
13
13
8
10
15
14
15
17
14
9
9
9
9
9
10
Feels °C
7
8
8
7
2
3
4
8
11
8
7
10
10
5
4
6
7
6
9
  • 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 New Brighton Beach:

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 New Brighton Beach 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 New Brighton Beach Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for New Brighton Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at New Brighton Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our New Brighton Beach 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 (New Brighton Beach) 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 New Brighton Beach 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 Canterbury? If you are looking for accommodation near New Brighton Beach, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Canterbury, consider staying in Christchurch which is 10 km (6 miles) away.

Nearest locationNearest