Hawai river
Surf spot · New Zealand
Is it worth the trip?
49Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sun 8: 4 ft swell at 6 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Mon 2 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft4 smushy
- Energy
- 17kJ
- Wind
- NNW 8 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Tue 3 · 46 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 39kJ
- Wind
- N 4 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Wed 4 · 57 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 70kJ
- Wind
- NNW 4 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Thu 5 · 53 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 95kJ
- Wind
- NE 9 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Fri 6 · 31 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 66kJ
- Wind
- NNW 7 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sat 7 · 37 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 70kJ
- Wind
- NNW 9 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Sun 8 · 60 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 87kJ
- Wind
- NW 5 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 219, too small
- Tue 346, fair
- Wed 457, fair
- Thu 553, fair
- Fri 631, poor
- Sat 737, poor
- Sun 860, good
- Mon 923, too small
- Tue 1015, poor
- Wed 1128, poor
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 18 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Hawai river does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 19, too small | 2 ft4 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 17kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 8 knots | 15°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 46, fair | 3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 39kJ | wind from the north, 4 knots | 16°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 57, fair | 3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 70kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 4 knots | 18°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 53, fair | 4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 95kJ | wind from the north-east, 9 knots | 19°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 31, poor | 3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 66kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 7 knots | 18°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 37, poor | 4 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 70kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 9 knots | 17°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 60, good | 4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 87kJ | wind from the north-west, 5 knots | 18°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 23, too small | 2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 31kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 4 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 15, poor | 4 ft6 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 95kJ | wind from the north, 14 knots | 16°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 28, poor | 4 ft6 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 129kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 12 knots | 17°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 00:32 +0.8 mLow 06:47 −0.9 mHigh 13:08 +0.9 mLow 19:26 −0.8 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 01:33 +0.7 mLow 07:47 −0.8 mHigh 14:08 +0.8 mLow 20:29 −0.8 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 02:37 +0.7 mLow 08:50 −0.8 mHigh 15:10 +0.8 mLow 21:31 −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).
- 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
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug0of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep0of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 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
Hawai river 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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Live webcam
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Live webcam
In Whakatāne, the nearest town, 49 km away
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More surf near here
4 places
- Ohope beach 43.9 km away
- Ohope Beach West End 44.6 km away
- Otarawairere bay 44.9 km away
- Coastlands Beach 48.1 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Hawai river
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NW (321°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (141°). It is sheltered 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 550 m out (1 in 53). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. 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 Ōhope.
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$3,280 each
about US$1,740–US$3,280 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 WHK, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW and AKL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$824–US$1,710 |
| 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$3,280 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Ōhope
71 min by car · 2 places to stay
about US$127/nightcountry average
About Ōhope its beds, food and every spot near it
Nearest beds: Ōhope, 41 km (about 1h 15m by car)
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 35m
About 29h 35m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → WHK, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Auckland International Airport (AKL), then 1h 15m by road
Flights MDW → WHK on your dates · Skyscanner
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.