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The Cliff Surf Forecast
/ NSW – Newcastle (55 breaks) / New South Wales (297 breaks) /
Surf Forecasts:
The Cliff surfForecast / NSW – Newcastle / Australia
16 Day Weather and Surf, issued 3 pm Wednesday 20 May 2026 AESTForecast update in hr min s Forecast update imminent
The Cliff surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's The Cliff sea temperature is
20.6° C
(Which is normal for this time of year)Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Cliff this week:
The surf forecast for The Cliff over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (May 24) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 2.3m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 17s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Cliff in the next 16 days are 3.0m 9s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (May 21) at 7AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4AM (Sun 24th May) | 7.5ft (2.3m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 4AM (Sun 24th May) | 7.5ft (2.3m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 7AM (Thu 21st May) | 10ft (3.0m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Cliff over the next 16 days.
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 13mm), heaviest on Thu afternoon. Very mild (max 19°C on Sat morning, min 14°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the SSW on Thu morning, light winds from the ENE by Sat morning). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 13mm), heaviest on Mon night. Warm (max 20°C on Sat afternoon, min 14°C on Tue morning). Winds increasing (calm on Sun morning, strong winds from the S by Mon night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wed 20 | Thursday 21 | Friday 22 | Saturday 23 | Sunday 24 | Monday 25 | Tuesday 26 | |||||||||||||||
PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||
S 10 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SE 11 | ESE 11 | E 11 | ESE 11 | E 11 | E 12 | E 12 | E 11 | E 12 | E 11 | E 12 | E 12 | S 8 | S 8 | |
1129 | 1352 | 1343 | 1131 | 554 | 574 | 572 | 1359 | 1436 | 1048 | 1340 | 1165 | 1513 | 1346 | 1024 | 1079 | 849 | 686 | 625 | 779 | 516 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | glassy | glassy | off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | |
High Tide | 11:12PM1.85m | 12:16PM1.27m | 00:10AM1.76m | 1:21PM1.27m | 1:11AM1.66m | 2:26PM1.30m | 2:14AM1.55m | 3:27PM1.35m | 3:16AM1.46m | 4:21PM1.42m | 4:16AM1.38m | 5:07PM1.49m | 5:11AM1.32m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 4:40PM0.55m | 6:10AM0.28m | 5:41PM0.62m | 7:09AM0.33m | 6:49PM0.67m | 8:07AM0.38m | 8:00PM0.70m | 9:02AM0.42m | 9:13PM0.68m | 9:51AM0.44m | 10:21PM0.64m | 10:35AM0.46m | 11:21PM0.59m | 11:14AM0.47m | |||||||
 |  |  | |  | | |  |  | | |  | | | | |  | | | | | |
 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:39 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:41 | — | — | 6:43 | — | — | 6:43 |
 | 4:59 | — | — | 4:58 | — | — | 4:58 | — | — | 4:57 | — | — | 4:57 | — | — | 4:55 | — | — | 4:55 | — | 4:55 |
— | — | 1 | 4 | — | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | — | |
Temp °C | 17 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 16 |
11 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 11 | 14 | |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 10 | S 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | ESE 10 | SE 11 | ESE 11 | E 11 | ESE 11 | E 11 | E 12 | E 12 | E 11 | E 12 | E 11 | E 12 | E 12 | E 12 | S 8 |
 kJ | 796 | 922 | 200 | 159 | 118 | 88 | 198 | 1359 | 1436 | 1048 | 1340 | 1165 | 1513 | 1346 | 1024 | 1079 | 849 | 686 | 625 | 546 | 377 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 10 | E 10 | — | — | — | S 15 | S 14 | S 11 | SE 10 | SSE 10 | S 18 | S 15 | S 14 | S 12 | S 17 | SSE 16 | S 6 | S 12 | — | S 17 | E 12 |
| kJ | 249 | 202 | — | — | — | 5 | 15 | 22 | 49 | 314 | 25 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 25 | 16 | 48 | — | 6 | 480 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | S 21 | — | — | — | — | S 17 | S 10 | SSE 14 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 9 | — | — | — | — | 6 | 2 | 69 | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 10 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | — | SSE 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | S 6 | S 7 | S 8 | S 8 |
| kJ | 1129 | 1352 | 1343 | 1131 | 554 | 574 | 572 | — | 516 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 66 | 318 | 779 | 516 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 3 | 7 | 110 | 183 | 41 | 137 | 183 | 183 | 110 | 78 | 33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 110 | 110 | 64 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Newcastle | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
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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 The Cliff 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 The Cliff Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Cliff provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Cliff can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Cliff 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 (The Cliff) 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 The Cliff 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.
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