Tairua Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s take a look at what we’ve got on the cards for the next couple of weeks.

Right off the bat, I gotta be straight with you—it’s gonna be a long wait for any real action. For the first week and a bit, from Friday the 31st of July all the way through to Friday the 7th of August, the surf is pretty much a write-off. We’re talking tiny, weak waves that aren’t worth paddling out for. The combined energy barely cracks 100 for a brief moment, and then it’s all in the double digits—just sad, weak stuff. You’d be better off cleaning the wax off your board. So we’re looking at a solid 6 to 7 day gap with nothing worth recommending.

Now, we finally get a glimmer of hope on Saturday the 8th of August. Tairua Beach starts to wake up. The morning session is where it’s at. We’re looking at a clean 6 ft swell from the NNE, and with glassy conditions, it’s going to be beautiful. The combined energy hits 389 (moderate), and with light winds, the surface will be smooth. This swell has a short period (7 seconds), so it’s a bit of a windswell, but for a beginner-friendly spot like Tairua, that’s perfectly fine. Just be aware that the afternoon gets a bit choppy as the wind swings onshore.

The real standout, though, is a big one, but it’s for experts only. Wednesday the 12th of August is the day to circle on your calendar. The morning brings a solid 8 ft swell from the ENE with a nice 11-second period, giving it some real push and power. The wind is light and offshore (SSW), making for super clean conditions. The combined energy is a hearty 1700 (strong). By the afternoon, it turns glassy. This is a serious groundswell and it’s going to be pumping. The size puts it firmly in the "experts only" zone, but for those with the skill, it’s going to be epic. The water temp is sitting at 59°F with a near-normal anomaly, so a good 4/3mm steamer is your friend.

Before that, on Monday the 10th and Tuesday the 11th, the swell gets huge—over 15 ft and 16 ft—with enormous energy readings (up to 11151). The wind is favorable, but the size is just too big for Tairua Beach. It’s a spectacle, not a paddle-out.

After that Wednesday peak, the swell drops back down, but the wind turns onshore and messy from Thursday the 13th onward, so the quality fades fast for the rest of the run.

So, to sum it up: the first week is a bust. Your best bet is the clean, glassy morning of the 8th for a fun, manageable wave, or if you’re a charger, you want to be on it for the clean, offshore conditions on the 12th of August. That’s where the real magic is.

Rusty.

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