Can you snorkel in Hikkaduwa today?

Conditions look marginal right now — no clearly safe snorkeling window is forecast in Hikkaduwa over the next 72 hours. Check the hourly table for the calmest period.

What is the best time of day to snorkel in Hikkaduwa?

Snorkel during daylight, ideally in the morning before the wind picks up, and around high slack tide when water is clearest and currents are weakest. SnorkelForecast scores every daylight hour in Hikkaduwa so you can pick the calmest window.

What is the best tide for snorkeling?

High slack tide — within about an hour of the high-tide peak when currents are weakest — is the safest, clearest window. Strong low tides, strong tidal flow near channels or headlands, and large tidal-range days reduce score.

Hikkaduwa Snorkel Report Today

Sri Lanka · Updated Tue 04:14 (+0530) · Source: Snapshot · Showing fallback/stale data

The skinny

Marginal Report Wed 12:52

Hikkaduwa looks marginal today. The least-bad daylight window is around Fri 07:30, but waves is limiting the forecast.

Score: 4.6/10

Best time: Fri 07:30

Main risk: Waves

No useful morning window is showing yet.

Best afternoon signal: Wed 17:30 (Fair). Peak afternoon wind is about 4.7 m/s.

Email me when it is good

Sunrise

06:03

Sunset

18:28

Water

28.8°C

Max air

29.5°C

Sky

Partly cloudy

37% cloud

No safe window in the next 72 hours

Use the best-available section for the least-bad times.

3-day planner Best available Show data

3-day planner

Wednesday

⚠️ fair conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Thursday

⚠️ fair conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Friday

⚠️ fair conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Best available hours

Fri 02:00 — Fair (0.49) · still limited by waves, tide/current
Thu 03:00 — Fair (0.46) · still limited by waves, tide/current
Thu 07:00 — Fair (0.45) · still limited by waves, tide/current

Why this verdict

Main blockers across the next 72 hours:

Waves (44 hours)
Tide/current (44 hours)
Darkness (24 hours)

Jellyfish drift risk

Drift estimate from wind, swell, current and warm water.

Low · 34/100

Low drift risk now.

warm water supports seasonal jellyfish activity; surface drift/current is noticeable; local shoreline exposure is not mapped yet.

Sightings override the model: if you see small purple jellyfish with long trailing tentacles, treat them as sting-capable and give them space.

Upcoming high tides

Wed 12:00

Nearby alternatives in Sri Lanka

Pigeon Island

312 km away

✅ Good

Advanced forecast data

Viewing historical data

Tue 06:30 – Fri 06:30 (+0530)

Previous day Yesterday Next day Live

Snorkel Score (selected 24h)

Best snorkel score is 0.45 around Wed 06:30; 10 of 24 hours are good, fair, or excellent.

Score trend, higher is better. Excellent ≥ 0.72, good 0.55–0.72, fair 0.35–0.55.

Conditions (24h trends)

Tap a chart to load just that series.

0/24 sampled hours stay at or below 0.36m (range 2.0m to 2.04m).

Wind is at or below 5.4m/s in 20/24 sampled hours (range 2.77 to 5.84m/s).

Tides range from 0.16m to 0.53m; 1 of 24 hours are in or near peak slack windows.

72-hour historical overview

Tue 07:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Tue 08:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Tue 09:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Tue 10:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Tue 11:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Tue 12:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Tue 13:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 14:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 15:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 16:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 17:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 18:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 19:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 20:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 21:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 22:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 23:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 00:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 01:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Wed 02:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 03:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 04:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Wed 05:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Wed 06:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Wed 07:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Wed 08:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Wed 09:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 10:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 11:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 12:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 13:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 14:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 15:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 16:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 17:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 18:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 19:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 20:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 21:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 22:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 23:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 00:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 01:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 02:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 03:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 04:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 05:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 06:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 07:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 08:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 09:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 10:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 11:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 12:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 13:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 14:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 15:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 16:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 17:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 18:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 19:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 20:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 21:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 22:00 poor ❌ Limited

Thu 23:00 poor ❌ Limited

Fri 00:00 poor ❌ Limited

Fri 01:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 02:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 03:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 04:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 05:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 06:00 poor ❌ Limited

Scoring methodology (for technical users)

We score each hour from 0 to 1 using daylight and these weighted components:

Wave height (35%): best below 0.36m, then decreases as it rises.
Wind speed (25%): best below 5.4m/s, lower is better.
Sea surface temperature (15%): best within 20.6°C to 30.4°C.
Tide and currents (15%): best around slack/high-tide windows.
Daylight (10%): visibility and safety gate (outside daylight scores lower).

