Beach forecast for Garden City
Today, Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · local time (EDT) · South Carolina, United States Today, Wed, Oct 28 · EDT- Swimming
- Use care · 3.7 ft
- Water
- 67 °F · cool
- Max UV
- 5 · SPF 30
- Low tide
- 5:25 am and 6:19 pm
Rip current risk today: moderate · tomorrow: moderate (NWS)
Dangerous rip currents are possible: swim only near a lifeguard and follow the flags. If one pulls you out, swim parallel to the shore.
Today, Wednesday, October 28, it's a fair beach day in Garden City (6/10). The best hours are from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm: sunshine, pleasant temperatures, little wind and low tide at 6:19 pm, though with some waves. The best day this week is Friday, October 30, at 8/10.
Beach forecast for the next 7 days
| Day | Rating | Best hours | Swimming | Water | UV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 6Fair beach day | 2:00–6:00 pm | Use care · 3.7 ft | 67 °F | 5 |
| Thu 29 | 6Fair beach day | 2:00–6:00 pm | Use care · 3.1 ft | 68 °F | 5 |
| Fri 30 | 8Good beach day | 1:00–6:00 pm | Calm · 2.4 ft | 68 °F | 5 |
| Sat 31 | 1Not a beach day | No good window | Use care · 3.2 ft | 68 °F | 4 |
| Sun 1 | 1Not a beach day | No good window | Use care · 3.3 ft | 68 °F | 4 |
| Mon 2 | 0Not a beach day | No good window | Use care · 3.5 ft | 68 °F | — |
| Tue 3 | 4Poor beach day | 11:00 am–2:00 pm | Use care · 3.4 ft | 69 °F | — |
Each rating comes from sun, temperature, rain, wind, waves, UV, water temperature and, where there is one, the tide.
Today in detail
1 good hour- Mostly sunny
- Feels like 78 °F: pleasant
- Onshore breeze (12 mph)
- UV 4 (moderate): SPF 30 sunscreen
- Water at 67 °F (cool)
- Low tide at 6:19 pm: more sand
Today, hour by hour
- Swimming Use care · 3.7 ft
3.7 ft waves every 6 s: swim with care and stay where you can stand. Always follow the lifeguard's flags.
- Water 67 °F
Cool: refreshing on a hot day.
- Sun & sunscreen UV 5 · SPF 30
Max UV 5 (moderate): SPF 30 sunscreen, reapplied every 2 hours.
- Wind 12 mph
Onshore breeze (12 mph).
- Tide & sand 5:25 am
Low tide at 5:25 am and 6:19 pm: that's when there's the most sand. High tide at 10:57 am and 11:13 pm.
The best window, 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm, brings sunshine, pleasant temperatures, little wind and low tide at 6:19 pm, though with some waves.
We don't have data on jellyfish, sargassum or beach closures: ask the lifeguard or check with the local beach authority.
Today, hour by hour
| Time | Rating | Sky | Feels like | Wind | Waves | UV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 am | 0 | Clear sky | 58 °F | 8 mph | 3.1 ft | 1 |
| 10:00 am | 2 | Clear sky | 63 °F | 10 mph | 3.3 ft | 2 |
| 11:00 am | 3 | Mainly clear | 69 °F | 11 mph | 3.3 ft | 4 |
| 12:00 pm | 4 | Mainly clear | 75 °F | 10 mph | 3.3 ft | 5 |
| 1:00 pm | 5 | Mainly clear | 77 °F | 9 mph | 3.4 ft | 5 |
| 2:00 pm | 5 | Mainly clear | 78 °F | 10 mph | 3.4 ft | 4 |
| 3:00 pm | 6 | Light drizzle | 78 °F | 11 mph | 3.5 ft | 3 |
| 4:00 pm | 7 | Light drizzle | 75 °F | 12 mph | 3.6 ft | 2 |
| 5:00 pm | 6 | Light drizzle | 74 °F | 11 mph | 3.7 ft | 1 |
Beach hours only: from one hour after sunrise to half an hour before sunset.
