Can you snorkel in Kauai today?

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

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

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 Kauai 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.

Where are the best snorkeling conditions near Kauai today?

The best nearby spots right now are Anini Beach, Poipu Beach, Lydgate Beach. Check each spot page for hourly wind, wave, tide and water temperature detail.

Kauai Snorkel Report Today

USA · Updated Sun 11:45 (HST) · Source: Snapshot

The skinny

Marginal Report Sun 05:40

Kauai looks marginal today. The least-bad daylight window is around Tue 06:00, but waves is limiting the forecast.

Score: 3.7/10

Best time: Tue 06:00

Main risk: Waves

Best morning signal: Sun 06:00 (Fair).

Best afternoon signal: Sun 12:00 (Poor). Peak afternoon wind is about 10.3 m/s.

Email me when it is good Compare nearby spots

Best nearby spots

Anini Beach 3.6/10 Fair · Sun 17:00 Poipu Beach 3.0/10 Poor · Mon 21:00 Lydgate Beach 2.9/10 Poor · Tue 16:00

Weakest nearby now

Poipu Beach Lydgate Beach Tunnels Beach

Local beach intelligence

AreaKauai

DifficultyVaries by beach

Best timeMorning

ExposureNorth and south shore seasons differ strongly

ShoreIsland hub

Sunrise

05:57

Sunset

19:25

Water

25.7°C

Max air

22.0°C

Sky

Cloudy

100% 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

Sunday

⚠️ fair conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Monday

❌ poor conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Tuesday

⚠️ fair conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Best available hours

Tue 16:00 — Fair (0.38) · still limited by waves, tide/current
Sun 16:00 — Fair (0.37) · still limited by waves, tide/current
Sun 17:00 — Fair (0.36) · still limited by waves, tide/current

Why this verdict

Main blockers across the next 72 hours:

Waves (67 hours)
Tide/current (67 hours)
Darkness (43 hours)

Upcoming high tides

Mon 01:00, Tue 01:00, Wed 02:00

Nearby snorkel spot map

Compare nearby spots by score, forecast window and exposure before choosing a beach.

Anini Beach Fair · Sun 17:00 3.6/10 Poipu Beach Poor · Mon 21:00 3.0/10 Lydgate Beach Poor · Tue 16:00 2.9/10 Tunnels Beach Poor · Sun 21:00 2.9/10

Nearby alternatives in USA

Ahihi Kinau

✅ Good

Anaehoomalu Bay

❌ Poor

Anini Beach

❌ Poor

Bahia Honda

❌ Poor

Advanced forecast data

Viewing live forecast

Sun 15:00 – Wed 15:00 (HST)

Previous day Yesterday

Snorkel Score (next 24h)

Best snorkel score is 0.37 around Sun 06:00; 2 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 1.28m to 1.38m).

Wind is at or below 5.4m/s in 13/24 sampled hours (range 1.4 to 11.0m/s).

Tides range from 0.22m to 0.91m; 1 of 24 hours are in or near peak slack windows.

72-hour forecast overview

Sun 16:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Sun 17:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

Sun 18:00 poor ❌ Limited

Sun 19:00 poor ❌ Limited

Sun 20:00 poor ❌ Limited

Sun 21:00 poor ❌ Limited

Sun 22:00 poor ❌ Limited

Sun 23:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 00:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 01:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 02:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 03:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 04:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 05:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 06:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 07:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 08:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 09:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 10:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 11:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 12:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 13:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 14:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 15:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 16:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 17:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 18:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 19:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 20:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 21:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 22:00 poor ❌ Limited

Mon 23:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 00:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 01:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 02:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 03:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 04:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 05:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 06:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 07:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 08:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 09:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 10:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 11:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 12:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 13:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 14:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 15:00 poor ❌ Limited

Tue 16:00 fair ⚠️ Fair

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 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 02:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 03:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 04:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 05:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 06:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 07:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 08:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 09:00 poor ❌ Limited

