🇺🇸 QUEENS, NEW YORK

Rockaway Beach

NYC's only surf beach, accessible by subway

SMALL

Live Conditions

Conditions Summary

Small 2.5ft surf — but short 6s period indicates wind swell, expect choppy conditions — hitting at the ideal angle — 10mph onshore wind roughing up the surface — Note: this is outside the peak season for this spot

HIGH CONFIDENCEFresh buoy data + calibrated transformation

Why it's SMALL

Swell Direction

Primary swell is 193° — wrong angle. This spot needs 130° swells to break properly.

Swell Period

5s — this is wind chop, not groundswell. Waves will be weak and disorganized.

Wind

10mph onshore — will chop up the surface and ruin wave shape

Tide

Rising tide — workable window

Season

July is off-season — rare for this spot to get quality waves

Data Confidence

Fresh buoy data with calibrated coastal transformation

At the Break

2.5ft

HIGH CONFIDENCE

Fresh buoy data + calibrated transformation

Period

✗ Wind swell

Wind

10mph

ONSHORE

Water

74°F

Spring suit

Live Buoy 44065

3.3ft

35 min ago

Tide

MID-TIDE · RISING

1.3ft

Next high: in 5 hr 1 min

Swell Direction

85%

Wind Direction

20%

Primary Swell

1.2ft @ 3.5s

SSE 158°

Secondary Swell

0.9ft @ 5.0s

E 94°

10 Day Outlook

3.4ft

TODAY

Jul 28

(7s)

4.3ft

TMRW

Jul 29

(6s)

3.9ft

THU

Jul 30

(8s)

2.7ft

FRI

Jul 31

(10s)

1.8ft

SAT

Aug 1

(8s)

2.4ft

SUN

Aug 2

(8s)

2.7ft

MON

Aug 3

(9s)

2.6ft

TUE

Aug 4

(8s)

2.0ft

WED

Aug 5

(6s)

1.6ft

THU

Aug 6

(6s)

Best this week: THU Jul 30 — 3.9ft

Best next week: TUE Aug 4 — 2.6ft

Model Breakdown

ECMWF (45%)1.4ft

ICON (35%)2.2ft

GFS (20%)2.4ft

Model confidence65%

Updated every 30 mins · Open-Meteo ECMWF + ICON + GFS

About

Rockaway is the only legal surf beach within New York City limits, reachable by the A train from Manhattan. A long sandbar beach that works on East and South swells, with designated surf zones that keep the lineup reasonable. Scrappy but soulful — the only place you can surf in the morning and be in Brooklyn for lunch.

The Break

Beach 90th to Beach 110th — designated surf zones along a long sand beach.

Ideal Conditions

S/E swell 2-8ft, offshore N/NW wind, mid to low tide

Best Months

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Best months highlighted · Current: Jul

Trip Planner

Rockaway Urban Surf Weekend

Weekend · 3 Days

Friday

Grab your board, hop the A train from Manhattan (1.5 hrs). Check Beach 90th, grab local food.

Saturday

Dawn patrol at the main hub (Beach 90th). Afternoon hang at the beach. Subway back to Manhattan for dinner.

Sunday

Morning session, head back to the city.

New York City Surf Week

Full Week · 7 Days

Day 1

Stay in NYC, session at Rockaway via subway.

Day 2-4

Multiple sessions at the main zones. Explore different beach sections.

Day 5

Final session, return to the city for evening activities.

Local Knowledge

Subway access via the A train — bring your board on the train, it's accepted.

Beach 90th is the main hub for surfers.

Scrappy but soulful vibe — respect the local community.