Exmouth tide times

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived.

Model-derived from a global ocean grid. Useful indication; expect about ±45 minutes on average vs. a local harmonic gauge, individual stations vary widely. See /methodology for per-region detail. Not for navigation.

Conditions as of 09:00 local time. Refreshes daily.

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived. · Not for navigation.

The angler tradition for major/minor fishing windows: major ≈3-hour windows around moon transit and opposition; minor ≈2-hour windows around moonrise and moonset. Times are Australia/Sydney local. Folk tradition, not a scientific forecast.

Next spring tide on Tue 05 May (range 1.9m). Last neap on Mon 04 May. Next neap on Sat 09 May.

Spring tides cluster around new and full moons (biggest swings). Neap tides land on quarter moons (smallest swings). See the spring tide and neap tide glossary entries for the why.

Exmouth is at the tip of the North West Cape peninsula, on the edge of Ningaloo Reef — 300 kilometres of fringing coral reef that is the world's largest fringing reef accessible directly from shore. Unlike the Great Barrier Reef, Ningaloo Reef is within swimming distance of the beach for much of its length. Tidal pattern is semidiurnal with a range of about 1.0 to 1.4 metres; the tidal flush through the lagoon between the reef and the shore creates the clear, warm water that makes snorkelling and diving here exceptional. Whale sharks visit Ningaloo Reef from March through July, following the mass coral spawning event that triggers the food chain supporting them. The whale shark interaction season at Ningaloo is the most reliable in the world — spotter aircraft locate whale sharks daily and radio their position to licensed swim operators. Participants enter the water from the zodiac ahead of the approaching shark and drift alongside it. This is snorkelling only (no scuba around whale sharks), and the experience of swimming with the world's largest fish (up to 12 metres in length) is unreplicable. Manta rays are present year-round but most visible from May through October when they congregate in the Ningaloo Marine Park's Manta Bommie. Snorkelling with manta rays is a standard offering from Exmouth dive operators — the rays visit cleaning stations predictably and divers/snorkellers can observe the cleaning behaviour at close range. Some of the most accessible shore snorkelling on Ningaloo is at Turquoise Bay (50 km south of Exmouth in Cape Range National Park). The bay has a drift snorkel where the tidal current carries you parallel to the reef in 2 to 5 metres of water — parrotfish, surgeonfish, reef sharks, turtles, and hundreds of reef fish without a boat trip. The drift starts at a specific entry point and exits at a beach 200 metres down-current — time this with the incoming tide for the full drift experience. Humpback whales pass north (July through September) and south (October through November) through Ningaloo. Whale watching boats run during both migrations. Loggerhead, hawksbill, and green turtles nest on the cape beaches from November through March. Predictions on this page come from Open-Meteo Marine, a gridded global ocean model. Accuracy is typically within plus or minus 45 minutes on timing and 0.2 to 0.3 metres on height — model-derived, not from a local gauge. For authoritative Australian tide data, consult the Australian Bureau of Meteorology at bom.gov.au.