Staying Home Sucks, home
Betty's Bay
Betty's Bay, the nearest town, 5 km away. Photo: Nick Coombe from Toronto, Canada, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Chrystal Road

Surf spot · South Africa

Is it worth the trip?

27Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Tue 3: 4 ft swell at 9 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 9 out of 100

Swell
3 ft7 smushy
Energy
107kJ
Wind
SE 11 kn
Temp
18°C

Tue 3 · 45 out of 100

Swell
4 ft9 smushy
Energy
307kJ
Wind
SE 8 kn
Temp
21°C

Wed 4 · 36 out of 100

Swell
3 ft8 ssoft
Energy
122kJ
Wind
ENE 3 kn
Temp
25°C

Thu 5 · 33 out of 100

Swell
5 ft10 ssoft
Energy
490kJ
Wind
WNW 19 kn
Temp
20°C

Fri 6 · 10 out of 100

Swell
5 ft8 smushy
Energy
329kJ
Wind
WNW 16 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 14 out of 100

Swell
5 ft7 smushy
Energy
168kJ
Wind
SSE 5 kn
Temp
17°C

Sun 8 · 0 out of 100

Swell
7 ft9 smushy
Energy
642kJ
Wind
ESE 16 kn
Temp
20°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 10, too big
  2. Mon 29, too small
  3. Tue 345, fair
  4. Wed 436, too small
  5. Thu 533, poor
  6. Fri 610, poor
  7. Sat 714, poor
  8. Sun 80, too big
  9. Mon 951, fair
  10. Tue 1017, too small

The spot in six facts

  • Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
  • Offshore: NWwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 4–16 ftof swell
  • Water 17 °C3/2 wetsuit
  • Best in Apr1 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Chrystal Road, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov0, too big8 ft9 smushy6 ft at break (est.)962kJwind from the south, 8 knots19°C
Mon 2Nov9, too small3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)107kJwind from the south-east, 11 knots18°C
Tue 3Nov45, fair4 ft9 smushy4 ft at break (est.)307kJwind from the south-east, 8 knots21°C
Wed 4Nov36, too small3 ft8 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)122kJwind from the east-north-east, 3 knots25°C
Thu 5Nov33, poor5 ft10 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)490kJwind from the west-north-west, 19 knots, offshore20°C
Fri 6Nov10, poor5 ft8 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)329kJwind from the west-north-west, 16 knots19°C
Sat 7Nov14, poor5 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)168kJwind from the south-south-east, 5 knots17°C
Sun 8Nov0, too big7 ft9 smushy7 ft at break (est.)642kJwind from the east-south-east, 16 knots20°C
Mon 9Nov51, fair5 ft6 smushy5 ft at break (est.)121kJwind from the south-east, 3 knots23°C
Tue 10Nov17, too small2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.)38kJwind from the north-west, 8 knots, offshore21°C

Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More

Tide

  • Sun 1 NovLow 01:13 −0.4 mHigh 07:43 +0.4 mLow 14:09 −0.3 mHigh 20:22 +0.3 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 02:47 −0.3 mHigh 09:15 +0.4 mLow 16:01 −0.3 mHigh 22:05 +0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 04:28 −0.3 mHigh 10:44 +0.5 mLow 17:27 −0.5 mHigh 23:30 +0.4 m

Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Chrystal Road

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces SE (157°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (337°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 4–16 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 900 m out (1 in 91). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 15°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 19°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually April, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Betty's Bay, 4.6 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 9 surf spots.

Water about 17°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,300–US$2,540 each

about US$1,300–US$2,540 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to CPT, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$858–US$1,780
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$67–US$114
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$161–US$275
Food7 days eating outabout US$147–US$268
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$67–US$107
Totalabout US$1,300–US$2,540

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 3 towns

Closest

Pringle Bay

7 min by car · 16 places to stay

about US$60/nightcountry average

See 16 places to stay in Pringle Bay · Booking.com

About Pringle Bay its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$60 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 27h

About 27h door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → CPT, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 1h 15m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.