Waihau Bay Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(East Cape, New Zealand)

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

Waihau Bay Surf Guide

Waihau Bay in East Cape is a fairly exposed beach and reef break that has reasonably consistent surf and can work at any time of the year. Offshore winds blow from the south and there is no shelter here from cross shore breezes. Groundswells more frequent than windswells and the ideal swell direction is from the north. Waves at the beach break both left and right and in addition there are both left and right reef breaks. Good surf at all stages of the tide. The location means that it never gets crowded.

Waihau Bay Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Beach and reef	3	fairly consistent	18.6°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Waihau Bay:

The best conditions reported for surf at Waihau Bay occur when a North swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the South.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

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

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Waihau Bay 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 4% of the time in January while 22% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 74% 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

22%

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

too small

74%

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

Explore Waihau Bay Location Map

Interactive Waihau Bay 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 Waihau Bay is Whakatane Airport (WHK) in New Zealand, 96 km (60 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Waihau Bay is Gisborne Airport (GIS), also in New Zealand, 116 km (72 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.

Waihau Bay Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Tuesday, 5 May 2026, 16:47 Local Time

m, °C	Tuesday 05			Wed
ft, °F	3PM	6PM	9PM	0AM
Wave (m)	ENE	ENE	ENE	ENE
Period (s)	9	9	9	9
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	glass	cross	cross- on	cross- on

What does Waihau Bay look like?

Latest photos from Waihau Bay. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Credit: Rob Davies

Tides at Waihau Bay

Current tide and informaton

For Whangaparaoa, 7 km from Waihau Bay.

Next High Water: 09:23pm | 1.66m

Next Low Water: 03:38am | 0.36m

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

Waihau Bay Sea Temperature

The Waihau Bay water temperature is reasonably warm (18.6 °C) and the air temperature will similar (windchill forecast 18.0 °C). A good quality summer wetsuit would be ideal.

Today, many surfers would wear a summer wetsuit.

Current Temp*: 18.6°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite