Birsay Bay (Orkney Islands) weather

Find a forecast

Here are our top tips to keep you, your friends and family safe at the beach with links to Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and Met Office advice.

Head to a lifeguarded beach; check the RNLI lifeguarded beach tool
Follow RNLI Float to Live advice if you find yourself struggling in the water
Know what to do if you get caught in a rip current (RNLI)
Check the tide times to avoid getting cut off by the tide coming in
Call 999 and ask for the coastguard in an emergency
Learn more about staying safe at the beach

Weather forecast Beach forecast

Forecast days

Today

Maximum daytime temperature: 10° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;

Sunrise: 06:19

Sunset: 20:12

Overcast.

🏖️ Beach safety today:
Enjoy the beach but be aware of your surroundings and look out for conditions like rip currents

• novice surfers, paddleboarders or kayakers should seek advice

Tide: Next high tide (2.4m) at 20:28

M UV

L Pollution

L Pollen

Today

Maximum daytime temperature: 10° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;
Wed 9 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;

Sunrise: 06:16

Sunset: 20:15

Overcast changing to sunny intervals by lunchtime.

M UV

M Pollution

L Pollen

Wed 9 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;
Thu 10 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 13° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 8° Celsius;

Sunrise: 06:13

Sunset: 20:17

Sunny intervals changing to overcast in the afternoon.

M UV

L Pollution

L Pollen

Thu 10 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 13° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 8° Celsius;
Fri 11 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 12° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 6° Celsius;

Sunrise: 06:11

Sunset: 20:19

Overcast.

L UV

L Pollution

L Pollen

Fri 11 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 12° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 6° Celsius;
Sat 12 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 14° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 5° Celsius;

Sunrise: 06:08

Sunset: 20:22

Sunny intervals changing to cloudy by lunchtime.

M UV

M Pollution

L Pollen

Sat 12 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 14° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 5° Celsius;
Sun 13 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;

Sunrise: 06:05

Sunset: 20:24

Sunny intervals changing to cloudy by lunchtime.

M UV

No pollution data.

No pollen data.

Sun 13 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;
Mon 14 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;

Sunrise: 06:02

Sunset: 20:26

Sunny intervals changing to light showers by late morning.

M UV

No pollution data.

No pollen data.

Mon 14 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;
Tue 15 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;

Sunrise: 05:59

Sunset: 20:29

Sunny intervals changing to partly cloudy by early evening.

L UV

No pollution data.

No pollen data.

Tue 15 Apr

Maximum daytime temperature: 11° Celsius; Minimum nighttime temperature: 4° Celsius;

Overcast.

Sunrise: 06:19

Sunset: 20:12

M UV

L Pollution

L Pollen

8 day forecast for Birsay Bay

Today (8 April 2025)

Time	20:00	21:00	22:00	23:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%
Temperature (°C)	8°	8°	7°	7°
Feels like temperature (°C)	6°	5°	5°	5°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	NNE 8	NNE 7	NE 7	NE 7
Wind gust (mph)	14	14	14	14
Visibility (description)	VG	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	85%	84%	84%	84%
UV	1	-	-	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	8	7	7	7
Height of waves offshore (m)	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.6
Period of waves offshore (s)	10	10	10	10
Direction of waves offshore

Wednesday (9 April 2025)

Time	00:00	01:00	02:00	03:00	04:00	05:00	06:00	07:00	08:00	09:00	10:00	11:00	12:00	13:00	14:00	15:00	16:00	17:00	18:00	19:00	20:00	21:00	22:00	23:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%
Temperature (°C)	7°	7°	6°	6°	6°	5°	5°	5°	6°	8°	8°	9°	9°	10°	10°	10°	10°	10°	10°	9°	8°	6°	5°	5°
Feels like temperature (°C)	5°	4°	4°	4°	4°	4°	4°	4°	5°	6°	7°	8°	8°	9°	9°	9°	9°	9°	8°	8°	6°	4°	3°	2°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	NE 7	NE 7	ENE 7	ENE 6	ENE 5	NE 4	NE 4	NE 5	NE 5	ENE 5	ENE 5	NE 5	NE 5	NNE 5	NNE 6	N 6	N 6	NNE 6	NNE 6	NE 5	E 5	SE 5	SSE 7	SSE 7
Wind gust (mph)	14	15	15	13	10	9	10	11	11	10	9	8	7	6	7	7	7	8	9	9	11	13	12	11
Visibility (description)	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	E	E	E	E	E	E	E	E	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	84%	83%	84%	84%	85%	85%	86%	85%	79%	76%	75%	76%	75%	75%	75%	75%	76%	77%	79%	84%	88%	92%	92%	92%
UV	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	1	1	2	2	3	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	-	-	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	7	7	7	6	5	4	4	4	5	5	5	5	5	5	6	6	6	6	6	5	5	6	6	7
Height of waves offshore (m)	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.7	0.8	0.9	1.0
Period of waves offshore (s)	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	14	15	15	15	15	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	13	13	13	13
Direction of waves offshore

