Otaki River mouth
Surf spot · New Zealand
Is it worth the trip?
41Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sat 7: 3 ft swell at 6 s
Tue 3 · 51 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 34kJ
- Wind
- SE 2 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Wed 4 · 27 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 16kJ
- Wind
- WNW 3 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Thu 5 · 17 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 8kJ
- Wind
- N 3 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Fri 6 · 51 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 93kJ
- Wind
- NE 3 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Sat 7 · 55 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 56kJ
- Wind
- WSW 4 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sun 8 · 28 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft4 smushy
- Energy
- 16kJ
- Wind
- N 3 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Mon 9 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft4 smushy
- Energy
- 7kJ
- Wind
- N 4 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 215, too small
- Tue 351, fair
- Wed 427, too small
- Thu 517, too small
- Fri 651, fair
- Sat 755, fair
- Sun 828, too small
- Mon 919, too small
- Tue 1037, too small
- Wed 110, too big
The spot in five facts
- Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
- Offshore: SEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–10 ftof swell
- Water 15 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 15, too small | 2 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 29kJ | wind from the north-west, 11 knots | 17°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 51, fair | 3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 34kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 2 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 27, too small | 2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 16kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 3 knots | 19°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 17, too small | 1 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 8kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 20°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 51, fair | 4 ft5 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 93kJ | wind from the north-east, 3 knots | 21°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 55, fair | 3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 56kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 4 knots | 18°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 28, too small | 2 ft4 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 16kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 17°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 19, too small | 2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 7kJ | wind from the north, 4 knots | 20°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 37, too small | 2 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 26kJ | wind from the north-west, 3 knots | 18°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft7 smushy8 ft at break (est.) | 494kJ | wind from the north, 10 knots | 18°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 03:46 +0.5 mLow 09:39 −0.4 mHigh 16:18 +0.5 mLow 22:45 −0.4 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 05:11 +0.4 mLow 11:21 −0.3 mHigh 17:46 +0.5 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 00:38 −0.4 mHigh 06:41 +0.4 mLow 13:09 −0.4 mHigh 19:10 +0.5 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).
- Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 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
- Dec0of 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 and its town
Otaki River mouth on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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Live webcam
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Live webcam
Ōtaki Surf Lifesaving Club, 3 km away
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More surf near here
1 place
- Peka peka 8.8 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Otaki River mouth
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NW (301°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (121°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 950 m out (1 in 93). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 14°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 19°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Ōtaki, 5.3 km away (about 10 min by car).
Water about 15°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$1,750–US$3,310 each
about US$1,750–US$3,310 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 PMR, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW and AKL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$837–US$1,740 |
| 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$1,750–US$3,310 |
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
9 min by car · 6 places to stay
about US$127/nightcountry average
About Ōtaki its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Waikanae on Booking.com
25 min by car · 5 places to stay
- Beds in Paraparaumu on Booking.com
33 min by car · 11 places to stay
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 30h
About 30h door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → PMR, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Auckland International Airport (AKL), then 1h 25m by road
Flights MDW → PMR on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.