Detailed hourly data table

Time	Wave (m)	Wind (m/s)	Sea temp (°C)	Status
Tue 07:00	2.00 · high	5.57 · high	28.80 · good	fair
Tue 08:00	2.02 · high	5.75 · high	28.90 · good	fair
Tue 09:00	2.02 · high	5.84 · high	28.90 · good	fair
Tue 10:00	2.02 · high	5.61 · high	28.90 · good	fair
Tue 11:00	2.02 · high	5.20 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Tue 12:00	2.02 · high	4.20 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Tue 13:00	2.02 · high	3.50 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Tue 14:00	2.02 · high	3.18 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Tue 15:00	2.02 · high	3.13 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Tue 16:00	2.02 · high	3.41 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Tue 17:00	2.02 · high	3.77 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Tue 18:00	2.02 · high	3.78 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Tue 19:00	2.02 · high	4.09 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Tue 20:00	2.02 · high	4.18 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Tue 21:00	2.02 · high	3.72 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Tue 22:00	2.02 · high	3.46 · good	28.70 · good	poor
Tue 23:00	2.04 · high	2.90 · good	28.70 · good	poor
Wed 00:00	2.04 · high	2.77 · good	28.70 · good	poor
Wed 01:00	2.04 · high	2.86 · good	28.70 · good	fair
Wed 02:00	2.04 · high	4.85 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Wed 03:00	2.04 · high	4.86 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Wed 04:00	2.04 · high	4.85 · good	28.80 · good	fair
Wed 05:00	2.04 · high	4.60 · good	28.80 · good	fair
Wed 06:00	2.04 · high	5.15 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Wed 07:00	2.04 · high	5.36 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Wed 08:00	2.04 · high	5.62 · high	28.90 · good	fair
Wed 09:00	2.04 · high	7.05 · high	29.00 · good	poor
Wed 10:00	2.04 · high	5.43 · high	29.00 · good	poor
Wed 11:00	2.04 · high	4.16 · good	29.00 · good	poor
Wed 12:00	2.04 · high	3.70 · good	29.00 · good	poor
Wed 13:00	2.04 · high	3.42 · good	29.00 · good	poor
Wed 14:00	2.06 · high	3.11 · good	29.00 · good	poor
Wed 15:00	2.06 · high	4.75 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Wed 16:00	2.06 · high	3.27 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Wed 17:00	2.06 · high	2.77 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Wed 18:00	2.06 · high	2.83 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Wed 19:00	2.06 · high	2.65 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Wed 20:00	2.08 · high	2.70 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Wed 21:00	2.08 · high	2.91 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Wed 22:00	2.08 · high	3.14 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Wed 23:00	2.08 · high	2.63 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Thu 00:00	2.08 · high	2.78 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Thu 01:00	2.08 · high	2.71 · good	28.80 · good	fair
Thu 02:00	2.08 · high	2.38 · good	28.80 · good	fair
Thu 03:00	2.08 · high	3.13 · good	28.80 · good	poor
Thu 04:00	2.08 · high	2.15 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Thu 05:00	2.10 · high	3.64 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Thu 06:00	2.10 · high	4.61 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Thu 07:00	2.10 · high	5.06 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Thu 08:00	2.10 · high	4.67 · good	29.00 · good	poor
Thu 09:00	2.14 · high	5.85 · high	29.20 · good	poor
Thu 10:00	2.14 · high	5.70 · high	29.20 · good	poor
Thu 11:00	2.16 · high	5.37 · good	29.20 · good	poor
Thu 12:00	2.16 · high	4.56 · good	29.20 · good	poor
Thu 13:00	2.16 · high	4.04 · good	29.20 · good	poor
Thu 14:00	2.18 · high	3.86 · good	29.20 · good	poor
Thu 15:00	2.18 · high	3.57 · good	29.10 · good	poor
Thu 16:00	2.20 · high	3.51 · good	29.10 · good	poor
Thu 17:00	2.20 · high	3.76 · good	29.00 · good	poor
Thu 18:00	2.22 · high	4.06 · good	29.00 · good	poor
Thu 19:00	2.22 · high	4.00 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Thu 20:00	2.20 · high	5.50 · high	28.90 · good	poor
Thu 21:00	2.20 · high	3.14 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Thu 22:00	2.20 · high	2.50 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Thu 23:00	2.20 · high	2.78 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Fri 00:00	2.20 · high	2.91 · good	28.90 · good	poor
Fri 01:00	2.20 · high	1.77 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Fri 02:00	2.18 · high	2.55 · good	28.90 · good	fair
Fri 03:00	2.18 · high	2.78 · good	29.00 · good	fair
Fri 04:00	2.16 · high	3.03 · good	29.00 · good	fair
Fri 05:00	2.16 · high	2.71 · good	29.10 · good	fair
Fri 06:00	2.14 · high	4.39 · good	29.10 · good	poor