Thursday (10 April 2025)

Time	00:00	01:00	04:00	07:00	10:00	13:00	16:00	19:00	22:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	<5%	20%
Temperature (°C)	5°	4°	6°	8°	10°	11°	12°	11°	10°
Feels like temperature (°C)	2°	1°	3°	4°	6°	8°	8°	7°	6°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	S 7	S 8	WSW 9	WSW 13	WSW 16	WSW 19	WSW 20	W 20	WSW 20
Wind gust (mph)	12	17	23	28	30	33	33	34	34
Visibility (description)	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	92%	92%	92%	92%	84%	75%	78%	90%	97%
UV	-	-	-	1	2	3	1	1	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	7	7	9	13	17	19	20	20	20
Height of waves offshore (m)	1.1	1.2	1.5	1.6	1.7	1.9	2.1	2.0	2.0
Period of waves offshore (s)	13	13	12	12	12	12	12	6	7
Direction of waves offshore

Friday (11 April 2025)

Time	01:00	04:00	07:00	10:00	13:00	16:00	19:00	22:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	40%	10%	10%	20%	20%	30%	30%	30%
Temperature (°C)	9°	9°	9°	10°	10°	11°	10°	9°
Feels like temperature (°C)	5°	5°	5°	6°	7°	8°	8°	7°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	WSW 20	WSW 20	WSW 19	WSW 19	WSW 18	W 16	W 12	WSW 7
Wind gust (mph)	34	32	33	32	29	23	15	13
Visibility (description)	G	G	G	G	VG	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	97%	94%	92%	93%	92%	86%	88%	89%
UV	-	-	1	1	2	1	1	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	20	19	19	19	18	16	12	7
Height of waves offshore (m)	2.1	2.0	2.1	2.1	2.1	1.9	1.9	1.9
Period of waves offshore (s)	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	8
Direction of waves offshore

Saturday (12 April 2025)

Time	01:00	04:00	07:00	10:00	13:00	16:00	19:00	22:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	40%	30%	20%	30%	30%	30%	30%	30%
Temperature (°C)	8°	7°	7°	10°	12°	12°	11°	9°
Feels like temperature (°C)	6°	5°	5°	8°	10°	10°	9°	7°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	SW 7	SSW 7	S 7	S 9	S 11	S 12	S 9	SSW 9
Wind gust (mph)	13	12	14	14	19	18	14	12
Visibility (description)	VG	G	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	90%	91%	92%	79%	70%	73%	81%	87%
UV	-	-	1	1	3	1	1	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	6	7	7	9	10	11	9	9
Height of waves offshore (m)	1.9	1.9	2.0	2.1	2.3	2.4	2.4	2.4
Period of waves offshore (s)	10	9	9	9	15	14	14	14
Direction of waves offshore

Sunday (13 April 2025)

Time	01:00	04:00	07:00	10:00	13:00	16:00	19:00	22:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	30%	30%	30%	30%	30%	30%	40%	30%
Temperature (°C)	8°	7°	7°	9°	10°	10°	9°	7°
Feels like temperature (°C)	5°	4°	4°	6°	7°	7°	6°	4°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	SSW 9	SSW 9	SSW 9	WSW 12	W 13	WSW 13	WSW 12	WSW 10
Wind gust (mph)	11	11	14	17	19	19	15	16
Visibility (description)	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	90%	87%	87%	80%	73%	70%	73%	85%
UV	-	-	1	1	3	1	1	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	9	9	10	12	13	13	11	10
Height of waves offshore (m)	2.4	2.4	2.3	2.3	2.1	–	–	–
Period of waves offshore (s)	14	13	13	12	12	–	–	–
Direction of waves offshore

Monday (14 April 2025)

Time	01:00	04:00	07:00	10:00	13:00	16:00	19:00	22:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	30%	40%	50%	50%	50%	40%	30%	30%
Temperature (°C)	6°	6°	6°	8°	10°	10°	9°	7°
Feels like temperature (°C)	3°	3°	3°	4°	7°	7°	6°	3°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	SW 10	SSW 11	SSW 11	WSW 14	SW 15	SW 14	SW 12	SSW 11
Wind gust (mph)	18	20	20	22	23	23	21	16
Visibility (description)	VG	VG	G	VG	VG	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	85%	84%	84%	76%	67%	66%	75%	82%
UV	-	-	1	2	3	1	1	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	10	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Height of waves offshore (m)	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Period of waves offshore (s)	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Direction of waves offshore	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

Tuesday (15 April 2025)

