Is it worth the trip?
53Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 4 ft swell at 10 s
Tue 3 · 33 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 112kJ
- Wind
- N 13 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Wed 4 · 68 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 317kJ
- Wind
- N 7 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Thu 5 · 56 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 259kJ
- Wind
- NNE 10 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Fri 6 · 28 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 132kJ
- Wind
- N 17 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sat 7 · 50 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 119kJ
- Wind
- NNE 12 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sun 8 · 27 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft12 ssoft
- Energy
- 396kJ
- Wind
- NNW 12 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Mon 9 · 63 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 404kJ
- Wind
- NNE 4 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Tue 333, too small
- Wed 468, good
- Thu 556, fair
- Fri 628, poor
- Sat 750, fair
- Sun 827, poor
- Mon 963, good
- Tue 1043, poor
- Wed 1112, poor
- Thu 120, too big
The spot in five facts
- Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
- Offshore: NEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 16 °C3/2 wetsuit
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Arawahata Road does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 3Nov | 33, too small | 3 ft9 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 112kJ | wind from the north, 13 knots | 18°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 68, good | 4 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 317kJ | offshorewind from the north, 7 knots, offshore | 19°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 56, fair | 4 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 259kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-east, 10 knots, offshore | 19°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 28, poor | 4 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 132kJ | wind from the north, 17 knots | 18°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 50, fair | 4 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 119kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-east, 12 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 27, poor | 4 ft12 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 396kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 12 knots | 16°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 63, good | 5 ft10 ssoft7 ft at break (est.) | 404kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-east, 4 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 43, poor | 3 ft11 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 236kJ | wind from the north, 13 knots | 19°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 12, poor | 4 ft8 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 248kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 21 knots | 17°C |
| Thu 12Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 406kJ | wind from the west, 14 knots | 16°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
- Tue 3 NovHigh 05:16 +0.9 mLow 11:30 −1.0 mHigh 17:52 +1.1 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 00:17 −1.1 mHigh 06:34 +0.9 mLow 12:42 −1.1 mHigh 19:02 +1.1 m
- Thu 5 NovLow 01:22 −1.2 mHigh 07:40 +1.1 mLow 13:44 −1.1 mHigh 20:01 +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.
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
- 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
- Jul0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep0of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Wed 4 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 and its town
Arawahata Road on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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More surf near here
3 places
- op 5.4 km away
- Puniho road 5.7 km away
- Green Meadows 12.3 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Arawahata Road
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SW (233°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (53°). 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 850 m out (1 in 87). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 14°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 20°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Ōpunake, 7.1 km away (12 min by car).
Water about 16°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$1,750–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 2 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to NPL, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW and AKL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$839–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$564 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$302–US$564 |
| 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
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
12 min by car
about US$127/nightcountry average
About Ōpunake its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Mahoe on Booking.com
28 min by car
- Beds in New Plymouth on Booking.com
51 min by car · 45 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 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 29h 40m
About 29h 40m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → NPL, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Auckland International Airport (AKL), then 1h 20m by road
Flights MDW → NPL on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.