Waihau Beach
Gisborne District · New Zealand
Rating right now
Waihau Beach is a E-facing sand beach on the New Zealand shoreline, opening onto the Fiji Sea — it catches NE–SE swell, and offshore SW–NW winds tidy the banks through october–april.
Today's surf at Waihau Beach
Updated 14:31 spot time
Waihau Beach surf report for Friday 2 Oct: waves 1.0 m–1.5 m head high to overhead, 1.0 m S swell at 9.45 s. Wind up to 20 km/h WNW. Water 15°C. Best surf window around 13:00 — good (3.5/5) with 11 km/h NE wind.
Snapshot refreshed hourly — the live hourly forecast below updates in real time.
10-day forecast
Local time · updates hourly
Wave height & period
Wind
| Time | Rating | Waves | Swell | Wind | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Water temperature by month
This month: ~14.8°C (58.6°F) on average
Jan
19°C
66.2°F · 17.2–21°C
Feb
20°C
68°F · 18.3–21.4°C
Mar
19.7°C
67.5°F · 17.6–21°C
Apr
18.6°C
65.5°F · 17.5–20.1°C
May
17.3°C
63.1°F · 16.1–19.3°C
Jun
15.8°C
60.4°F · 14.4–16.8°C
Jul
14.6°C
58.3°F · 13.7–15.6°C
Aug
13.9°C
57°F · 12.9–14.5°C
Sep
14.2°C
57.6°F · 13–15.5°C
Oct
14.8°C
58.6°F · 13.3–16.4°C
Nov
16°C
60.8°F · 14.2–17.5°C
Dec
17.8°C
64°F · 16–19.2°C
25-year monthly averages from the NOAA OISST satellite record — typical range min–max, not a live reading.
Know before you go
Best swell
NE–SE
Best wind
SW–NW
Break type
Beach break
Best season
October–April
Safety: Friendly by surf standards, but rip currents and drop-in etiquette still apply. Shifting sandbars create moving rip currents — learn to spot them and use them to get out back.
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More beaches in Gisborne District → see all spots in Gisborne District, New Zealand
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