Intermediate: Misty Cliffs (Good, 1.1 m, cross-offshore around 08:00), Big Bay (Good, 1.0 m, cross-offshore around 06:00), Haakgat Point (Fair, 1.0 m, cross-shore around 09:00)
Beginners: Big Bay (Fair, 1.0 m, cross-offshore around 06:00), Haakgat Point (Fair, 1.0 m, cross-shore around 09:00)
Forecast updated 20 Oct, 01:03 UTC.
The spots
Dungeons · reef break, advanced, best on SW/WSW swell with NW wind, low tide. Cape Town's big-wave right reef, breaking off the Sentinel headland near Hout Bay. Only fires on large winter groundswells and is surfed by experienced big-wave riders…
Llandudno · beach break, intermediate, best on SW swell with E wind, all tides. Pretty cove beach on the Cape Peninsula's Atlantic coast that works on southwest swell with an east offshore. Quick-breaking sandbars; limited parking keeps numbers…
Long Beach · beach break, intermediate, best on SW swell with S wind, all tides. Sand-bottom left-hand banks beside Kommetjie that work on southwest groundswell with a southerly offshore. A popular Cape Peninsula option when other spots are blown out.
Kalk Bay Reef · reef break, advanced, best on SE/S swell with NW/WNW/W wind, mid tide. Rocky reef off Kalk Bay harbour in False Bay that breaks in both directions on clean groundswell. Shallow and often busy with locals.
Muizenberg · beach break, beginner, best on SE/S swell with WNW/NW wind, all tides. Gentle, long-running beach break in False Bay and the most popular learner wave in Cape Town. Soft peelers at Surfers Corner with a mix of beginners and longboarders.
Outer Kom · reef break, advanced, best on W/WSW swell with NE wind, all tides. Heavy reef and point at Kommetjie that handles big west swell and breaks both ways. Cold, kelpy and powerful, with a long paddle from the Kom.
I & J's · reef break, advanced, best on W/WSW/SW swell with NE/N/NNE wind, low to mid tide. Right-hand reef off Kommetjie. West groundswell and northeast wind make it work at low to mid tide, quite consistent in winter and flat in summer.
Glencairn Reef · reef break, advanced, best on SE/ESE/S swell with WNW/W/NW wind, mid to high tide. Left reef on the False Bay side that wants southeast swell and a west-northwest wind at mid to high tide. It only fires on a handful of days.
Misty Cliffs · beach break, intermediate, best on W/WSW/SW swell with N/NNE/E/ENE wind, mid to high tide. Sandbar on the west side of the Cape Peninsula that handles anything from under 1 m up to 2.5 m with west swell and a northerly or northeasterly wind. A well-known wave…
Crayfish Factory · reef break, advanced, best on SW/S/WSW swell with NE/NNE/E wind, mid to high tide. Heavy right reef south of Kommetjie that needs 2 m plus to get going and takes up to 5 m. Southwest swell and northeast wind at mid to high tide; WannaSurf tags it pros…
Scarborough · beach break, intermediate, best on W swell with ENE wind, all tides. Exposed beach break on the wild Atlantic side of the Cape Peninsula that needs a west swell and an offshore from the east. Strong rips, so best for confident surfers.
Big Bay · beach break, intermediate, best on SW swell with ESE wind, all tides. A long beach on Table Bay with views of Table Mountain, picking up southwest groundswell with an east-southeast offshore. Popular with Cape Town locals after work.
Haakgat Point · point break, intermediate, best on SW/WSW/S swell with E/ESE/NE wind, high tide. Left point on the West Coast north of Cape Town that works at high tide with southwest swell and east wind. Surf-Forecast notes it is strongest in summer when…
When to surf in Cape Town
Best months for intermediate surfers: April to November, January. For beginners: April to September, January. The water goes from about 14 °C in November (5/4 mm hooded) to 16 °C in January (4/3 mm fullsuit). Best-known spots: Dungeons. 1 of the 13 spots suit beginners, such as Muizenberg.