Tamarama surf report and forecast
Forecast for the selected hour
Now · 12am
1–2 ft
Fair-GoodBest today 6–11am
Size is the limiting factor.
The wave field solved for this hour on the real seafloor, playing forward. A model, not a camera.
Loads when it comes into view.The wave field solved for this hour on the real seafloor, playing forward. A model, not a camera.
This hour
The 12am readingSwell, wind, tide, breaker, energy, water
- Swell1.2 ft · 5 s · NESecondary: 86% of the energy. Direction at the break.
- 1.2 ft · 9 s · ESEMakes the wave: 8% of the energy. Direction at the break.
- 0.9 ft · 8 s · SSESecondary: 5% of the energy. Direction at the break.
- Wind10 mph from the NNECross-shore to a shoreline facing 118°Moderate
- Tide-1.2 ft, risingNext high 0.4 ft at 4:43am · NAVD88, TICON sydney_fort_denison-60370-aus-bom predicted (no observed source in AU)
- BreakerPlungingBreaks in about 3 ft of water
- Energy29 kJHeight² × period²Marginal
- Water67° · air — · UV 0
High confidence.
Best window6–11am
Against what Tamarama likesWhy it is Fair-Good, not Good
Preferred tide and swell are surfer-consensus notes for this spot, not yet reviewed against measurements. Wind is judged by the general rule (light or offshore helps). No percent match: these are plain states and reasons.
Nearby at 12amBondi, Maroubra and 3 more
The break
The seafloorSand in a narrow cove between cliffs
Shallow is light, deep is dark; contours every few feet; the relief is exaggerated.
- Bottomsand in a narrow cove between cliffs
- DepthNSW Marine LiDAR Topo-Bathy 2018 (5 m, AHD). Depth shown is below the selected hour’s tide.
- CoverageRock reef and headland shapes resolve well. Nearshore sandbars are interpolated flat in this dataset, so a beachbreak’s bar is not in the picture. A tile’s year is its publication, not the survey date.
Why it breaks like this3 swells at once, the seafloor is neutral here, where it trips
Read from the current hour (today at 12am). Each number, and what it does to the wave.
3 swells at once
1.2 ft at 9s from the ESE carrying 8% of the energy, plus 1.2 ft at 5s from the NE (86%), plus 0.9 ft at 8s from the SSE (5%).
The long-period train is the one building your wave. It holds the most energy and reaches deepest. The shorter ones cross it, which is what makes the surface look busy and the takeoff shift around. Why period matters more than height
The seafloor is neutral here
Kr 1.03 · 35% of modelled rays break.
Energy arrives roughly as it left deep water: this bottom neither concentrates the swell nor fans it out, so what the buoy sees is close to what you get. Why two breaks a mile apart differ
Where it trips
-1.2 ft of tide; waves are breaking in about 3 ft of water.
A wave breaks when the water gets shallow enough relative to its height, so that depth is a contour on the seafloor, and the tide slides the whole break up and down it through the day. Same swell, different spot, a few hours apart. How the tide moves the break
Wind is cross-shore
10 mph from the NNE, against a shoreline facing 118°.
Running across the face rather than into or against it. Less destructive than a straight onshore, but it puts a texture on the wall and can make the peak harder to read.
How Tamarama worksA tiny cove between cliffs that concentrates swell into a…
A tiny cove between cliffs that concentrates swell into a short, steep, powerful wave with a rip running out of it. Far heavier than its size suggests and not a beginner's beach despite sitting between two of them.
- Best tidemid to low
- Best swellS–SE swell
- Suitsadvanced
3 swell trains in the current hour · How this is calculated
Common questions4 questions about Tamarama
- What is the best tide for Tamarama?
- Tamarama works best on mid to low tide. Tide matters because depth is what trips a wave: as the water fills in, the break slides shoreward onto a different part of the bottom, and over a shallow bank enough water stops it breaking at all. Our forecast solves each hour at that hour's real water level rather than assuming one.
- What swell direction is best for Tamarama?
- S–SE swell suits Tamarama best. The direction that matters is the one at the break, not the one on the buoy: the seafloor bends swell on its way in, so a spot can work on an angle the open coast is missing. We model that bending for each break rather than reporting the offshore direction.
- Is Tamarama good for beginners?
- Tamarama suits advanced surfers, over sand in a narrow cove between cliffs. That is the wave this bottom makes on an average day, and it moves: the same break is a different proposition on a bigger swell or a different tide, so read the day's forecast rather than the label.
- What is the bottom like at Tamarama?
- sand in a narrow cove between cliffs. It is the reason this break behaves the way it does: the shape of the seabed decides where the swell focuses, where it trips, and whether it spills or pitches. We model Tamarama on real 10-foot bathymetry instead of treating the seafloor as a slope.