Mini Reef
Surf spot · South Africa
Is it worth the trip?
35Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 4 ft swell at 9 s
Mon 2 · 15 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 107kJ
- Wind
- SSE 12 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Tue 3 · 50 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 252kJ
- Wind
- ENE 10 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Wed 4 · 64 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 173kJ
- Wind
- NE 6 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Thu 5 · 38 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 178kJ
- Wind
- WNW 14 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Fri 6 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 smushy
- Energy
- 161kJ
- Wind
- W 16 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sat 7 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 173kJ
- Wind
- SSW 4 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Sun 8 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 652kJ
- Wind
- ESE 15 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 10, too big
- Mon 215, poor
- Tue 350, fair
- Wed 464, good
- Thu 538, poor
- Fri 68, poor
- Sat 716, poor
- Sun 80, too big
- Mon 954, fair
- Tue 1014, 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 in Apr1 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Mini Reef does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft9 smushy9 ft at break (est.) | 889kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots | 17°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 15, poor | 3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 107kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 12 knots | 17°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 50, fair | 4 ft9 scrumbling6 ft at break (est.) | 252kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 10 knots | 19°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 64, good | 4 ft9 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.) | 173kJ | offshorewind from the north-east, 6 knots, offshore | 19°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 38, poor | 3 ft9 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.) | 178kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 14 knots | 20°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 8, poor | 3 ft9 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 161kJ | wind from the west, 16 knots | 18°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 16, poor | 5 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 173kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots | 16°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft9 ssoft9 ft at break (est.) | 652kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 15 knots | 20°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 54, fair | 4 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 96kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 5 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 14, too small | 2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 35kJ | wind from the west, 9 knots | 19°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 01:12 −0.4 mHigh 07:43 +0.4 mLow 14:08 −0.3 mHigh 20:22 +0.3 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:45 −0.3 mHigh 09:16 +0.4 mLow 16:02 −0.3 mHigh 22:06 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:28 −0.3 mHigh 10:45 +0.5 mLow 17:28 −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.
Best time to go
best in Apr
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
- May0of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun0of 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
Mini Reef on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for beginners: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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More surf near here
5 places
- Hardebaai 0.3 km away
- Vendetta Reef 0.3 km away
- Magnet Rock 0.4 km away
- Onrus 1 km away
- Sandbaai 3 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Mini Reef
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces S (199°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (19°). 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 15°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 20°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 Hermanus, 6.1 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 7 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$1,300–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: 3 towns
9 min by car
about US$60/nightcountry average
About Hawston its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Hermanus on Booking.com
11 min by car · 104 places to stay
- Beds in Kleinmond on Booking.com
28 min by car · 33 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 27h 30m
About 27h 30m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → CPT, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 1h 40m by road
Flights MDW → CPT on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.