
Surf Forecasts:
West Shore Beach surf forecast from 2 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 2 Aug, 9PM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.8m), 13s period, SE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 5 Aug, 6AM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 13s period, SE swell with 494 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 2 Aug, 9PM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.8m), 13s period with SE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for West Shore Beach this week:
The surf forecast for West Shore Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 02) at 9PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.8m and 13s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 15s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at West Shore Beach in the next 16 days are 1.2m 13s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 05) at 6AM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 3.5m 12s period and expected on Wednesday (Aug 05) at 3PM.
| Wave Type | Time (NZST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 9PM (Sun 2nd Aug) | 2.5ft (0.8m) 13s |
| Best Surf | 9PM (Sun 2nd Aug) | 2.5ft (0.8m) 13s |
| Most Powerful | 6AM (Wed 5th Aug) | 4ft (1.2m) 13s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for West Shore Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let's talk about what's cookin' at West Shore Beach. It's a bit of a mixed bag over the next couple of weeks, but there are a few windows where it could be worth a paddle. The water is sitting at 54°, which is a bit colder than we'd expect for this time of year, so you might want that 4/3 if you're heading out.
Right off the bat, Sunday morning the 2nd of August is your best early call. We've got a clean 3ft swell pushing in from the SE with a 12-second period, putting some real shape into it. The wave energy is moderate (237) and with a light cross-offshore breeze, it'll be holding a nice face. It's a bit of a standout for the whole outlook, but keep in mind the swell is coming from the SE, not the NE optimum, so it won't be at its absolute best. Still, for a beginner spot that's fairly consistent, this is about as good as it gets for a while. Just know it does get crowded here often.
We then hit a real flat spot. Monday the 3rd through to Tuesday the 5th of August is pretty grim – very small and poor conditions. You can basically write those days off.
Now, here's a flicker of hope. Wednesday morning, the 5th of August, we see a pulse of energy. The swell jumps to 4ft from the SE, with the wave energy climbing right up (421). It's offshore wind too, which will make the faces clean, but for a beginner spot, 4ft is starting to push the limits. The period drops a bit to 12 seconds, so it's still got some push, but it's not the easy, small stuff from the weekend.
After that, we slide back into a long, mellow period. From Thursday the 6th through to Tuesday the 11th of August, we're mostly looking at small, surfable waves. You'll see some days with glassy conditions in the mornings – like Saturday the 8th morning, Sunday the 9th morning, and Monday the 10th morning – with little 2ft SE swell. Those are your best chances for a fun, low-stress session on the log, but it's nothing to get too excited about. The wave energy drops right off, often under 100, which tells you how weak it is.
Later that week, the wind turns onshore, making a mess of things from the 13th onward. There's a weird blip on Friday the 14th of August where a 5ft ENE windswell arrives with a short 6-second period, but the wind is blowing straight onshore. Honestly, with that wind and short period chop, it's going to look more like a kite-surfing setup than a paddle session. Best to give that a miss.
The tail end of the forecast, around the 16th of August, we see some calm and glassy conditions return with a tiny 2ft SE swell. It's rideable for the longboard crew, but nothing special.
To be straight with you, there's only one true standout here and it's that Sunday morning on the 2nd. The Wednesday morning on the 5th has the size but might be a bit much if you're just starting out. The rest is mostly small, choppy, or blown out. Keep an eye on it, but don't reshuffle your whole week for it.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 6mm), mostly falling on Tue morning. Very mild (max 17°C on Mon afternoon, min 4°C on Tue night). Winds increasing (calm on Sun morning, fresh winds from the SW by Tue night). | Days 4-6 Weather SummarySome drizzle, heaviest during Wed morning. Very mild (max 11°C on Thu afternoon, min 4°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 2 | Monday 3 | Tuesday 4 | Wednesday 5 | Thursday 6 | Friday 7 | Saturday 8 | |||||||||||||||
AM | 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) | SE 12 | SE 14 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 14 | E 12 | E 12 | SE 12 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 12 | SE 10 | SE 11 | SE 12 | SE 11 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
161 | 96 | 94 | 99 | 57 | 15 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 421 | 208 | 244 | 170 | 167 | 141 | 92 | 161 | 85 | 71 | 114 | 96 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 8:29PM1.59m | 8:52AM1.53m | 9:14PM1.61m | 9:34AM1.57m | 9:59PM1.63m | 10:17AM1.61m | 10:46PM1.64m | 11:05AM1.65m | 11:36PM1.65m | 11:59AM1.68m | 00:28AM1.65m | 12:56PM1.72m | 1:24AM1.65m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 2:10PM0.27m | 2:45AM0.25m | 2:57PM0.27m | 3:29AM0.25m | 3:44PM0.27m | 4:14AM0.25m | 4:33PM0.28m | 5:00AM0.26m | 5:24PM0.29m | 5:49AM0.26m | 6:18PM0.29m | 6:41AM0.25m | 7:17PM0.27m | ||||||||
7:15 | — | — | 7:13 | — | — | 7:13 | — | — | 7:11 | — | — | 7:11 | — | — | 7:09 | — | — | 7:09 | — | — | |
— | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:23 | — | — | 5:23 | — | — | 5:24 | — | — | 5:25 | — | — | 5:27 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 10 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 17 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 9 |
Feels °C | 7 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 8 | 0 | -1 | -3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 12 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 10 | E 12 | SSE 12 | SSE 14 | SE 12 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 12 | SE 10 | SE 11 | SE 12 | SE 11 |
161 | 94 | 94 | 99 | 57 | 15 | 3 | 239 | 384 | 421 | 208 | 244 | 170 | 167 | 141 | 92 | 161 | 85 | 71 | 114 | 96 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 14 | SE 14 | SE 13 | E 13 | S 13 | SE 12 | SE 14 | E 12 | E 12 | — | SSE 12 | SE 16 | SE 15 | S 11 | SE 13 | SE 12 | SSE 18 | SSE 16 | SE 13 | E 14 | SE 15 |
71 | 96 | 45 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 3 | — | 85 | 10 | 9 | 231 | 28 | 53 | 67 | 171 | 45 | 4 | 9 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 16 | E 15 | E 14 | E 13 | E 13 | S 13 | — | — | — | — | SSE 16 | — | E 17 | E 18 | E 16 | SE 20 | S 10 | E 15 | — | — | — |
5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 14 | — | — | — | — | 26 | — | 6 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 53 | 4 | — | — | — | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | W 2 | SSE 7 | SSW 3 | SW 3 | SW 3 | S 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
— | — | — | — | — | 1 | 96 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3662 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 2 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 4 | 23 | 183 | 255 | 227 | 6 | 169 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 93 | 2 | 2 | 44 | 4 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Hawkes Bay | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the West Shore Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for West Shore Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at West Shore Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our West Shore Beach 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 (West Shore Beach) 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 West Shore Beach 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.
West Shore Beach is 9 km (6 miles) from the city of Napier. If you plan a holiday in Hawkes Bay, look for hotels and other accommodation in Napier. Napier has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.











