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Surf Forecasts:

Punakaiki surf break

Punakaiki surfForecast / West Coast South Island / New Zealand

information circle12 Day Weather and Surf, issued 12 am Wednesday 22 Oct 2025 NZDT
Forecast update in hr  min  s Forecast update imminent
Punakaiki surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's Punakaiki sea temperature is
14.1° C
 (Which is slightly warmer than usual)

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Punakaiki this week:

The surf forecast for Punakaiki over the next 12 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Oct 22) at 7AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 4.0m and 16s period. The wind is predicted to be onshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Punakaiki in the next 12 days are 4.5m 13s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Oct 23) at 10PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 3.5m 8s period and expected on Monday (Oct 27) at 1PM.

Wave TypeTime (NZDT) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 7AM (Wed 22nd Oct)13ft (4.0m) 16s
Best Surf 7AM (Wed 22nd Oct)13ft (4.0m) 16s
Most Powerful10PM (Thu 23rd Oct)15ft (4.5m) 13s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Punakaiki over the next 12 days.

Updates in  hr  min  s Forecast update imminent 
12 DaysHourly
Print Table

Short Range Forecast Heavy rain (total 28mm), heaviest during Thu morning. Very mild (max 16°C on Thu morning, min 10°C on Thu night). Winds increasing (light winds from the N on Wed afternoon, strong winds from the NNW by Thu morning).

Days 3-6 Weather Summary Heavy rain (total 78mm), heaviest during Mon afternoon. Very mild (max 15°C on Mon afternoon, min 10°C on Fri night). Winds increasing (light winds from the WNW on Fri night, near gales from the NNW by Mon afternoon).

Wednesday
22
Thursday
23
Friday
24
Saturday
25
Sunday
26
Monday
27
Tue
28
NightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPM
Rating
(10 max)
!
!
3
2
1
0
0
!
2
3
1
0
2
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
!
Swell
Height Map
See all maps
Wave Height (m) & direction (?)
4
W
3.5
W
3
W
2.5
W
1.8
W
4.5
WNW
3.5
W
3.5
W
3
W
1.9
W
1.7
W
2
W
2.1
W
2.4
W
2.4
W
1.4
WSW
1.1
WSW
4
NW
4
NW
4
WNW
3.5
WNW
Period(s) (?)151515141411131212121211111213121210101111
Wave
Graph
(?)Metric surfscale
Energy kJ (?)6445602743392787131742524876358825019807608831087176819715673372546287440103227
Wind
(km/h)
20
WSW
15
W
15
WNW
25
NE
40
N
40
WNW
20
W
20
WSW
15
SW
15
NNW
20
SW
25
WSW
10
WSW
20
WNW
25
WNW
15
NNW
35
NE
50
NNW
30
WNW
25
WSW
20
WSW
Wind State (?)
onshore
cross-onshore
cross-shore
cross-offshore
offshore
glassy
oncross-
on		cross-
on		cross-
off		cross-
off		cross-
on		onononcrossonononcross-
on		cross-
on		crosscross-
off		crosscross-
on		onon
High Tide
/ height (m)
11:37PM
2.69
11:54AM
2.68
12:10AM
2.67
12:27PM
2.67
12:44AM
2.63
1:00PM
2.62
1:19AM
2.54
1:35PM
2.53
1:55AM
2.43
2:12PM
2.42
2:35AM
2.31
2:54PM
2.30
3:22AM
2.19
3:45PM
2.19
Low Tide
/ height (m)
5:47AM
0.26
6:04PM
0.28
6:20AM
0.30
6:38PM
0.31
6:53AM
0.37
7:12PM
0.39
7:28AM
0.47
7:49PM
0.49
8:05AM
0.59
8:28PM
0.61
8:46AM
0.71
9:13PM
0.72
9:34AM
0.81
Wednesday
22
Thursday
23
Friday
24
Saturday
25
Sunday
26
Monday
27
Tue
28
Sunrise-6:35--6:33--6:31--6:30--6:28--6:26--6:26-
Sunset--8:02--8:05--8:06--8:07--8:07--8:09--8:10
rain showers
part cloud
cloud
mod rain
heavy rain
rain showers
rain showers
part cloud
part cloud
rain showers
rain showers
clear
rain showers
rain showers
rain showers
rain showers
heavy rain
rain showers
rain showers
light rain
rain showers
Rain (mm)
1--61254--22-64492922635
Temp. °C111213141615121212121312111212131415141110
Feels °C (?)581071086787867771066763
  • 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

Eyeball surf reportRecent Eyeball Surf Reports for West Coast South Island

  1. weather stationWind Update Wind reports 46 km away suggest it is still onshore at Punakaiki (light winds from the SW at WestportAeroAws). A 4.1m groundswell from the W is too big for here

    1 hour 4 minutes ago Punakaiki
Expand
<
>
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46 km away, 1 h 4 min ago

11 km/h
SW
0.0
14.1
Air / Water (°C)
Please reload the page to see if there are any updates.

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 Punakaiki 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.

View detailed surf forecast for Punakaiki at:
surf-forecast.com

Information about the Punakaiki Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Punakaiki provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 12 days. A general guide to surfing at Punakaiki can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Punakaiki 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 (Punakaiki) 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 Punakaiki 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.

Punakaiki is 186 km (116 miles) from the city of Nelson. If you plan a holiday in West Coast South Island, look for hotels and other accommodation in Nelson. Nelson has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.

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