Surf on Oahu's south shore today

Tomorrow, Friday 18 September

Nothing in Oahu's south shore is worth the drive tomorrow. The best of it is White Plains Beach at overhead, 8 seconds, rated poor.

Surfing in Oahu's south shore

Oahu's south shore is Honolulu's coast - a long reef shelf from White Plains through Ala Moana and Waikiki to Diamond Head, facing south into the summer swells that arrive from storms below the equator. It is the opposite of the North Shore in every way: it works in summer not winter, it is gentle where the north is heavy, and it is where Hawaii learned to surf.

The breaks sit close together but behave differently: Bowls and Kaisers are hollow and fast, Canoes and Queens are slow and long, Diamond Head is bigger and windier. This page ranks all of them from today's and tomorrow's forecast, using the same model as the app.

Where should a beginner surf in Oahu's south shore?

Waikiki - Canoes, Queens and the beach in front of the hotels. Slow, long, soft waves over a deep reef, with board rental and instructors on the sand. It is the most famous beginner surf in the world and still deserves it.

Ala Moana Bowls and Kaisers are for experienced surfers - shallow, fast and heavily localised. Diamond Head is bigger than it looks and the trade wind blows across it.

When is the best time to surf Oahu's south shore?

May to September, when south swell arrives from southern-hemisphere storms - the south shore's summer is the North Shore's off-season and vice versa. Trade winds blow offshore or side-shore here most of the year, so mornings are clean. Winter brings small, inconsistent surf; the reefs at Waikiki still offer something most days.