Staying Home Sucks, home
Mariner's Wharf in Hout Bay
Hout Bay Harbour Wall. Photo: Luomomi, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

Hout Bay Harbour Wall

Surf spot · South Africa

Is it worth the trip?

36Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: 8 ft swell at 8 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 31 out of 100

Swell
5 ft9 ssoft
Energy
364kJ
Wind
WNW 8 kn
Temp
20°C

Wed 4 · 34 out of 100

Swell
5 ft8 ssoft
Energy
267kJ
Wind
NNW 3 kn
Temp
19°C

Thu 5 · 27 out of 100

Swell
8 ft9 ssoft
Energy
940kJ
Wind
NW 15 kn
Temp
17°C

Fri 6 · 49 out of 100

Swell
8 ft8 smushy
Energy
753kJ
Wind
NW 11 kn
Temp
17°C

Sat 7 · 35 out of 100

Swell
8 ft8 smushy
Energy
804kJ
Wind
SSW 12 kn
Temp
16°C

Sun 8 · 36 out of 100

Swell
6 ft9 smushy
Energy
658kJ
Wind
SE 8 kn
Temp
21°C

Mon 9 · 27 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 ssoft
Energy
215kJ
Wind
NW 4 kn
Temp
18°C

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 215, poor
  2. Tue 331, too small
  3. Wed 434, too small
  4. Thu 527, poor
  5. Fri 649, fair
  6. Sat 735, poor
  7. Sun 836, too small
  8. Mon 927, too small
  9. Tue 1021, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 7–20 ftof swell
  • Water 16 °C3/2 wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Hout Bay Harbour Wall, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov15, poor7 ft9 smushy8 ft at break (est.)623kJwind from the south-south-east, 15 knots18°C
Tue 3Nov31, too small5 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)364kJwind from the west-north-west, 8 knots20°C
Wed 4Nov34, too small5 ft8 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)267kJwind from the north-north-west, 3 knots, offshore19°C
Thu 5Nov27, poor8 ft9 ssoft7 ft at break (est.)940kJwind from the north-west, 15 knots17°C
Fri 6Nov49, fair8 ft8 smushy7 ft at break (est.)753kJwind from the north-west, 11 knots17°C
Sat 7Nov35, poor8 ft8 smushy9 ft at break (est.)804kJwind from the south-south-west, 12 knots16°C
Sun 8Nov36, too small6 ft9 smushy8 ft at break (est.)658kJwind from the south-east, 8 knots21°C
Mon 9Nov27, too small4 ft8 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)215kJwind from the north-west, 4 knots18°C
Tue 10Nov21, too small5 ft11 smushy6 ft at break (est.)620kJwind from the south-south-west, 10 knots18°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

  • Mon 2 NovLow 02:49 −0.3 mHigh 09:16 +0.4 mLow 15:59 −0.4 mHigh 22:06 +0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 04:26 −0.3 mHigh 10:44 +0.5 mLow 17:24 −0.5 mHigh 23:29 +0.4 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 05:40 −0.4 mHigh 11:51 +0.5 mLow 18:24 −0.6 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, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: 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.

Photos of Hout Bay Harbour Wall

Hout Bay
Photo: Darren Glanville from Acle, Norfolk, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Seagulls at Hout Bay harbour. - panoramio
Photo: ~ souTH AFRica ~, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Hout Bay Harbour Wall

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

The spot faces S (189°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (9°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 7–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 450 m out (1 in 43). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 15°C in June, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 18°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Hout Bay, 0.8 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 10 surf spots, 1 wind sports spot and 9 dive sites.

Water about 16°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

Hout Bay

about 5 min by car · 49 places to stay

about US$60/nightcountry average

See 49 places to stay in Hout Bay · Booking.com

About Hout 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 26h 35m

About 26h 35m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → CPT, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 45 min by road

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