Wed 10:00 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
Sun 16:00	1.38 · high	2.20 · good	25.70 · good	fair
Sun 17:00	1.36 · high	2.30 · good	25.70 · good	fair
Sun 18:00	1.36 · high	4.90 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Sun 19:00	1.36 · high	6.10 · high	25.70 · good	poor
Sun 20:00	1.36 · high	6.70 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Sun 21:00	1.36 · high	8.10 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Sun 22:00	1.36 · high	9.20 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Sun 23:00	1.38 · high	10.30 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Mon 00:00	1.38 · high	11.00 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Mon 01:00	1.38 · high	10.20 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Mon 02:00	1.36 · high	9.60 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Mon 03:00	1.36 · high	9.30 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Mon 04:00	1.36 · high	8.60 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Mon 05:00	1.36 · high	7.10 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Mon 06:00	1.36 · high	2.00 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Mon 07:00	1.34 · high	1.40 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Mon 08:00	1.34 · high	2.10 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Mon 09:00	1.32 · high	1.50 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Mon 10:00	1.32 · high	2.00 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Mon 11:00	1.30 · high	2.50 · good	25.60 · good	poor
Mon 12:00	1.30 · high	3.20 · good	25.60 · good	poor
Mon 13:00	1.30 · high	3.20 · good	25.60 · good	poor
Mon 14:00	1.28 · high	2.60 · good	25.60 · good	poor
Mon 15:00	1.28 · high	4.20 · good	25.50 · good	poor
Mon 16:00	1.28 · high	3.40 · good	25.50 · good	poor
Mon 17:00	1.26 · high	3.60 · good	25.50 · good	poor
Mon 18:00	1.26 · high	4.20 · good	25.50 · good	poor
Mon 19:00	1.26 · high	6.60 · high	25.60 · good	poor
Mon 20:00	1.28 · high	7.50 · high	25.60 · good	poor
Mon 21:00	1.28 · high	6.00 · high	25.70 · good	poor
Mon 22:00	1.28 · high	9.00 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Mon 23:00	1.30 · high	7.40 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 00:00	1.30 · high	9.90 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 01:00	1.30 · high	8.10 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 02:00	1.32 · high	6.10 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 03:00	1.32 · high	6.50 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 04:00	1.32 · high	7.90 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 05:00	1.30 · high	7.40 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 06:00	1.30 · high	6.50 · high	25.90 · good	poor
Tue 07:00	1.30 · high	4.70 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Tue 08:00	1.32 · high	4.10 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Tue 09:00	1.32 · high	4.80 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Tue 10:00	1.34 · high	4.80 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Tue 11:00	1.34 · high	4.80 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Tue 12:00	1.36 · high	3.20 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Tue 13:00	1.36 · high	3.40 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Tue 14:00	1.36 · high	5.80 · high	25.60 · good	poor
Tue 15:00	1.36 · high	4.70 · good	25.60 · good	poor
Tue 16:00	1.36 · high	1.70 · good	25.60 · good	fair
Tue 17:00	1.34 · high	4.50 · good	25.60 · good	poor
Tue 18:00	1.34 · high	6.60 · high	25.60 · good	poor
Tue 19:00	1.34 · high	7.90 · high	25.60 · good	poor
Tue 20:00	1.32 · high	8.60 · high	25.70 · good	poor
Tue 21:00	1.32 · high	9.40 · high	25.70 · good	poor
Tue 22:00	1.32 · high	10.00 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Tue 23:00	1.32 · high	10.00 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 00:00	1.32 · high	10.30 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 01:00	1.30 · high	10.30 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 02:00	1.30 · high	8.60 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 03:00	1.28 · high	7.80 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 04:00	1.26 · high	6.90 · high	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 05:00	1.22 · high	5.20 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 06:00	1.20 · high	2.20 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 07:00	1.18 · high	2.10 · good	25.80 · good	poor
Wed 08:00	1.18 · high	2.30 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Wed 09:00	1.16 · high	2.90 · good	25.70 · good	poor
Wed 10:00	1.16 · high	2.90 · good	25.70 · good	poor