Surf Forecasts:
Piha-The Bar surf forecast from 22 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 25 Jul, 3PM (local time) - 23ft (7.0m), 14s period, WSW swell with cross-shore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Saturday 25 Jul, 6PM (local time) - 21ft (6.5m), 15s period, WSW swell with 18,164 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 25 Jul, 3PM (local time) - 23ft (7.0m), 14s period with WSW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Piha-The Bar this week:
The surf forecast for Piha-The Bar over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Saturday (Jul 25) at 3PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 7.0m and 14s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-shore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Piha-The Bar in the next 16 days are 6.5m 15s and forecast to arrive on Saturday (Jul 25) at 6PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.5m 6s period and expected on Monday (Jul 27) at 6PM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 3PM (Sat 25th Jul) | 23ft (7.0m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 3PM (Sat 25th Jul) | 23ft (7.0m) 14s |
| Most Powerful | 6PM (Sat 25th Jul) | 21ft (6.5m) 15s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Piha-The Bar over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s break down what the next couple of weeks are cooking up on the West Coast.
The big news is a massive SW swell headed for Piha-The-Bar this weekend, but it’s gonna be a wild ride with some serious wind and size to deal with. The week ahead has a few clean windows, but you gotta pick your moments.
The wait is over by Thursday morning, July 23rd. We see a solid SW groundswell moving in at 5ft, with a long period of 14 seconds and a combined energy of 1037 (moderate wave energy). The wind is a light cross-shore, not perfect but keeps it rideable. It’s a bit marginal, so don’t expect perfection, but there’s some grunt in the water.
Friday the 24th is a washout with onshore winds and a messy 7ft NW windswell at a short period of 7 seconds. Saturday the 25th turns into a monster. We’re looking at a massive 23ft SW swell with a combined energy of 17194 (very strong wave energy) hitting in the afternoon. The period is a long 14 seconds. But the wind is a strong cross-shore. It’s not just huge, it’s dangerous. This is strictly for experts, and even then it’s survival mode. The forecast suggests it might be too big for this break, and I’d agree - this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.
The standout window arrives on Sunday, July 26th. The morning is glassy with a strong 13ft SW groundswell at a very long period of 15 seconds. Combined energy is 6938 (very strong wave energy). That is exceptional surf for expert surfers, with those long, clean lines. The afternoon stays clean with a moderate offshore breeze from the SE, offering a different but still excellent look at that powerful swell. This is the one to circle on your calendar.
Monday the 27th sees the swell easing to 10ft but with a cross-shore wind. Not as clean, but still sizeable. Tuesday the 28th morning looks promising with a cleaner 4ft WSW swell and a light cross-offshore breeze. Wednesday the 29th is another highlight - a glassy morning and a clean afternoon with a 5-5ft SW groundswell. Ideal conditions for the intermediate crew to get a piece.
The following week, from July 30th onward, becomes less reliable. A solid 6ft, 16-second period groundswell arrives on the 30th, but the wind turns messy. Friday, August 1st and the following days are mostly blown out or too large with onshore winds. A brief window of clean 10ft surf appears on the morning of Sunday, August 2nd, but it’s with a fresh cross-offshore breeze, and the following days are dominated by strong, messy winds from the SW.
So, if you’re a local charger, Sunday morning, July 26th is your day. Get amongst it. For the rest of us, Wednesday, July 29th offers the best chance for a fun, clean session.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 25mm), heaviest during Fri afternoon. Very mild (max 14°C on Wed night, min 11°C on Thu night). Winds increasing (light winds from the SW on Thu morning, strong winds from the WSW by Sat morning). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 35mm), heaviest during Sun morning. Very mild (max 13°C on Sat night, min 8°C on Sun night). Mainly fresh winds. | ||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 23 | Friday 24 | Saturday 25 | Sunday 26 | Monday 27 | Tuesday 28 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SW 12 | SW 14 | SW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 12 | NW 7 | W 9 | WSW 10 | WSW 14 | WSW 14 | WSW 15 | WSW 14 | WSW 14 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | SW 11 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 205 | 975 | 1308 | 983 | 488 | 489 | 1380 | 5660 | 17194 | 11893 | 6938 | 5821 | 4333 | 3139 | 2717 | 1099 | 500 | 429 | 785 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross | cross-on | on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | glassy | off | glassy | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 3:53AM2.20m | 4:36PM2.17m | 4:58AM2.11m | 5:43PM2.16m | 6:05AM2.10m | 6:46PM2.21m | 7:06AM2.15m | 7:40PM2.32m | 7:58AM2.26m | 8:26PM2.44m | 8:42AM2.37m | 9:07PM2.57m | |||||||
Low Tide | 9:50PM0.79m | 10:19AM0.73m | 10:53PM0.88m | 11:20AM0.79m | 11:59PM0.90m | 12:22PM0.78m | 1:00AM0.85m | 1:19PM0.71m | 1:53AM0.75m | 2:08PM0.60m | 2:38AM0.62m | 2:50PM0.49m | |||||||
 |  | |  |  |  | | | |  |  | |  |  | | |  | | | |
 | — | 7:28 | — | — | 7:26 | — | — | 7:26 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — |
 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:31 | — | — | 5:32 | — |
mm | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 4 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 19 | 3 | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 2 |
Temp °C | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
Feels °C | 11 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 10 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 7 | SW 14 | SW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 12 | SW 12 | WSW 18 | — | — | WSW 14 | WSW 15 | WSW 14 | WSW 14 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | SW 8 | WSW 8 | SW 11 |
| kJ | 143 | 975 | 1308 | 983 | 488 | 336 | 126 | — | — | 11893 | 6938 | 5821 | 4333 | 3139 | 2717 | 1099 | 424 | 257 | 785 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 12 | SW 6 | — | — | — | W 22 | WSW 18 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 16 |
| kJ | 205 | 62 | — | — | — | 9 | 124 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 500 | 429 | 26 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 15 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SW 18 | SW 17 | WSW 16 |
| kJ | 121 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 13 | 11 | 25 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | NW 5 | NW 7 | W 9 | WSW 10 | WSW 14 | WSW 14 | — | — | SSW 7 | — | SW 5 | SW 7 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | 58 | 489 | 1380 | 5660 | 17194 | 10719 | — | — | 187 | — | 94 | 440 | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 101 | 11 | 231 | 314 | 121 | 325 | 78 | 188 | 346 | 44 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 73 | 44 | 0 | 73 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Auckland | |||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||
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 Piha-The Bar 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 Piha-The Bar Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Piha-The Bar provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Piha-The Bar can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Piha-The Bar 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 (Piha-The Bar) 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 Piha-The Bar 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.
Piha-The Bar is 12 km (7 miles) from the city of Auckland. If you plan a holiday in Auckland, look for hotels and other accommodation in Auckland. Auckland has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest