Aguadilla, Puerto Rico 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 00:00 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/Puerto Rico local. Folk tradition, not a scientific forecast.

Next spring tide on Tue 19 May (range 0.6m). Next neap on Fri 22 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.

Aguadilla sits on the northwest tip of Puerto Rico at Punta Borinquen, where the Atlantic swell arrives from the north and northwest with nothing between it and the North American storm track. This is the most exposed coast on the island — the same orientation that made the former Ramey Air Force Base a strategic location is what makes Aguadilla a regional surf destination. The World Surfing Reserve designation at Punta Higüero, 8 km south near Rincón, formally recognises the concentration of quality breaks along this coastline. The surf breaks at Aguadilla cluster around two distinct areas. Pipeline — locally named, unrelated to North Shore — is a reef break north of the town that works on northwest groundswell, typically October through April when North Atlantic low-pressure systems generate long-period swells. Wilderness, further north toward the old Air Force base, is a longer right-hander over a sand-and-rock bottom; it handles moderate swell better than Pipeline and is more consistent through the season. Gas Chambers is a reef pass south of the Pipeline zone, better known for snorkelling than surfing; the swim-through lava tubes and the abundance of fish and invertebrate life on the reef structure make it one of the more distinctive snorkelling sites on the island. The tidal regime at Aguadilla is mixed semidiurnal with a spring range of 0.3 to 0.5 metres — the same microtidal character as the rest of Puerto Rico. Tide state matters to surf quality here more than at the calmer south coast: the reef at Pipeline has a defined sweet spot on the lower half of the tide, when the swell refracts more directly onto the reef ledge and the lip is cleaner. At high tide, the reef is covered by an additional 0.3 to 0.5 m and the wave shape softens. The difference is small by the standards of a macro-tidal coast, but on a consistent 1.5 m swell day it is observable. Surf forecasts from regional services should be combined with the tide prediction on this page to identify the best windows. For anglers, the rocky shoreline near Punta Borinquen lighthouse and the points north of town produce jack crevalle, barracuda, and occasional bonefish in the inshore rocky reef structure. The incoming tide concentrates baitfish against the point structure — the flood phase, from low through mid-tide, is the productive window on most days. The lighthouse at Punta Borinquen, operational since 1889, sits on a bluff above the surf zone; the rocky shelf below it is accessible on foot at the lower tides. Families and swimmers use the town beach at Balneario Aguadilla (El Crash Boat Beach) and the more protected Playa Las Cascadas. Crash Boat gets its name from the rescue boats that operated from the former base to recover aircraft; the pier pilings are now home to a dense fish community visible to snorkellers. Swimming conditions here depend heavily on swell height and direction — the beach is sheltered from the dominant northwest swell by a point to the north, so it stays swimmable on most north-swell days. When wind shifts to northwest above 20 knots, conditions deteriorate quickly. The Punta Borinquen lighthouse, on the cliffs above the surf zone, is a popular photographer's position for capturing northwest swell. The combination of the historic structure, the crashing Atlantic, and the sunset light over the water to the west produces one of the more distinctive coastal images on the island. The best light falls in the hour before sunset, when the western facing is directly illuminated. Tide state matters for the foreground: the lower two-thirds of the tidal cycle exposes the rock ledge below the bluff and provides foreground texture. Predictions on this page come from Open-Meteo Marine, a global gridded ocean model. Accuracy is typically ±45 minutes on timing and ±0.2 to 0.3 metres on height. For a coast with a spring range of 0.3 to 0.5 m, the timing uncertainty can be a significant fraction of the tidal cycle. For surf-critical timing, combine this prediction with regional swell forecasts and local knowledge of the specific reef response.