.jpg){kind=link}
Whangamata Estuary
Surf spot · New Zealand
Is it worth the trip?
10Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Thu 5: 3 ft swell at 6 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Mon 2 · 3 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft4 smushy
- Energy
- 7kJ
- Wind
- NNE 9 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Tue 3 · 6 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 34kJ
- Wind
- NNE 7 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Wed 4 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 43kJ
- Wind
- ENE 6 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Thu 5 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 72kJ
- Wind
- NE 4 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Fri 6 · 15 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 47kJ
- Wind
- NE 3 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sat 7 · 2 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft7 shollow
- Energy
- 6kJ
- Wind
- ENE 3 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Sun 8 · 6 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft6 shollow
- Energy
- 28kJ
- Wind
- W 9 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 13, too small
- Mon 23, too small
- Tue 36, too small
- Wed 48, too small
- Thu 519, too small
- Fri 615, too small
- Sat 72, too small
- Sun 86, too small
- Mon 97, too small
- Tue 105, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–14 ftof swell
- Water 18 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 3, too small | 1 ft4 smushy1 ft at break (est.) | 2kJ | wind from the north, 7 knots | 18°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 3, too small | 2 ft4 smushy1 ft at break (est.) | 7kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 9 knots | 17°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 6, too small | 3 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 34kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 7 knots | 17°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 8, too small | 3 ft6 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 43kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 6 knots | 18°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 19, too small | 3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 72kJ | wind from the north-east, 4 knots | 17°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 15, too small | 3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 47kJ | wind from the north-east, 3 knots | 18°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 2, too small | 1 ft7 shollow1 ft at break (est.) | 6kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 3 knots | 19°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 6, too small | 2 ft6 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 28kJ | offshorewind from the west, 9 knots, offshore | 20°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 7, too small | 2 ft6 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 25kJ | wind from the north-east, 5 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 5, too small | 1 ft7 shollow1 ft at break (est.) | 8kJ | offshorewind from the north-west, 4 knots, offshore | 21°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 6, too small | 1 ft7 shollow1 ft at break (est.) | 7kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 14°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 05:57 −0.9 mHigh 12:18 +0.9 mLow 18:34 −0.8 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 00:40 +0.8 mLow 06:53 −0.9 mHigh 13:16 +0.9 mLow 19:34 −0.8 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 01:41 +0.7 mLow 07:54 −0.8 mHigh 14:17 +0.8 mLow 20:36 −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.
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
- Feb1of 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
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 7: a trip from Mon 2 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, its town, photos
Whangamata Estuary 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.
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 Whangamata Estuary
More surf near here
5 places
- Double Brown 1.4 km away
- Clark Island 1.6 km away
- Donut Island 2 km away
- Fudabarer 2.4 km away
- Onemana 5.7 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Whangamata Estuary
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (113°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (293°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–14 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 19). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 15°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 22°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Whangamatā, 3.6 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots.
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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to AKL, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$831–US$1,720 |
| 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$1,740–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
6 min by car · 2 places to stay
about US$127/nightcountry average
About Whangamatā its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Pauanui on Booking.com
31 min by car · 3 places to stay
- Beds in Tairua on Booking.com
40 min by car · 16 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 26h 50m
About 26h 50m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → AKL, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), then 2h by road
Flights MDW → AKL on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.