Time	01:00	04:00	07:00	10:00	13:00	16:00	19:00	22:00
Weather symbols
Chance of precipitation	40%	30%	40%	40%	50%	40%	30%	30%
Temperature (°C)	6°	6°	6°	9°	10°	10°	9°	7°
Feels like temperature (°C)	2°	2°	2°	5°	7°	7°	6°	4°
Wind direction and speed (mph)	SSW 11	S 11	S 11	S 14	S 14	SSW 14	SSW 13	SSW 10
Wind gust (mph)	15	15	23	23	23	18	16	16
Visibility (description)	VG	VG	VG	VG	G	VG	VG	VG
Humidity	85%	86%	85%	71%	66%	70%	77%	86%
UV	-	-	1	2	2	1	1	-
Wind direction and speed (mph)	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Height of waves offshore (m)	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Period of waves offshore (s)	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
Direction of waves offshore	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April


	Time (UTC+1)

Tide times and heights are from Tingwall tidal station which is 10.0 miles away. So times may be different at this beach. What does this mean?

Contains ADMIRALTY® tidal data: © Crown Copyright and database right.

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April


	Time (UTC+1)

Tide times and heights are from Tingwall tidal station which is 10.0 miles away. So times may be different at this beach. What does this mean?

Contains ADMIRALTY® tidal data: © Crown Copyright and database right.

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April


	Time (UTC+1)

Tide times and heights are from Tingwall tidal station which is 10.0 miles away. So times may be different at this beach. What does this mean?

Contains ADMIRALTY® tidal data: © Crown Copyright and database right.

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April


	Time (UTC+1)

Tide times and heights are from Tingwall tidal station which is 10.0 miles away. So times may be different at this beach. What does this mean?

Contains ADMIRALTY® tidal data: © Crown Copyright and database right.

News

Wind and rain marking a change in the UK weather

Warnings have been issued as the weather across the UK becomes increasingly mild but wet and windy.

UK video forecast

Birsay Bay weather map

View the weather with our interactive map

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Orkney & Shetland weather forecast

Headline:

Dry and cloudy on Wednesday, Orkney brightening up later.

This Evening and Tonight:

This evening will be dry and cloudy. Then the rest of the night will remain dry with a good deal of cloud. Light northerly winds. Minimum temperature 4 °C.

Wednesday:

It will be another mostly cloudy but dry day on Wednesday. Some bright or sunny spells may develop over Orkney later during the afternoon. Maximum temperature 11 °C.

Outlook for Thursday to Saturday:

Cloudy and increasingly breezy but mainly dry Thursday, though a little drizzle is possible later. Becoming more unsettled on Friday and Saturday with occasional rain.

Updated: 17:00 (UTC+1) on Tue 8 Apr 2025

UK long range weather forecast

A transition from the fine and settled conditions most will have seen is expected through this period. This will most likely come in the form of a cold front progressing southeast bringing some rain and showers and fresher conditions. There is a low risk of heavier, possibly thundery showers coming into the country from the south for a time early in the period, but confidence in this aspect of the forecast is low and these may well pass to the east. This heralds a wetter period through the middle of April with showers or longer spells of rain at times, which could be heavy and thundery in places. Strong winds could develop in some areas, particularly the south and west. Temperatures are likely to return closer to normal.

Updated: 15:00 (UTC+1) on Tue 8 Apr 2025

Some unsettled weather is possible at this start of this period with showers or longer spells of rain in places. However, a change to more settled conditions is most likely through this period as high pressure becomes more influential. This settled theme continues into early May, although some spells of wetter, unsettled weather remain possible, especially in the south. Temperatures are expected to be above average overall.

Updated: 16:00 (UTC+1) on Tue 8 Apr 2025

Birsay Bay (Orkney Islands) weather

Find a forecast

Beach safety tips Show Hide

Forecast days

Today

Today

Wed 9 Apr

Wed 9 Apr

Thu 10 Apr

Thu 10 Apr

Fri 11 Apr

Fri 11 Apr

Sat 12 Apr

Sat 12 Apr

Sun 13 Apr

Sun 13 Apr

Mon 14 Apr

Mon 14 Apr

Tue 15 Apr

Tue 15 Apr

8 day forecast for Birsay Bay

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April

Tide times

Tuesday 8 April

Tide times

Wednesday 9 April

Tide times

Wednesday 9 April

Tide times

Wednesday 9 April

Tide times

Wednesday 9 April

Tide times

Thursday 10 April

Tide times

Thursday 10 April

Tide times

Thursday 10 April

Tide times

Thursday 10 April

Tide times

Friday 11 April

Tide times

Friday 11 April

Tide times

Friday 11 April

Tide times

Friday 11 April

Tide times

Saturday 12 April

Tide times

Saturday 12 April

Tide times

Saturday 12 April

Tide times

Saturday 12 April

Tide times

Sunday 13 April

Tide times

Sunday 13 April

Tide times

Sunday 13 April

Tide times

Sunday 13 April

Tide times

Monday 14 April

Tide times

Monday 14 April

Tide times

Monday 14 April

Tide times

Monday 14 April

Tide times

Tuesday 15 April

Tide times