Cocoa Beach is warm enough to surf every month of the year, but that does not make the months interchangeable. Water temperature swings by about twenty degrees across the year, summer afternoons bring storms on a schedule, and autumn is hurricane season.
This is the year, season by season, with the air and water temperatures you can expect, what the rain does, and what to pack. Every lesson includes a wetsuit whatever the month, so the temperature question is comfort rather than a barrier.
Warmest water: June to September
The Atlantic runs in the low to mid eighties, which means a rash guard and swimwear are all you need.
Best all-round months: October and November
Water in the high seventies, light winds, the first real swell of the season and an empty beach.
Winter needs a wetsuit
December to February the water sits in the mid sixties and the air can be in the sixties. Wetsuits come with every lesson.
Summer storms are punctual
June to September, the afternoon sea breeze builds thunderheads most days. We teach in the morning because of it.
Winter: December, January, February
Air temperatures run from the high fifties to the low seventies, and the Atlantic falls to the mid sixties — the coolest water of the year and the reason every lesson includes a wetsuit. Water in the sixties is comfortable in a 3/2 wetsuit, and most visiting surfers wear one and never think about it again.
Winter is also the most consistent surf season on the Space Coast: the cold fronts that sweep down from the north bring swell, and an empty beach at 9:00 AM in January is one of the better-kept secrets here. Bring a hoodie for the morning and expect bright, dry, cloudless days.
Spring: March, April, May
This is the sweet spot. Air climbs from the high sixties into the mid eighties, the water warms from the high sixties to the high seventies, and the wind stays light through the morning. April is usually the driest month of the year.
March is also the busiest booking month of our year because of spring break, and the island's hotels fill with it. If your dates are in March, book the lesson first and everything else around it.
Summer: June, July, August
Hot, humid and warm in the water: air in the high eighties to low nineties, water in the low to mid eighties, and a heat index that makes morning the only sensible time to be on the sand. A rash guard replaces the wetsuit for most surfers.
Summer has a rhythm: calm mornings, a building sea breeze after midday, and thunderstorms in the afternoon that roll in and out within an hour. That is exactly why lessons run at 9:00 AM. Hurricane season opens on 1 June as well, though the peak comes later in the year.
Autumn: September, October, November
September is the statistical peak of hurricane season and the most unpredictable month of the year — warm water, humid air and a forecast worth watching. When the tropics are quiet, September is a lovely, empty month to be here.
October and November are, for most people, the best two months on this coast: the water is still in the high seventies, the air cools to the seventies and low eighties, the first north-east swell of the season arrives, and the summer crowds have gone. If you are choosing dates from scratch, choose these.
The year at a glance
Rough averages for air and water, measured in Fahrenheit, with what each month is like.
- January: air 58-71, water about 65 — cool, dry, consistent swell, wetsuit weather
- February: air 60-73, water about 65 — like January, with the first warm afternoons
- March: air 65-77, water about 68 — spring break, busiest booking month, light winds
- April: air 70-81, water about 72 — usually the driest month, excellent conditions
- May: air 75-85, water about 77 — warm water, long days, the coast at its easiest
- June: air 78-89, water about 81 — hot, humid, afternoon storms, hurricane season opens
- July: air 79-90, water about 84 — warmest water of the year, teach early
- August: air 79-90, water about 85 — peak heat and humidity, warm ocean, storms
- September: air 78-88, water about 84 — warm and quiet, but hurricane season peaks
- October: air 73-84, water about 80 — the best month of the year for most visitors
- November: air 67-77, water about 74 — cool fronts, first real swell, empty beach
- December: air 61-72, water about 68 — holiday weeks, cool water, bright skies
What to pack, and what the weather changes
For any month: swimwear, a towel, sunscreen, a refillable water bottle and a light layer for the breeze. December through March add a warm layer for the morning and an extra towel, and June through September add a rain shell or accept getting rained on for twenty minutes.
Weather mainly changes when you surf, not whether. If a front is coming through we move your lesson rather than cancel it, and nothing is charged to request or hold a time. In hurricane season, keep an eye on the forecast before you book flights — and buy the flexible fare if you are travelling September to early November.
Ready to try it yourself?
Private, kids and group lessons run every day from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Board, rash guard and wetsuit included.
