Genipabu 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 01:00 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 America/Sao Paulo local. Folk tradition, not a scientific forecast.

Last spring tide on Wed 06 May (range 1.2m). Next spring tide on Tue 12 May (range 1.9m). Next neap on Fri 08 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.

Genipabu sits 30 km north of Natal on a stretch of coast where large parabolic dunes run directly to the beach and to the tidal mouth of the Genipabu lagoon (Lagoa de Genipabu). The dunes — some reaching 30–40 m in height — are a protected ecological station (ESEC Genipabu), but the beach strip and adjacent areas are the operational zone for the region's beach buggy tourism. The buggy tours that originate in Natal and Genipabu are the most commercially developed in the state. Vehicles travel along the strand between the dune base and the surf line, and the critical chokepoint is the tidal river crossing at the Genipabu lagoon mouth. At low water the river runs shallow — 0.4–0.8 m in dry season — and vehicle crossings are straightforward. As the tide rises toward the 2.5 m high water mark (using regional DHN/FEMAR data as a reference — the Natal gauge 30 km south is the closest formal station), the lagoon mouth deepens, the current strengthens with the tidal inflow, and the crossing becomes impractical for unmodified vehicles. Tour operators monitor tidal state and typically time the crossing for within 1–2 hours of low water. Genipabu beach itself is relatively narrow at high tide, flanked to the east by the ocean surf and to the west by dune vegetation. At low tide the exposed sand flat widens to 60–80 m in places. Sandboarding and camel rides operate on the dune face adjacent to the beach access area — these are unaffected by tide, but the beach activities (volleyball, water equipment rental) benefit from the wider low-water foreshore. The lagoon is brackish and calm, separated from the ocean by a sand berm that migrates slowly over years. It's used for stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking, and boat rides — the most pleasant window is early morning on an incoming tide before the breeze picks up and before tour buses arrive. DHN/FEMAR tidal predictions for Natal apply to this stretch. Open-Meteo Marine data shown here carries ±45 min / ±0.2–0.3 m uncertainty. For commercial buggy and boat operators, official DHN tables are the reference standard.