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Pearly Reef
Surf spot · South Africa
Is it worth the trip?
27Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sat 7: 8 ft swell at 8 s
Tue 3 · 23 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 331kJ
- Wind
- ESE 12 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Wed 4 · 23 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 193kJ
- Wind
- E 6 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Thu 5 · 7 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft11 smushy
- Energy
- 334kJ
- Wind
- WNW 24 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Fri 6 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 576kJ
- Wind
- WNW 20 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Sat 7 · 40 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 625kJ
- Wind
- SSW 10 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Sun 8 · 39 out of 100
- Swell
- 9 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 1,067kJ
- Wind
- E 15 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Mon 9 · 18 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 202kJ
- Wind
- E 8 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 234, poor
- Tue 323, too small
- Wed 423, too small
- Thu 57, too small
- Fri 616, poor
- Sat 740, poor
- Sun 839, poor
- Mon 918, too small
- Tue 108, too small
- Wed 1137, poor
The spot in six facts
- Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
- Offshore: NEwind from the land
- Expertwho it suits
- Works 3–20 ftof swell
- Water 18 °C2 mm shorty
- Best May–Jul3 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
Pearly Reef does not suit intermediates. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Expert | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 34, poor | 6 ft9 ssoft8 ft at break (est.) | 557kJ | wind from the south-east, 6 knots | 18°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 23, too small | 4 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 331kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 12 knots | 20°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 23, too small | 4 ft9 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 193kJ | wind from the east, 6 knots | 22°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 7, too small | 4 ft11 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 334kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 24 knots | 18°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 16, poor | 7 ft8 ssoft7 ft at break (est.) | 576kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 20 knots | 17°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 40, poor | 8 ft8 smushy9 ft at break (est.) | 625kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 10 knots | 16°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 39, poor | 9 ft8 ssoft11 ft at break (est.) | 1,067kJ | wind from the east, 15 knots | 20°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 18, too small | 4 ft8 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 202kJ | wind from the east, 8 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 8, too small | 4 ft12 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 533kJ | wind from the west, 14 knots | 18°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 37, poor | 8 ft10 ssoft9 ft at break (est.) | 966kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 26 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
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:43 −0.3 mHigh 09:18 +0.4 mLow 16:03 −0.4 mHigh 22:08 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:26 −0.4 mHigh 10:47 +0.5 mLow 17:30 −0.5 mHigh 23:32 +0.4 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 05:42 −0.4 mHigh 11:53 +0.6 mLow 18:28 −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.
Best time to go
best May–Jul
Good days in a typical week, each month, for expert 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
- Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May3of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun3of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul3of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep2of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 7: a trip from Tue 3 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
Pearly Reef 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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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
- Pearly Beach edit 1.3 km away
- Buffeljags Bay 11.8 km away
- Stinky Pits! 18 km away
- De Kelders 18.3 km away
- Gansbaai Reefs 18.6 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Pearly Reef
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SW (210°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (30°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits expert surfers. It works in 3–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 600 m out (1 in 59). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 16°C in June, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 20°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For expert surfers the best months are usually May, June and July, with about 3 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Pearly Beach, 0.8 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.
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 2 November 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$859–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$148–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
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 5 min by car · 10 places to stay
about US$60/nightcountry average
About Pearly Beach its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Gansbaai on Booking.com
about 35 min by car · 28 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 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 28h 05m
About 28h 05m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → CPT, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 2h 15m by road
Flights MDW → CPT on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.