Rabbit Island surf break

Rabbit Island surfForecast / Nelson – Tasman Bay / New Zealand

information circle12 Day Weather and Surf, issued 5 pm Tuesday 29 Jul 2025 NZST
Forecast update in hr  min  s Forecast update imminent
Rabbit Island surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's Rabbit Island sea temperature is
11.2° C
(Which is 1.3°C colder than average for this time of year)


Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Rabbit Island this week:

The surf forecast for Rabbit Island over the next 12 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Jul 30) at 3AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.1m and 8s period. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Rabbit Island in the next 12 days are 1.8m 9s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Jul 29) at 9PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.5m 4s period and expected on Monday (Aug 04) at 12AM.

Wave TypeTime (NZST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 3AM (Wed 30th Jul)3.5ft (1.1m) 8s
Best Surf 3AM (Wed 30th Jul)3.5ft (1.1m) 8s
Most Powerful 9PM (Tue 29th Jul)6ft (1.8m) 9s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Rabbit Island over the next 12 days.

Updates in  hr  min  s Forecast update imminent

Short Range Forecast Heavy rain (total 54mm), heaviest during Tue afternoon. Very mild (max 14°C on Tue afternoon, min 5°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light.

Days 3-6 Weather Summary Mostly dry. Very mild (max 12°C on Sat afternoon, min 4°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light.

Tue
29
Wednesday
30
Thursday
31
Friday
01
Saturday
02
Sunday
03
Monday
04
PMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAM
Rating
(10 max)
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Swell
Height Map
Wave Height (m) & direction (?)
2.4
N
1.3
N
0.8
N
0.6
N
0.4
N
0.4
NNW
0.3
N
0.3
ENE
0.1
N
0.1
N
0.1
N
0.1
N
0.1
N
0.1
N
0.1
N
0.1
N
0.5
E
0.1
NW
0.1
NW
0.1
NW
0.1
N
Period(s) (?)119775874877661098416151515
Wave
Graph
(?)Metric surfscale
Energy (?)140525767331101101111122100005
Wind
(km/h)
25
NNE
10
NE
5
SW
5
N
5
S
10
SSW
5
SSW
5
SSE
5
S
5
N
5
S
5
SSW
5
N
5
S
5
S
5
NNE
5
SSE
5
SSE
5
NNE
5
S
5
S
Wind State (?)
onshore
cross-onshore
cross-shore
cross-offshore
offshore
glassy
ononglassglassglassoffglasscross-
off
glasscross-
on
glassglassglassglasscross-
off
glasscross-
off
cross-
off
glasscross-
off
glass
High Tide
/ height (m)
1:12AM
3.95
1:35PM
3.78
1:50AM
3.79
2:11PM
3.64
2:30AM
3.61
2:50PM
3.48
3:14AM
3.41
3:34PM
3.34
4:06AM
3.23
4:28PM
3.21
5:09AM
3.10
5:45PM
3.13
6:22AM
3.09
Low Tide
/ height (m)
6:43PM
0.97
7:05AM
1.03
7:14PM
1.10
7:42AM
1.20
7:47PM
1.30
8:23AM
1.37
8:28PM
1.52
9:09AM
1.52
9:26PM
1.74
10:02AM
1.65
10:50PM
1.87
11:04AM
1.74
12:09AM
1.84
Tue
29
Wednesday
30
Thursday
31
Friday
01
Saturday
02
Sunday
03
Monday
04
Sunrise--7:37--7:35--7:35--7:33--7:33--7:31--7:31
Sunset5:29--5:30--5:30--5:31--5:32--5:34--5:35--
heavy rainheavy raincloudrain showersmod rainlight rainlight rainpart cloudclearclearclearclearclearclearclearclearclearpart cloudclearpart cloudpart cloud
Rain (mm)
2713-2741--------------
Temp. °C14131314111010910116111281010691069
Feels °C (?)1111121310897994101069847848
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder

Eyeball surf reportRecent Eyeball Surf Reports for Nelson - Tasman Bay

  1. weather stationWind Update Continuing clean conditions at Rabbit Island (calm at Nelson East wx 13 km from Rabbit Island). A 2.6m swell from the NNE

    Rabbit Island
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1 h 21 min ago

2 km/h
SSE
Clean
Please reload the page to see if there are any updates.

FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website

The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Rabbit Island surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.


Information about the Rabbit Island Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Rabbit Island provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 12 days. A general guide to surfing at Rabbit Island can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Rabbit Island 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 (Rabbit Island) 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 Rabbit Island 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.

Are you planning a holiday in Nelson - Tasman Bay? If you are looking for accommodation near Rabbit Island, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Nelson - Tasman Bay, consider staying in Nelson which is 11 km (7 miles) away. Alternatively, find information about places to stay and car hire in Blenheim which is 73 km (45 miles) away

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