Doughnuts
Surf spot · South Africa
Is it worth the trip?
25Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Tue 3: 5 ft swell at 9 s
Mon 2 · 10 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 smushy
- Energy
- 154kJ
- Wind
- WSW 10 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Tue 3 · 54 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 395kJ
- Wind
- E 8 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Wed 4 · 40 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 429kJ
- Wind
- ENE 9 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Thu 5 · 20 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 290kJ
- Wind
- WSW 19 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Fri 6 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 726kJ
- Wind
- W 14 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Sat 7 · 5 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 179kJ
- Wind
- W 19 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Sun 8 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 820kJ
- Wind
- ESE 11 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 122, poor
- Mon 210, poor
- Tue 354, fair
- Wed 440, poor
- Thu 520, poor
- Fri 60, too big
- Sat 75, poor
- Sun 80, too big
- Mon 941, poor
- Tue 1012, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces Stakes swell from the S
- Offshore: Nwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 18 °C2 mm shorty
- Best May–Jun1 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 22, poor | 5 ft9 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 350kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots | 19°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 10, poor | 3 ft9 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 154kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 10 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 54, fair | 5 ft9 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.) | 395kJ | wind from the east, 8 knots | 20°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 40, poor | 6 ft9 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.) | 429kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 9 knots | 21°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 20, poor | 4 ft10 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 290kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 19 knots | 20°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft8 smushy9 ft at break (est.) | 726kJ | wind from the west, 14 knots | 20°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 5, poor | 3 ft10 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 179kJ | wind from the west, 19 knots | 19°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft8 smushy9 ft at break (est.) | 820kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 11 knots | 17°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 41, poor | 5 ft8 scrumbling6 ft at break (est.) | 256kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 9 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 12, too small | 2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 36kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 9 knots | 20°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 01:25 −0.5 mHigh 07:59 +0.4 mLow 14:12 −0.3 mHigh 20:29 +0.3 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:53 −0.3 mHigh 09:43 +0.4 mLow 16:16 −0.3 mHigh 22:25 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:43 −0.3 mHigh 11:22 +0.5 mLow 17:56 −0.4 mHigh 23:56 +0.3 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.
Best time to go
best May–Jun
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug0of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep0of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot and its town
Doughnuts on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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More surf near here
4 places
- Sards 0.9 km away
- Doughnuts Backreef 1.4 km away
- Schoenies 3.4 km away
- Beachview 16.7 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Doughnuts
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces S (186°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (6°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 300 m out (1 in 32). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 17°C in August, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 20°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually May and June, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Clarendon Marine. Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots.
Water about 18°C: 2 mm shorty. 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$1,290–US$2,540 each
about US$1,290–US$2,540 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to PLZ, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and CPT, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$884–US$1,840 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$27–US$47 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$161–US$275 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$147–US$268 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$67–US$107 |
| Total | about US$1,290–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
22 min by car · 1 place to stay
about US$60/nightcountry average
About Noordhoek Eastern Cape its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Clarendon Marine on Booking.com
23 min by car · 8 places to stay
- Beds in Gqeberha on Booking.com
25 min by car · 86 places to stay
Nearest beds: Clarendon Marine, 13 km (about 25 min by car)
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 30h 25m
About 30h 25m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → PLZ, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and Cape Town International Airport (CPT), then 30 min by road
Flights MDW → PLZ on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.