Staying Home Sucks, home
OV docked at Mount Maunganui, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand
Mt Reef (Artificial). Photo: Enmanuelgac, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Mt Reef (Artificial)

Surf spot · New Zealand

Is it worth the trip?

4Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: too small (3 ft swell at 6 s), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 2 out of 100

Swell
2 ft4 s
Energy
8kJ
Wind
N 11 kn
Temp
17°C

Tue 3 · 3 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft13 s
Energy
5kJ
Wind
NNE 8 kn
Temp
17°C

Wed 4 · 1 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft14 s
Energy
1kJ
Wind
NE 8 kn
Temp
17°C

Thu 5 · 4 out of 100

Swell
1 ft10 s
Energy
20kJ
Wind
ENE 14 kn
Temp
18°C

Fri 6 · 7 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 s
Energy
47kJ
Wind
N 7 kn
Temp
18°C

Sat 7 · 4 out of 100

Swell
2 ft8 s
Energy
31kJ
Wind
NNE 5 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 3 out of 100

Swell
2 ft6 s
Energy
29kJ
Wind
WNW 11 kn
Temp
19°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 11, too small
  2. Mon 22, too small
  3. Tue 33, too small
  4. Wed 41, too small
  5. Thu 54, too small
  6. Fri 67, too small
  7. Sat 74, too small
  8. Sun 83, too small
  9. Mon 99, too small
  10. Tue 103, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 5–20 ftof swell
  • Water 18 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number

Mt Reef (Artificial) does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Mt Reef (Artificial), each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov1, too smallunder 1 ft11 s5kJwind from the north, 11 knots16°C
Mon 2Nov2, too small2 ft4 s8kJwind from the north, 11 knots17°C
Tue 3Nov3, too smallunder 1 ft13 s5kJwind from the north-north-east, 8 knots, offshore17°C
Wed 4Nov1, too smallunder 1 ft14 s1kJwind from the north-east, 8 knots, offshore17°C
Thu 5Nov4, too small1 ft10 s20kJwind from the east-north-east, 14 knots, offshore18°C
Fri 6Nov7, too small3 ft6 s47kJwind from the north, 7 knots18°C
Sat 7Nov4, too small2 ft8 s31kJwind from the north-north-east, 5 knots, offshore18°C
Sun 8Nov3, too small2 ft6 s29kJwind from the west-north-west, 11 knots19°C
Mon 9Nov9, too small2 ft6 s20kJwind from the east, 4 knots, offshore18°C
Tue 10Nov3, too small2 ft5 s15kJwind from the north-north-west, 10 knots18°C
Wed 11Nov2, too smallunder 1 ft9 s3kJwind from the north, 4 knots15°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

  • Sun 1 NovLow 05:55 −0.9 mHigh 12:17 +0.9 mLow 18:32 −0.8 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 00:38 +0.8 mLow 06:52 −0.9 mHigh 13:15 +0.9 mLow 19:33 −0.8 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 01:39 +0.7 mLow 07:52 −0.8 mHigh 14:15 +0.8 mLow 20:35 −0.8 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.

Map

the spot, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for beginners: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of Mt Reef (Artificial)

Maunganui beach 01
Near Mt Reef (Artificial). Photo: Ronnie Macdonald from Chelmsford, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Mount Maunganui Bay of Plenty - New Zealand
Near Mt Reef (Artificial). Photo: Umedha Hettigoda, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Live webcam

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Live webcam

Port of Tauranga - Berth 1 and 2

Port of Tauranga - Berths 1-5, 2 km away

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More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Mt Reef (Artificial)

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces SW (244°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (64°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea is about 15°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 22°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Mount Maunganui, 3.3 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 9 surf spots and 1 climbing area.

Water about 18°C: 2 mm shorty. 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$1,740–US$3,300 each

about US$1,740–US$3,300 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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to AKL, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$831–US$1,720
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$134–US$228
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$342–US$563
Food7 days eating outabout US$301–US$563
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$134–US$221
Totalabout US$1,740–US$3,300

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 3 towns

Closest

Mount Maunganui

6 min by car · 11 places to stay

about US$127/nightcountry average

See 11 places to stay in Mount Maunganui · Booking.com

About Mount Maunganui 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 27h 35m

About 27h 35m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → AKL, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), then 2h 50m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.