Tahunanui Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Nelson – Tasman Bay, New Zealand)

Forecast
- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
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Weather State
Spot Information

Tahunanui Beach Surf Guide

Tahunanui Beach in Nelson - Tasman Bay is a sheltered beach break that has unreliable waves with no particular seasonal pattern. Offshore winds blow from the south and there is no shelter here from cross shore breezes. Light onshore winds ruin the qulaity Waves just as likely from local windswells as from distant groundswells and the best swell direction is from the north northwest. The beach breaks offer lefts and rights. Best around high tide. An uncrowded break, even when it is working.

Tahunanui Beach Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Beach	1	inconsistent	16.3°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Tahunanui Beach:

The best conditions reported for surf at Tahunanui Beach occur when a North-northwest swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the South.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Tahunanui Beach (for consistent clean waves)?

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Tahunanui Beach with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of January. Clean surfable waves are typically found 0% of the time in January while 4% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 96% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

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

blown out

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

too small

96%

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

Explore Tahunanui Beach Location Map

Interactive Tahunanui Beach 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 Tahunanui is Nelson Airport (NSN) in New Zealand, 3 km (2 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Tahunanui is Woodbourne Airport (BHE), also in New Zealand, 59 km (37 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
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.

Tahunanui Beach Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Tuesday, 5 May 2026, 21:29 Local Time

m, °C	Tue	Wednesday 06
ft, °F	9PM	0AM	3AM	6AM
Wave (m)	NW	NW	NNW	NNW
Period (s)	4	4	4	3
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	glass	glass	cross- off	cross- off

What does Tahunanui Beach look like?

Latest photos from Tahunanui Beach. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Credit: Rob Davies

Tides at Tahunanui Beach

Current tide and informaton

For Nelson, New Zealand, 3 km from Tahunanui Beach.

Next High Water: 11:59pm | 3.92m

Next Low Water: 05:48am | 1.03m

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

Tahunanui Beach Sea Temperature

The water temperature (16.3 °C) at Tahunanui Beach is quite cool. If the sun does come out as forecast, it should feel warm enough to surf in a good sealed spring wetsuit. Some surfers would prefer to wear gloves and boots too. Effective windchill factor of (10.0 °C) will make the air and water feel about the same temperature.

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