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Raglan is New Zealand's most famous surf spot, a series of world-class left-hand point breaks on the Waikato coast of the North Island. Indicators, Whale Bay, and Manu Bay offer progressively longer lefts wrapping around the headland. Manu Bay is the longest, offering rides of up to 200+ metres. Black sand, green hills, and a laid-back creative community.
Needs west or south-westerly groundswell from the Tasman Sea. A south-easterly wind is offshore. Best at mid to high tide for the points. Consistent year-round with the biggest swells in autumn and winter (March-August). The 3-8ft range covers the different breaks. Manu Bay is most consistent.
Indicators: defined, shorter left at the top of the headland (intermediate). Whale Bay: longer, more powerful (intermediate-advanced). Manu Bay: the longest ride, mechanical left along the rocks (intermediate). Each has a defined take-off zone.
Rocky coastline at all points. Sea urchins (kina). Cold water (wetsuits year-round). Currents along the points on bigger days. The rocks at Manu Bay are close to the wave face.
Car parks at each break along the coast road. Short walks to the water. Raglan town (10 minutes) has full facilities including excellent cafes.
Busy on good days, particularly at Manu Bay which is the most accessible. 20-30 people on a solid swell at Manu Bay. Indicators and Whale Bay are slightly less crowded. The local crew are generally friendly. Weekends bring Auckland visitors (90 minute drive).
Raglan is one of the world's best left-hand point breaks and worth the journey. Manu Bay is the most consistent and longest ride. The black iron sand is distinctive. The town has a creative, alternative community with excellent cafes, bars, and markets. Hamilton (30 minutes) provides urban amenities.
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Based on historical weekly averages
Combining historical conditions with school holiday crowd pressure to find the sweet spot.
How busy each week is based on school holiday overlap from feeder markets.
The timing score combines two signals: historical conditions quality (how good the skiing or surfing typically is in a given week, based on 5 years of weather data) and crowd pressure (how many of this destination's feeder markets have school holidays that week).
Crowd pressure is weighted by each feeder country's share of visitors. If 40% of a resort's visitors come from France and France is on holiday, that contributes 0.40 to the crowd pressure score. Crowds can reduce the timing score by up to 35%, ensuring conditions still matter most.
Scores: 5 = great conditions with low crowds (the sweet spot). 4 = great conditions with moderate crowds, or good conditions with low crowds. 3 = average. 2 = below average conditions or very crowded. 1 = poor conditions or peak holiday chaos.
Last 28 days of logged conditions.
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Create Profile →Current conditions refresh every 3 hours when the cron runs. Hourly data updates every 30 minutes. The 7-day forecast, luck factor, and packing notes are all pre-computed at the same time.
We compare the 7-day forecast to the last 5 years of marine data for the same week at Raglan. The delta tells you whether conditions are shaping up better, worse, or about the same as a typical mid-June.
We score each day of the 7-day forecast using the same algorithm as the leaderboard, and highlight the highest scorer.
Open-Meteo's Marine API (swell height, period, water temperature) and Weather API (wind and conditions).
Honestly, no. Every break has tide windows, swell directions and reef contours that a global model cannot see. Treat the score as a starting point, then check a local cam.
The best week for surf at Raglan is the week of 30 November (score 3/5) with low crowds.
Rideable waves with moderate energy. Mid-period swell giving the waves decent shape and push. Heavy offshore making for difficult paddle-outs but textbook faces. Big day, above this spot's comfort zone. Experienced surfers only.
Heads up: rip risk elevated, and rocks exposed at low tide.
Indicators derived from forecast data, not official warnings. Always check local lifeguard or official advice.
Moderate water clarity: ~5m visibility
Daily scores over the last 12 months at Raglan
See timing scores, school holiday busyness, and lift pass pricing to find the best time to book.
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