Surf Forecasts:
Waihau Bay surf forecast from 12 Oct 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 16 Oct, 4PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 8s period, NW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 15 Oct, 7PM (local time) - 8ft (2.5m), 8s period, NW swell with 699 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 14 Oct, 7AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 5s period with WNW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Waihau Bay this week:
The surf forecast for Waihau Bay over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Oct 14) at 7AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 5s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 9s. Another secondary swell of 0.2m and 12s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Waihau Bay in the next 16 days are 2.5m 8s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Oct 15) at 7PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.6m 5s period and expected on Friday (Oct 16) at 10AM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 7AM (Wed 14th Oct) | 3ft (0.9m) 5s |
| Best Surf | 4PM (Fri 16th Oct) | 5ft (1.6m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 7PM (Thu 15th Oct) | 8ft (2.5m) 8s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Waihau Bay over the next 16 days.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 4mm), mostly falling on Thu morning. Very mild (max 19°C on Tue morning, min 14°C on Mon night). Winds increasing (calm on Mon night, fresh winds from the NNW by Thu morning). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 19mm), heaviest on Thu afternoon. Very mild (max 15°C on Thu afternoon, min 7°C on Fri night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the NW on Thu afternoon, calm by Sun morning). | |||||||||||||||||||
Mon 12 | Tuesday 13 | Wednesday 14 | Thursday 15 | Friday 16 | Saturday 17 | Sunday 18 | ||||||||||||||
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) | ENE 7 | NE 7 | NE 8 | NE 9 | NW 5 | NE 9 | NE 9 | NW 6 | NW 7 | NW 7 | NW 7 | NW 8 | NW 8 | NW 7 | NNW 7 | NW 6 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | NE 10 | NNW 15 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 36 | 24 | 35 | 39 | 64 | 41 | 31 | 161 | 385 | 698 | 485 | 507 | 333 | 77 | 25 | 10 | 82 | 40 | 35 | 43 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | glassy | cross | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | off | glassy | on | glassy |
High Tide | 8:42PM1.72m | 9:10AM1.75m | 9:24PM1.69m | 9:52AM1.73m | 10:06PM1.65m | 10:34AM1.70m | 10:48PM1.60m | 11:16AM1.65m | 11:30PM1.54m | 12:00PM1.59m | 00:15AM1.47m | 12:46PM1.53m | 1:02AM1.42m | |||||||
Low Tide | 2:58AM0.13m | 3:22PM0.23m | 3:39AM0.15m | 4:05PM0.26m | 4:20AM0.20m | 4:47PM0.30m | 5:02AM0.25m | 5:30PM0.36m | 5:45AM0.31m | 6:15PM0.41m | 6:29AM0.37m | 7:03PM0.46m | ||||||||
 |  | | |  |  | |  |  |  | | | | |  | | | | | | |
 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — |
 | 7:21 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:23 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:25 | — | — | 7:27 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | 13 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 15 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 14 | 15 | 11 |
Feels °C | 16 | 15 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 11 | 12 | 9 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 7 | NE 7 | NE 8 | NE 9 | NE 9 | NE 9 | NE 9 | NE 9 | NE 10 | NE 9 | NE 10 | NW 8 | NW 8 | NW 7 | NNW 7 | NW 6 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 9 |
| kJ | 36 | 24 | 35 | 39 | 41 | 41 | 31 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 15 | 507 | 333 | 77 | 25 | 10 | 82 | 40 | 35 | 31 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NW 5 | NW 5 | NW 4 | NNW 13 | NNW 13 | NNW 12 | NNW 12 | NNW 12 | E 15 | NE 15 | NE 14 | NE 9 | NE 14 | NE 7 | SE 12 | SE 12 | NE 10 | NE 10 | NE 10 | NE 11 |
| kJ | 15 | 7 | 3 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 5 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 8 | 12 | 73 | 35 | 16 | 16 | 26 | 18 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 6 | NNW 14 | NNW 13 | N 11 | N 11 | N 10 | N 10 | N 12 | N 12 | — | N 12 | NE 14 | NE 9 | SE 12 | SE 12 | ESE 6 | NNW 16 | NNW 16 | NNW 16 | NNW 15 |
| kJ | 1 | 20 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | — | 3 | 8 | 12 | 36 | 22 | 8 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 43 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | NW 4 | NW 4 | NW 5 | NW 5 | NW 5 | NW 6 | NW 7 | NW 7 | NW 7 | SW 5 | — | SW 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | 5 | 13 | 64 | 32 | 18 | 161 | 385 | 698 | 485 | 19 | — | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 33 | 9 | 321 | 51 | 133 | 319 | 154 | 84 | 307 | 129 | 81 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 66 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in East Cape | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Waihau 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 Waihau Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Waihau Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Waihau Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Waihau 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 (Waihau 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 Waihau 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.
Waihau Bay is 92 km (57 miles) from Whakatane. If you plan a holiday in East Cape, look for hotels and other accommodation in Whakatane. Whakatane has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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