Otago Peninsula – Pipikaretu Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Otago, New Zealand)

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Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu Surf Guide

Pipikaretu on the Otago Peninsula is a reasonably exposed beach and point break that has quite reliable surf and can work at any time of the year. The best wind direction is from the southwest with some shelter here from west winds. Windswells and groundswells in equal measure and the best swell direction is from the east southeast. The beach breaks offer lefts and rights Best around high tide when the tide is rising. Even when there are waves, it's not likley to be crowded. Hazards include sharks and rocks.

Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Beach and point	5	fairly consistent	13.8°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu:

The best conditions reported for surf at Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu occur when a East-southeast swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Southwest.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu (for consistent clean waves)?

augustBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of August. Clean surfable waves are typically found 21% of the time in August while 22% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 57% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

21%

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

blown out

22%

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

too small

57%

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

Explore Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu Location Map

Interactive Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu 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 Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu is Dunedin Airport (DUD) in New Zealand, 45 km (28 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu is Oamaru Airport (OAM), also in New Zealand, 96 km (60 miles) away.

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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.

Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Tuesday, 5 May 2026, 08:09 Local Time

m, °C	Tuesday 05
ft, °F	9AM	12PM	3PM	6PM
Wave (m)	S	S	S	S
Period (s)	14	14	14	15
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- on	on	on	cross- on

Tides at Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu

Current tide and informaton

For Otago Harbour Entrance, New Zealand, 3 km from Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu.

Next High Water: 05:20pm | 1.58m

Next Low Water: 11:27am | 0.27m

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

Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu Sea Temperature

The water temperature (13.8 °C) at Otago Peninsula - Pipikaretu is fairly cool. Despite the sun, a windchill factor of (8.0 °C) means that surfers will need a good quality spring wetsuit, a neoprene hood. Some surfers would wear gloves and boots.

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit, a neoprene hood, gloves and boots.