Elands Bay
Surf spot · South Africa
Is it worth the trip?
39Poor out of 100 for your dates
2 days tie for best
Mon 2 · 43 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 328kJ
- Wind
- S 9 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Tue 3 · 46 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 71kJ
- Wind
- N 3 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Wed 4 · 46 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 125kJ
- Wind
- NE 4 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Thu 5 · 30 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 smushy
- Energy
- 311kJ
- Wind
- NW 10 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Fri 6 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 472kJ
- Wind
- NNW 8 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Sat 7 · 30 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 194kJ
- Wind
- SSW 4 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Sun 8 · 41 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 238kJ
- Wind
- SE 3 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 112, poor
- Mon 243, poor
- Tue 346, fair
- Wed 446, fair
- Thu 530, poor
- Fri 60, too big
- Sat 730, poor
- Sun 841, poor
- Mon 927, too small
- Tue 1014, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces Wtakes swell from the W
- Offshore: Ewind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–12 ftof swell
- Water 14 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
- Best Apr–Jul1 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 12, poor | 5 ft10 ssoft7 ft at break (est.) | 543kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 20 knots | 17°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 43, poor | 4 ft10 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 328kJ | wind from the south, 9 knots | 18°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 46, fair | 3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 71kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 16°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 46, fair | 3 ft8 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 125kJ | wind from the north-east, 4 knots | 18°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 30, poor | 5 ft9 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 311kJ | wind from the north-west, 10 knots | 16°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft8 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 472kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 8 knots | 15°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 30, poor | 5 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 194kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots | 17°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 41, poor | 5 ft8 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 238kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 3 knots, offshore | 19°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 27, too small | 3 ft7 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 75kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 14, too small | 2 ft13 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 101kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 9 knots | 15°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 01:16 −0.5 mHigh 07:48 +0.5 mLow 14:13 −0.4 mHigh 20:27 +0.4 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:44 −0.4 mHigh 09:16 +0.5 mLow 15:58 −0.4 mHigh 22:06 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:21 −0.4 mHigh 10:42 +0.5 mLow 17:22 −0.5 mHigh 23:28 +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.
Best time to go
best Apr–Jul
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
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 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
Elands Bay 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.
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
1 place
- Boneyard CJ 1.3 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Elands Bay
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces W (292°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (112°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–12 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 650 m out (1 in 66). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 13°C in June, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 16°C in January, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually April, May, June and July, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Elandsbaai, 1.4 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot and 1 wind sports spot.
Water about 14°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. 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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to CPT, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$858–US$1,780 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$67–US$114 |
| 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$1,300–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: 2 towns
2 min by car · 12 places to stay
about US$60/nightcountry average
About Elandsbaai its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Lambert's Bay on Booking.com
41 min by car · 25 places to stay
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 29h 20m
About 29h 20m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → CPT, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 3h 30m by road
Flights MDW → CPT on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.