Staying Home Sucks, home
Luchtfoto St Francisbaai
St. Francis Bay, the nearest town. Photo: Servien at Dutch Wikipedia, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons

Leftovers

Surf spot · South Africa

Is it worth the trip?

25Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: too small (6 ft swell at 8 s), 4 hours of offshore wind, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 10 out of 100

Swell
5 ft7 smushy
Energy
208kJ
Wind
N 2 kn
Temp
20°C

Wed 4 · 8 out of 100

Swell
5 ft8 smushy
Energy
320kJ
Wind
ENE 10 kn
Temp
20°C

Thu 5 · 15 out of 100

Swell
3 ft9 ssoft
Energy
122kJ
Wind
W 20 kn
Temp
20°C

Fri 6 · 40 out of 100

Swell
6 ft8 smushy
Energy
414kJ
Wind
W 15 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 31 out of 100

Swell
6 ft8 smushy
Energy
372kJ
Wind
SW 17 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 34 out of 100

Swell
7 ft9 ssoft
Energy
767kJ
Wind
WNW 11 kn
Temp
19°C

Mon 9 · 5 out of 100

Swell
6 ft7 smushy
Energy
296kJ
Wind
E 19 kn
Temp
20°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 212, too small
  2. Tue 310, too small
  3. Wed 48, too small
  4. Thu 515, too small
  5. Fri 640, too small
  6. Sat 731, too small
  7. Sun 834, poor
  8. Mon 95, too small
  9. Tue 1029, too small
  10. Wed 1117, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Etakes swell from the E
  • Offshore: Wwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 7–20 ftof swell
  • Water 18 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number

Leftovers does not suit intermediates. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Leftovers, each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov12, too small2 ft8 ssoft3 ft at break (est.)44kJwind from the west-north-west, 9 knots, offshore19°C
Tue 3Nov10, too small5 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)208kJwind from the north, 2 knots20°C
Wed 4Nov8, too small5 ft8 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)320kJwind from the east-north-east, 10 knots20°C
Thu 5Nov15, too small3 ft9 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)122kJwind from the west, 20 knots, offshore20°C
Fri 6Nov40, too small6 ft8 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)414kJwind from the west, 15 knots, offshore19°C
Sat 7Nov31, too small6 ft8 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)372kJwind from the south-west, 17 knots, offshore18°C
Sun 8Nov34, poor7 ft9 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)767kJwind from the west-north-west, 11 knots, offshore19°C
Mon 9Nov5, too small6 ft7 smushy7 ft at break (est.)296kJwind from the east, 19 knots20°C
Tue 10Nov29, too small5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.)193kJwind from the west, 17 knots, offshore20°C
Wed 11Nov17, too small2 ft9 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)94kJwind from the south-west, 13 knots, offshore19°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 02:52 −0.3 mHigh 09:43 +0.4 mLow 16:15 −0.3 mHigh 22:26 +0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 04:40 −0.3 mHigh 11:21 +0.5 mLow 17:55 −0.4 mHigh 23:58 +0.3 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 06:02 −0.4 mHigh 12:28 +0.6 mLow 18:56 −0.5 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 Leftovers

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

The spot faces E (88°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (268°). 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 800 m out (1 in 78). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 17°C in August, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 20°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is St. Francis Bay, 0.4 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 13 surf spots and 2 wind sports 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$1,330–US$2,610 each

about US$1,330–US$2,610 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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to PLZ, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and CPT, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$886–US$1,850
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$67–US$114
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$161–US$275
Food7 days eating outabout US$148–US$268
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$67–US$107
Totalabout US$1,330–US$2,610

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

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

St. Francis Bay

about 5 min by car · 20 places to stay

about US$60/nightcountry average

See 20 places to stay in St. Francis Bay · Booking.com

About St. Francis 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 31h 30m

About 31h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → PLZ, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and Cape Town International Airport (CPT), then 1h 35m by road

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