Beaches near Garden City
Map: OpenFreeMap · © OpenMapTiles · © OpenStreetMap contributors
- Garden City Beach 2.3 mi · S
- Parking
- Surfside Beach 2.3 mi · E
- Parking
- Ocean Lakes Beach 3.6 mi · NE
- Restrooms
- Lakewood Beach 4.3 mi · NE
- Restrooms
- Pirateland Beach 4.9 mi · NE
- Restrooms
- Long Bay Beach 5.3 mi · NE
- Restrooms
- State Park Beach 6.0 mi · NE
- Restrooms
- Parking
Water quality: check the official beach advisories for South Carolina (S.C. Beach Guide).
Named beaches within 6.2 mi, nearest first. Amenities from OpenStreetMap: some may be missing or out of date. View on OpenStreetMap · Add or fix on OpenStreetMap
Beaches and amenities: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Webcams near Garden City
Webcams provided by windy.com — add a webcam
How we rate a beach day
We rate every beach hour from 0 to 10 with simple, fixed rules:
- Adds: sunshine (up to 3 points, fewer with more clouds), warmth (up to 4, from the feels-like temperature; ideal between 81 °F and 91 °F), a calm sea (1), water at 70 °F or warmer (1; from 64 °F, half) and low or mid tide (1: more sand). Anything without data is left out and the rest is scaled to 10.
- Takes away: cold (feels-like below 64 °F, 1 to 4 points), rain (half a point if likely, up to 6 if it rains; thunderstorms, 8), wind from force 4, about 12 mph (1 to 6 points; half a point more if offshore, which blows inflatables out to sea, or onshore, which churns the water), waves (1 to swim with care, 4 if dangerous, 1 more for high rip current risk), very high UV (half a point; extreme, 1), water below 59 °F (1) and spring high tides (1: little sand left).
- Swimming: calm, use care (waves from 2.6 ft, or long swell) or dangerous (from 6.6 ft, or 4.9 ft with a long period), based on how much of the wave reaches this shore given the way it faces. In the U.S., today's and tomorrow's rip current risk comes from the National Weather Service surf zone forecast when it issues one; otherwise we estimate it from the waves.
- Best windows: runs of 2 to 5 hours rated 4 or more and close to the best hour, at least one hour apart.
- Day rating: the average of the best window; a 2-hour window keeps 85% of it and a 3-hour window 95%.
Today, in the best window: sun 2.5 of 3, warmth 2.8 of 4, calm sea 0 of 1, water 0.5 of 1 and tide 0.9 of 1; minus waves 1.
It's a guide, not a guarantee: weather changes and every beach is different. Always follow the lifeguard's flags.
Questions about the beach in Garden City
Is it a beach day in Garden City today?
A fair beach day: 6/10. Best from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm, with sunshine, pleasant temperatures, little wind and low tide at 6:19 pm, though with some waves.
What are the swimming conditions in Garden City today?
3.7 ft waves every 6 s: swim with care and stay where you can stand. Moderate rip current risk from the NWS surf zone forecast. Always follow the lifeguard's flags.
How warm is the water in Garden City?
About 67 °F today: cool. That's the sea surface temperature offshore; it can differ a little at the shoreline.
How much sun protection do I need in Garden City today?
UV reaches 5 (moderate): SPF 30 sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat.
When is low tide in Garden City?
Today low tide is at 5:25 am and 6:19 pm: that's when there's the most sand. High tide is at 10:57 am and 11:13 pm.
What about tomorrow? Will it be a beach day in Garden City?
Tomorrow, Thursday, October 29: a fair beach day (6/10), best from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm.
What beaches are near Garden City?
Garden City Beach (2.3 mi), Surfside Beach (2.3 mi), Ocean Lakes Beach (3.6 mi), Lakewood Beach (4.3 mi) and Pirateland Beach (4.9 mi). See below for amenities and water quality.
Are there jellyfish or sargassum today?
We don't know: there's no open data on jellyfish, sargassum or closures for each beach. Ask the lifeguard, check the flags or the local beach authority's website.
How is the rating worked out?
From the hourly forecast: sun and clouds, feels-like temperature, rain, wind (and whether it blows onshore or offshore), waves and their period, UV, water temperature and, where there is one, the tide. Each factor adds or takes away a fixed number of points and the rating sums them up out of 10.
More about Garden City today
Learn more
Our own calculation, using the Open-Meteo forecast (ECMWF, NOAA GFS, Météo-France, Copernicus Marine and CAMS, CC BY 4.0), the tide from Garden City Bridge (NOAA) and the sun from astronomy-engine. Slackwater database (https://github.com/openwatersio/slackwater-database)