Simple Tides / Guides / Virginia Beach Tides
Virginia Beach Tide Chart
Virginia Beach sits where the Chesapeake Bay meets the Atlantic, and its semidiurnal tide — two highs and two lows a day — sets the schedule for one of the East Coast’s best fall striped bass fisheries.
Upcoming tides in Virginia Beach
Live NOAA predictions for station 8638610 (Sewells Point).
| Day | Time | Tide | Height |
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Heights in feet above MLLW, station local time. See the full interactive tide map.
The pattern
Expect a range of roughly three feet on the oceanfront, running on a classic semidiurnal cycle. Bay-side tides run a little later than the ocean, so use a bay station if you are fishing the Lynnhaven or the Bay. Fall king tides can push water over low-lying Shore Drive and the Oceanfront even on calm days.
The fall striper run
From October into December, migrating striped bass funnel past the Bay mouth, and the surf and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel are the stages — many locals fish the moving tides, especially the top of the incoming. Red drum and speckled trout fill the warmer months, and flounder stack up around the inlets.
Boating and inlets
Rudee Inlet and Lynnhaven Inlet both run hard on the tide change — cross with the current or wait for slack. The Bay can build a steep chop when an ebb meets a northerly wind, so check the marine forecast along with the tide table. For the region, see our Mid-Atlantic tide guide.