Sunset and golden hour times for planning your evening session.
After-work glass-offs in Virginia Beach can rival dawn patrol on good days. Afternoon thermals die, the crowd thins, and these 12 west-facing breaks catch the last clean sets of the day.
Sunset
6:30 PM
Golden Hour: 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Day length: 11h 19m
-2 min vs yesterday
Sunrise
7:11 AM
First light: 6:41 AM
Sunset
6:30 PM
Last light: 7:00 PM
Data from 1st Street Jetty (Virginia Beach) · Updated daily
7-Day Sun Schedule
7-day sun schedule showing sunrise, sunset, and day length
First Street is Virginia Beach's most established surf zone. The north jetty at Rudee Inlet traps sand and often produces a rideable right when nearby open beach is flat, with more push on E to SE tropical or nor'easter swell.
Beach facing
NE-facing (65°)
Evening access
Use the designated surf zone north of Rudee Inlet. Stay away from the rocks and inlet mouth, and follow posted contest or lifeguard boundaries.
42nd–46th Street North End is an Atlantic sandbar surf zone at Virginia Beach in Virginia Beach. The representative coordinate marks nearshore water, not a fixed takeoff; sandbars, currents, and access conditions can change.
Beach facing
E-facing (80°)
Evening access
Use the official public access serving this shoreline and obey closures, dune protections, and seasonal surf-zone rules.
71st Street North End is an Atlantic sandbar surf zone at Virginia Beach in Virginia Beach. The representative coordinate marks nearshore water, not a fixed takeoff; sandbars, currents, and access conditions can change.
Beach facing
E-facing (80°)
Evening access
Use the official public access serving this shoreline and obey closures, dune protections, and seasonal surf-zone rules.
The public Camp Pendleton surfing area sits beside the Virginia Army National Guard installation. Its outside sandbar can handle more E, SE, and S energy than First Street and may produce hollow sections when tide, period, and offshore wind align.
Beach facing
E-facing (82°)
Evening access
Follow the signed public beach corridor and boundary fencing. Training activity does not authorize entry onto base property.
South Croatan is an open beach break beside Camp Pendleton. It favors SE tropical swell and offers more room than the jetty peak, with shifting outside bars that can produce left and right walls.
Beach facing
E-facing (88°)
Evening access
Enter from the public Croatan facility and stay between posted boundaries. Do not cross military fences or drift into restricted training areas.
Croatan Jetty is the north end of Croatan Beach, where a wooden groin and Rudee Inlet's south jetty can bend swell into a predominantly left wedge. It is fickle but becomes punchier around high tide during nor'easters.
Beach facing
SE-facing (128°)
Evening access
Walk north from the public Croatan entrance. Stay clear of the jetty, groin, and inlet current.
Little Island is the southern public anchor of Sandbridge. The fishing pier influences nearby sandbars, and the city maintains a surfing beach north of the structure with room for small-wave progression and stronger storm-swell peaks.
Beach facing
E-facing (75°)
Evening access
Use the signed surfing beach north of the pier and remain outside pier setbacks and fishing lines. Do not enter Back Bay refuge closures farther south.
North End covers the residential oceanfront north of the resort district. Its open sandbars are less structure-dependent than the city's jetty breaks and can provide clean longboard peaks on small swell or faster walls when tropical and winter energy arrives.
Beach facing
E-facing (75°)
Evening access
Use signed public walkovers between 42nd Street and Fort Story. The coordinate is Surfline's representative North End forecast point, not a single takeoff.
S-Turn is a named Sandbridge beach-break zone between the market area and Little Island. It shares the peninsula's open Atlantic exposure but has no fixed structure, so quality depends heavily on the current bank.
Beach facing
E-facing (75°)
Evening access
The forecast coordinate identifies the surf zone, not a parking location. Confirm the nearest legal public access before arrival.
Sandbridge is a more open and less urban Atlantic beach south of the resort district. Shifting sandbars create left and right peaks, with the strongest opportunities during tropical swell and nor'easters.
Beach facing
NE-facing (55°)
Evening access
Beach access is directly across from the public facility. Stay on walkovers and protect the dunes.
The 15th Street fishing pier can organize a right on its south side during sizable nor'easters. The north-side shorebreak, known locally as The Box, can form fast small barrels when the sand is right and south swell reaches the resort beach.
Beach facing
E-facing (75°)
Evening access
Enter from signed public beach access and stay outside the legal setback from the pier. Daytime summer surfing restrictions can make this primarily a cold-season or off-hours break.
The best sunset sessions in Virginia Beach are at 1st Street Jetty (Virginia Beach), 42nd–46th Street North End, 71st Street North End. These spots offer stunning golden hour views while you ride.
Yes! Afternoon often brings cleaner conditions as morning onshore winds die down. Plus, the golden hour light and fewer crowds make for magical sessions.
Check it, surf it, log it
Check the forecast, surf the session, log what happened — and build the record you'll compare every next call against.