Whale Watch Reef surfForecast / Kaikoura and Marlborough / New Zealand

information circle48hr Weather and Surf, issued 5 pm Monday 18 May 2026 NZST
Forecast update in hr  min  s Forecast update imminent
Whale Watch Reef surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's Whale Watch Reef sea temperature is
13.1° C
(Which is slightly warmer than usual)

How big are the waves at Whale Watch Reef today?

The current surf forecast for Whale Watch Reef at 1AM is: 0.3m 9s primary swell from a East-northeast direction and 0.7m 4s secondary swell from a East-northeast direction (forecast issued at 05:00pm May 18). An open ocean swell of 0.6m 9s is not directed at the surf break. The wind direction is predicted to be glassy.

Time (NZST) & DateWave HeightWave Period
Morning (19 May)0.5ft (0.2m)11s
Afternoon (19 May)1ft (0.3m)10s
Evening (19 May)2.5ft (0.7m)5s

Table - waves today at Whale Watch Reef. (Swell directed towards the surf break)


Updates in  hr  min  s Forecast update imminent

Short Range Forecast

Mostly dry. Very mild (max 17°C on Thu morning, min 10°C on Mon afternoon). Wind will be generally light.

Mon
18
Tuesday
19
Wednesday
20
Thu
21
3 PM
6 PM
9 PM
12 AM
3 AM
6 AM
9 AM
12 PM
3 PM
6 PM
9 PM
12 AM
3 AM
6 AM
9 AM
12 PM
3 PM
6 PM
9 PM
12 AM
3 AM
6 AM
9 AM
12 PM
Rating
(10 max)
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height MapHeight MapHeight Map
Height MapHeight MapHeight Map
Height MapHeight MapHeight Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.4
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.7
ENE
4
0.3
ENE
9
0.5
E
4
0.2
ENE
11
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.7
NE
5
1
NNE
5
0.9
NNE
5
0.7
NE
5
0.7
NE
6
0.6
NNE
6
0.6
NE
6
0.9
NE
7
0.9
NE
7
0.8
NNE
7
0.7
NE
7
0.8
NNE
7
0.7
NE
7
0.7
NNE
7
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
31
18
18
17
17
9
11
22
21
20
21
52
45
28
31
22
31
67
67
59
50
66
47
41
Wind (km/h)
15
ENE
10
NE
10
NNE
5
N
5
NW
5
W
5
WNW
5
SSE
5
E
5
N
5
WNW
5
WNW
5
WNW
5
WNW
5
NNW
5
E
5
ENE
5
NNW
10
NW
10
WNW
10
WNW
10
NNW
10
NW
5
SW
on
on
on
cross-on
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
cross-off
glassy
glassy
glassy
glassy
cross-on
cross
cross-off
cross-off
cross
cross
glassy
High Tide
5:52PM2.27m
6:23AM2.10m
6:50PM2.28m
7:23AM2.09m
7:47PM2.25m
8:21AM2.08m
Low Tide
00:14AM0.35m
12:33PM0.32m
1:13AM0.34m
1:30PM0.31m
2:10AM0.34m
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:31
7:33
7:33
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:10
5:09
5:08
5:07
Temp °C
11
10
10
10
10
10
10
12
12
12
12
11
11
11
11
14
15
14
13
13
13
13
14
17
8
7
7
8
8
8
8
10
11
10
10
9
8
8
8
12
13
11
9
8
8
9
11
15
Swell 1
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.6
SSE
9
0.7
S
10
0.7
S
10
0.6
S
10
0.6
S
9
0.6
S
9
0.6
S
9
0.5
S
9
0.5
S
8
0.4
SSE
8
0.4
SSE
8
0.7
NE
5
0.7
NE
5
0.7
NE
5
0.7
NE
6
0.6
NNE
6
0.6
NE
6
0.9
NE
7
0.9
NE
7
0.8
NNE
7
0.7
NE
7
0.8
NNE
7
0.7
NE
7
0.7
NNE
7
Energy kJ
58
94
94
67
61
59
57
39
36
22
22
23
25
28
31
22
31
67
67
59
50
66
47
41
Swell 2
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.4
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
9
0.3
ENE
9
0.5
E
4
0.5
E
4
0.4
ENE
4
0.4
ENE
4
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.4
SSE
10
0.3
SSE
10
0.3
SSE
9
0.3
SSE
9
0.3
ENE
4
0.2
ENE
9
0.2
ENE
9
0.2
ENE
9
0.2
ENE
10
0.2
ENE
10
0.2
ENE
10
0.2
S
11
0.2
S
10
Energy kJ
31
18
18
17
17
9
9
6
7
20
20
33
19
17
16
4
8
8
8
9
9
9
9
8
Swell 3
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.3
SSW
11
0.2
SSW
12
0.2
SSW
12
0.1
S
16
0.1
S
16
0.2
ENE
9
0.2
ENE
11
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.2
SSE
11
0.2
SSE
11
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
10
0.3
ENE
9
0.3
SSE
9
0.2
SSE
9
0.2
S
8
0.2
S
8
0.1
SE
13
0.1
SE
13
0.2
S
10
0.2
ENE
10
0.2
ENE
10
Energy kJ
25
14
15
5
5
8
11
22
21
12
11
19
19
18
17
16
8
6
6
7
7
8
9
9
Wind waves
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.3
NE
2
0.4
NE
3
0.6
ENE
3
0.7
ENE
4
0.6
ENE
4
0.5
ENE
4
0.5
ENE
4
0.5
NE
4
0.6
NE
4
0.5
NE
4
0.7
NE
5
1
NNE
5
0.9
NNE
5
Energy kJ
1
2
6
11
13
9
9
7
10
9
21
52
45
Nearest Offshore or Glassy
Rating
(10 max)
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
Distance (km)
25
25
15
9
9
9
9
11
11
11
0
0
0
0
0
160
160
12
12
0
0
163
132
0
Best forecast wave conditions in Kaikoura and Marlborough
Rating
(10 max)
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
Best forecast wave conditions in New Zealand
Rating
(10 max)
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
2
2
3
2
Header Global
Rating
(10 max)
4
6
5
4
4
5
5
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
5
4
5
5
5
5
5
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder

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 Whale Watch Reef 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.


Nearest locationNearest
Nearest locationNearest
Nearest locationNearest