Surf Forecasts:
Rest Bay surf forecast from 28 Aug 2026:
- Most powerful swell: Monday 31 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 7ft (2.1m), 9s period, WSW swell with 662 kJ wave energy.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Rest Bay this week:
The most powerful waves expected at Rest Bay in the next 16 days are 2.1m 9s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 31) at 4AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.4m 3s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 29) at 10AM.
| Wave Type | Time (BST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | - | - |
| Best Surf | - | - |
| Most Powerful | 4AM (Mon 31st Aug) | 7ft (2.1m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Rest Bay over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's have a look at what Rest Bay has in store for us over the next couple of weeks. I gotta be straight with you, this is a tough one to call.
Straight off the bat, it's a pretty grim start. The water at Rest Bay is sitting at 69°, which is a massive 8° warmer than it should be for this time of year – that's really unusual. But the surf itself? It's basically a write-off for the first two weeks. Starting from Friday, August 28th, the wind is all over the shop and mostly howling onshore. By Saturday the 29th, we're looking at small, weak swell in the 2ft to 2ft range but with onshore winds and a short, weak period around 6 seconds – it’s just messy. The energy is tiny, so there's just nothing in the water.
We drag through a whole string of days where every session is marked as poor. The swell tries to pick up a bit around Sunday the 31st, getting up to 6ft from the WSW, but the wind is howling from the WNW and cross-onshore, making it a chop fest. Even when we get a few lighter wind days, the swell is too small and weak to do anything with. The pattern is relentless – onshore winds and poor quality right through the first week of September. There's a spike in energy on Thursday, September 3rd, but that's accompanied by a strong onshore breeze, making it a messy, blown-out 5ft that's only for the hardcore.
There is a very brief moment of relief late in the window. On Monday, September 7th, the wind goes glassy in the morning, but the swell is only 2ft from the west with a 5-second period and weak energy. It’s clean, but barely breaking. After that, it’s back into the wind and small waves. Honestly, the only chance for anything ridable comes over a week away, on Saturday, September 12th. We get a pulse of 5ft to 6ft from the WSW, but it’s being hammered by a near gale-force onshore wind. That setup would be total chaos for a paddle surfer – honestly, that’s more of a kite-surfing day than a surfing day.
So, there's no unicorn session hidden in this forecast. The entire 16-day window is pretty much a bust for decent waves. It’s a long dry spell. It’s Rest Bay, so it tends not to stay this flat forever – forecasts can change – but for now, this run is ugly. I’d be doing other things for the next couple of weeks if I were you.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 45mm), heaviest during Sun afternoon. Very mild (max 19°C on Sat afternoon, min 15°C on Sun afternoon). Winds increasing (light winds from the N on Sat afternoon, fresh winds from the WSW by Sun night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Wed morning. Very mild (max 18°C on Wed night, min 15°C on Mon morning). Winds increasing (light winds from the WNW on Mon night, fresh winds from the SW by Wed night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | |||||||||||||||
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) | WSW 5 | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | SW 6 | WSW 10 | WSW 9 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | W 6 | WSW 8 | WSW 5 | WSW 5 | WSW 8 | W 9 | WSW 9 | WSW 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 56 | 111 | 55 | 31 | 30 | 378 | 190 | 267 | 597 | 456 | 451 | 225 | 29 | 24 | 32 | 42 | 97 | 604 | 335 | 320 | 266 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | on | on | on | on |
High Tide | 7:38PM8.71m | 7:55AM8.61m | 8:11PM9.00m | 8:29AM8.84m | 8:45PM9.12m | 9:03AM8.89m | 9:20PM9.04m | 9:38AM8.75m | 9:57PM8.76m | 10:17AM8.41m | 10:38PM8.28m | 11:00AM7.92m | 11:25PM7.66m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 1:28PM0.82m | 1:48AM0.59m | 1:59PM0.51m | 2:18AM0.36m | 2:29PM0.35m | 2:48AM0.29m | 3:00PM0.35m | 3:19AM0.40m | 3:33PM0.53m | 3:54AM0.69m | 4:10PM0.88m | 4:33AM1.15m | 4:54PM1.40m | ||||||||
 |  |  | | |  | | |  |  |  | | | | |  | | | | |  | |
 | 6:20 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — |
 | — | 8:10 | — | — | 8:08 | — | — | 8:06 | — | — | 8:04 | — | — | 8:01 | — | — | 8:00 | — | — | 7:58 | — |
mm | 2 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 2 | — | 3 | 15 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | 1 | 3 |
Temp °C | 18 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 18 |
Feels °C | 14 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 14 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | SW 6 | WSW 10 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | — | — | — | WSW 9 | WSW 6 | WSW 8 | — | W 8 | — | — | W 9 | W 15 | W 8 |
| kJ | — | — | 36 | 31 | 30 | 378 | 190 | 189 | — | — | — | 225 | 29 | 13 | — | 5 | — | — | 335 | 5 | 219 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | W 7 | W 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | WSW 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | W 15 |
| kJ | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | SE 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 5 | WSW 6 | WSW 6 | SE 3 | — | — | — | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | — | — | W 6 | WSW 8 | WSW 5 | WSW 5 | WSW 8 | WSW 9 | WSW 9 | WSW 8 |
| kJ | 56 | 111 | 55 | 2 | — | — | — | 267 | 597 | 456 | 451 | — | — | 24 | 32 | 42 | 97 | 604 | 320 | 320 | 266 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 339 | 393 | 256 | 200 | 21 | 70 | 70 | 340 | 95 | 630 | 71 | 70 | 22 | 356 | 254 | 356 | 457 | 311 | 311 | 362 | 158 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Wales - South East | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United Kingdom | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Rest Bay 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 Rest Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Rest Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Rest Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Rest Bay 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 (Rest Bay) 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 Rest Bay 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.
Rest Bay is 1 km (1 miles) from Porthcawl. If you plan a holiday in Wales - South East, look for hotels and other accommodation in Porthcawl. Porthcawl has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest