
Surf Forecasts:
Prainha surf forecast from 6 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 8 Aug, 6PM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 16s period, SE swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 9 Aug, 6PM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.1m), 12s period, SE swell with 319 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Friday 7 Aug, 6AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 8s period with E swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Prainha this week:
The surf forecast for Prainha over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 07) at 6AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.7m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.1m and 9s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Prainha in the next 16 days are 1.1m 12s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 09) at 6PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 8s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 08) at 3PM.
| Wave Type | Time (-03) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 6AM (Fri 7th Aug) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 6PM (Sat 8th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 6PM (Sun 9th Aug) | 3.5ft (1.1m) 12s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Prainha over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, this is Rusty.
Well, we’re looking at a pretty quiet start to the outlook, with not much to get excited about for the first week and a half. The water’s running a touch warmer than normal for this time of year, sitting around 68°, which is a nice thing but doesn’t help the surf much.
We kick off Thursday afternoon, 6 August, with tiny 2ft waves at Prainha, coming from the east with a short 8-second period. The wind is light from the northeast, but the surf is poor and the energy is weak (62). Not worth paddling out. Friday morning, 7 August, is still small at 2ft, but the wind turns light southwest, cross-offshore, so there’s a chance for a few ordinary waves. The energy’s still low (66). By Friday afternoon, the wind swings southeast and picks up to 25 km/h, turning cross-onshore and choppy – the surf’s gone. Saturday, 8 August, sees a long-period southeast groundswell at 2ft with a 15-second period, but it’s cross-on with light northeast winds and the energy is moderate (184). The small size and onshore angle make it a no-go. Sunday, 9 August, stays poor with a messy cross-shore chop and moderate energy (224) by the afternoon, but nothing clean.
Monday, 10 August, and Tuesday, 11 August, offer tiny 1–2ft waves with clean conditions thanks to a light to moderate south-southwest cross-offshore breeze, but the energy’s weak (around 68–98). These are ordinary, barely surfable days. Wednesday, 12 August, is the first glimmer – morning sees a gentle offshore from the WSW at 2ft with a 13-second period and moderate energy (135). By afternoon, it turns glassy – dead calm with a light ESE breeze, 2ft, 14-second period, and building energy (188). The sets will be clean and lined up, albeit small. That’s your best bet in the first week: a quiet, uncrowded session with some long-period, glassy runners.
Thursday, 13 August, holds small clean waves (1–2ft) but nothing to write home about. Then Friday, 14 August, through Sunday, 16 August, we see a jump in size – 4ft to 7ft – but the wind is onshore or cross-onshore from the southeast and east, blowing hard at times (25–30 km/h). The energy ramps up (248 to 980), but the chop and bump make it absolutely poor. Not worth the drive. Monday, 17 August, morning turns glassy again with a light southwest breeze and 4ft waves, 8-second period, but the energy is moderate (190) – ordinary but rideable.
Now, the standout period arrives on Tuesday, 18 August. The early morning session at Prainha cranks up to 8ft from the east with a 9-second period, cross-offshore south winds at 15 km/h, and a whopper combined energy of 1251 – that’s strong wave energy. This is excellent surf for the experienced crew. For the experts, this is the one. The water is glassy clean, the swell is solid, but at that size it’s too much for beginners. By Tuesday afternoon, it backs off to 5ft but turns glassy again with north winds, offering good waves for a broader range. Wednesday, 19 August, keeps firing with 5ft waves, a 10-second period, cross-offshore light south breezes in the morning, and glassy east winds in the afternoon. Energy stays strong (475 and 432). That’s two days of quality in a row. After that, Thursday, 20 August, drops to 3ft and goes glassy in the morning – still clean, but much smaller with moderate energy (150). From then on, it fades right off into tiny, poor conditions for the rest of the outlook.
So, if you’re a competent surfer, book in for the morning of Tuesday, 18 August, and the following day. That’s the real highlight: solid east swell, clean cross-offshore wind, and strong energy. Prainha is a consistent, advanced wave, so expect a crowd – it’s got “sometimes” crowd levels, but for that quality, a few others will be out.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastHeavy rain (total 20mm), heaviest during Fri afternoon. Warm (max 24°C on Fri morning, min 15°C on Sun morning). Mainly fresh winds. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 27mm), heaviest during Tue afternoon. Very mild (max 15°C on Sun afternoon, min 12°C on Tue afternoon). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Thu 6 | Friday 7 | Saturday 8 | Sunday 9 | Monday 10 | Tuesday 11 | Wednesday 12 | ||||||||||||||
PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | N 3 | E 8 | E 8 | SE 10 | SE 15 | SE 16 | SE 14 | SE 14 | SE 9 | SE 5 | SE 12 | SE 13 | SE 13 | SE 12 | SE 13 | SE 13 | SE 13 | SE 14 | SE 12 |
Wave Graph | ||||||||||||||||||||
41 | 8 | 58 | 55 | 96 | 116 | 122 | 119 | 68 | 138 | 58 | 73 | 57 | 61 | 54 | 58 | 78 | 113 | 164 | 92 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | off | glassy | off | glassy | cross-on |
High Tide | 3:15PM0.66m | 9:42PM0.83m | 3:54AM0.57m | 10:59PM0.84m | 12:00PM1.14m | 00:04AM0.91m | 1:02PM1.25m | 00:55AM1.01m | 1:50PM1.33m | 1:38AM1.12m | 2:31PM1.37m | 2:16AM1.22m | 3:08PM1.36m | 2:52AM1.29m | ||||||
Low Tide | 6:00PM0.57m | 1:45AM0.53m | 5:51AM0.53m | 7:02PM0.49m | 6:42AM0.39m | 7:49PM0.43m | 7:22AM0.26m | 8:27PM0.42m | 7:54AM0.15m | 8:56PM0.43m | 8:20AM0.06m | 9:12PM0.47m | 8:37AM0.01m | 8:59PM0.49m | ||||||
— | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:48 | — | — | 6:47 | — | — | 6:46 | — | — | 6:45 | — | — | |
5:49 | — | — | 5:50 | — | — | 5:50 | — | — | 5:51 | — | — | 5:51 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:52 | — | |
mm | — | 1 | — | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | — | 2 | 2 | — | 9 | 9 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 22 | 23 | 24 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
Feels °C | 22 | 22 | 24 | 14 | 13 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 15 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | ENE 8 | E 8 | E 8 | SE 10 | E 8 | ENE 8 | E 5 | E 6 | E 6 | ENE 6 | E 9 | E 8 | SE 13 | SE 5 | SE 13 | E 5 | E 5 | SE 14 | E 6 |
41 | 62 | 58 | 55 | 96 | 58 | 79 | 27 | 29 | 31 | 13 | 42 | 36 | 61 | 14 | 58 | 16 | 18 | 164 | 23 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | E 7 | SE 15 | SE 16 | SE 14 | SE 14 | SE 12 | — | SE 12 | SE 13 | ENE 8 | SE 12 | E 5 | SE 13 | SE 13 | E 5 | SE 12 |
14 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 54 | 116 | 122 | 119 | 68 | 55 | — | 73 | 57 | 22 | 54 | 8 | 78 | 113 | 20 | 92 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 14 | SE 12 | SE 11 | SSE 10 | — | SE 5 | SE 5 | ENE 8 | E 15 | — | — | — | — | E 12 | ENE 8 | SE 5 | E 7 | E 7 | E 7 | — |
7 | 6 | 5 | 10 | — | 10 | 7 | 19 | 4 | — | — | — | — | 3 | 21 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | — | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | N 3 | — | SE 3 | — | — | ENE 8 | — | SE 5 | SE 9 | SE 5 | SE 5 | SE 5 | SE 5 | — | — | ENE 5 | — | — | — |
— | 8 | — | 3 | — | — | 145 | — | 32 | 138 | 58 | 43 | 41 | 25 | — | — | 25 | — | — | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 33 | 4 | 0 | 59 | 80 | 4 | 33 | 0 | 133 | 129 | 126 | 62 | 62 | 61 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Santa Catarina - Norte | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Brazil | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Prainha Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Prainha provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Prainha can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Prainha surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Prainha) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Prainha may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Prainha is 14 km (9 miles) from Sao Francisco do Sul. If you plan a holiday in Santa Catarina - Norte, look for hotels and other accommodation in Sao Francisco do Sul. Sao Francisco do Sul has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.











