Staying Home Sucks, home
Ruby Bay
Māpua, the nearest town. Photo: André Brett, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Ruby Bay

Surf spot · New Zealand

Is it worth the trip?

19Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Tue 3: too small (2 ft swell at 4 s), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 8 out of 100

Swell
2 ft4 smushy
Energy
12kJ
Wind
ENE 7 kn
Temp
19°C

Tue 3 · 37 out of 100

Swell
2 ft4 smushy
Energy
11kJ
Wind
S 3 kn
Temp
19°C

Wed 4 · 7 out of 100

Swell
1 ft4 smushy
Energy
7kJ
Wind
ENE 8 kn
Temp
17°C

Thu 5 · 10 out of 100

Swell
1 ft4 smushy
Energy
4kJ
Wind
NE 6 kn
Temp
18°C

Fri 6 · 22 out of 100

Swell
3 ft4 smushy
Energy
24kJ
Wind
ENE 2 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 17 out of 100

Swell
1 ft4 smushy
Energy
6kJ
Wind
S 3 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 11 out of 100

Swell
2 ft4 smushy
Energy
8kJ
Wind
ESE 7 kn
Temp
18°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 117, too small
  2. Mon 28, too small
  3. Tue 337, too small
  4. Wed 47, too small
  5. Thu 510, too small
  6. Fri 622, poor
  7. Sat 717, too small
  8. Sun 811, too small
  9. Mon 916, too small
  10. Tue 1015, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces NEtakes swell from the NE
  • Offshore: SWwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 3–12 ftof swell
  • Water 17 °C3/2 wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for beginner surfers at Ruby Bay, each day
DayScore for beginnersSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov17, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)16kJwind from the east-south-east, 3 knots17°C
Mon 2Nov8, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)12kJwind from the east-north-east, 7 knots19°C
Tue 3Nov37, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)11kJwind from the south, 3 knots19°C
Wed 4Nov7, too small1 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)7kJwind from the east-north-east, 8 knots17°C
Thu 5Nov10, too small1 ft4 smushy1 ft at break (est.)4kJwind from the north-east, 6 knots18°C
Fri 6Nov22, poor3 ft4 smushy3 ft at break (est.)24kJwind from the east-north-east, 2 knots19°C
Sat 7Nov17, too small1 ft4 smushy1 ft at break (est.)6kJwind from the south, 3 knots, offshore18°C
Sun 8Nov11, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)8kJwind from the east-south-east, 7 knots18°C
Mon 9Nov16, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)12kJwind from the north-east, 7 knots16°C
Tue 10Nov15, too small2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.)23kJwind from the north-north-east, 9 knots18°C
Wed 11Nov25, too small2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.)10kJwind from the north-west, 2 knots14°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 NovHigh 02:28 +1.3 mLow 08:39 −1.4 mHigh 14:58 +1.4 mLow 21:20 −1.3 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 03:34 +1.1 mLow 09:44 −1.2 mHigh 16:07 +1.3 mLow 22:32 −1.2 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 04:50 +1.0 mLow 10:59 −1.1 mHigh 17:24 +1.2 mLow 23:48 −1.2 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 and its town

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.

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Ruby Bay

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

The spot faces NE (44°), so it takes swell from the NE. The wind blows offshore from the SW (224°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 3–12 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 4.5 km out (1 in 455). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 12°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 20°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Māpua, 0.7 km away (about 5 min by car).

Water about 17°C: 3/2 wetsuit. 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$1,660–US$3,160 each

about US$1,660–US$3,160 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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 NSN, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW and AKL, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$851–US$1,760
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$33–US$54
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$1,660–US$3,160

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

Where to stay: Māpua

Closest

Māpua

1 min by car · 15 places to stay

about US$127/nightcountry average

See 15 places to stay in Māpua · Booking.com

About Māpua 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 29h 15m

About 29h 15m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → NSN, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Auckland International Airport (AKL), then 35 min by road

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