
Haast Beach
Surf spot · New Zealand
Is it worth the trip?
29Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sun 8: 5 ft swell at 10 s
Tue 3 · 29 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 240kJ
- Wind
- NE 13 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Wed 4 · 17 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 142kJ
- Wind
- NE 15 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Thu 5 · 11 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 89kJ
- Wind
- ENE 17 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Fri 6 · 25 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 364kJ
- Wind
- NE 21 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Sat 7 · 11 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 66kJ
- Wind
- W 6 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Sun 8 · 46 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 506kJ
- Wind
- NNE 3 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Mon 9 · 31 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 272kJ
- Wind
- ENE 4 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 258, fair
- Tue 329, too small
- Wed 417, too small
- Thu 511, too small
- Fri 625, poor
- Sat 711, too small
- Sun 846, fair
- Mon 931, too small
- Tue 1018, too small
- Wed 1133, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
- Offshore: SEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 14 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 58, fair | 8 ft8 ssoft10 ft at break (est.) | 872kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 2 knots | 14°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 29, too small | 5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 240kJ | wind from the north-east, 13 knots | 14°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 17, too small | 5 ft5 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 142kJ | wind from the north-east, 15 knots | 15°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 11, too small | 4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 89kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 17 knots | 16°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 25, poor | 6 ft7 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 364kJ | wind from the north-east, 21 knots | 15°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 11, too small | 3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 66kJ | wind from the west, 6 knots | 14°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 46, fair | 5 ft10 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 506kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 3 knots | 14°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 31, too small | 4 ft9 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 272kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 4 knots | 15°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 18, too small | 4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 86kJ | wind from the north-east, 6 knots | 15°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 33, too small | 5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 217kJ | wind from the south-west, 7 knots | 17°C |
Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More
Tide
- Mon 2 NovHigh 05:28 +0.8 mLow 11:38 −0.8 mHigh 17:55 +0.9 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 00:22 −0.9 mHigh 06:41 +0.8 mLow 12:52 −0.8 mHigh 19:08 +0.8 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 01:34 −0.9 mHigh 07:51 +0.8 mLow 14:01 −0.8 mHigh 20:16 +0.9 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Best time to go
No month stands out
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar2of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
- Dec1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot, its town, photos
Haast Beach on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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Photos of Haast Beach

About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Haast Beach
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NW (322°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (142°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 750 m out (1 in 76). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 13°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 18°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Haast, 4.5 km away (about 10 min by car).
Water about 14°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,790–US$3,400 each
about US$1,790–US$3,400 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to ZQN, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW and AKL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$878–US$1,820 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$134–US$228 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$342–US$563 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$301–US$563 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$134–US$221 |
| Total | about US$1,790–US$3,400 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Haast
about 10 min by car · 4 places to stay
about US$127/nightcountry average
About Haast its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$127 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 32h
About 32h door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → ZQN, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Auckland International Airport (AKL), then 2h 35m by road
Flights MDW → ZQN on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.