Richards Bay
Surf spot · South Africa
Is it worth the trip?
15Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sat 7: 3 ft swell at 7 s
Mon 2 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 81kJ
- Wind
- ESE 4 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Tue 3 · 14 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 68kJ
- Wind
- SW 5 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Wed 4 · 13 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 56kJ
- Wind
- NE 8 kn
- Temp
- 31°C
Thu 5 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 44kJ
- Wind
- NNE 14 kn
- Temp
- 33°C
Fri 6 · 10 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 102kJ
- Wind
- SSE 6 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Sat 7 · 21 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 105kJ
- Wind
- S 3 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Sun 8 · 7 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 22kJ
- Wind
- WSW 10 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 115, too small
- Mon 219, too small
- Tue 314, too small
- Wed 413, too small
- Thu 58, too small
- Fri 610, too small
- Sat 721, too small
- Sun 87, too small
- Mon 947, fair
- Tue 1038, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–9 ftof swell
- Water 23 °C2 mm shorty
- Best May–Jul2 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 15, too small | 3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 42kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots | 27°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 19, too small | 3 ft8 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 81kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 4 knots | 25°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 14, too small | 3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 68kJ | wind from the south-west, 5 knots | 26°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 13, too small | 3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 56kJ | wind from the north-east, 8 knots | 31°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 8, too small | 2 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 44kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 14 knots | 33°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 10, too small | 2 ft10 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 102kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 6 knots | 26°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 21, too small | 3 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 105kJ | wind from the south, 3 knots | 25°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 7, too small | 2 ft6 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 22kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 10 knots | 23°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 47, fair | 7 ft7 smushy8 ft at break (est.) | 415kJ | wind from the south-east, 3 knots | 23°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 38, too small | 6 ft7 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 279kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 10 knots | 26°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 −0.6 mHigh 07:36 +0.5 mLow 13:48 −0.4 mHigh 20:01 +0.4 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:27 −0.4 mHigh 09:16 +0.4 mLow 15:44 −0.3 mHigh 21:59 +0.2 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:23 −0.4 mHigh 11:17 +0.4 mLow 17:50 −0.3 mHigh 23:53 +0.3 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 intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec1of 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, its town, photos
Richards Bay on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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Photos of Richards Bay
More surf near here
2 places
- South Pier 3.2 km away
- Kleiklip 7.2 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Richards Bay
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (118°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (298°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 4.3 km out (1 in 435). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 22°C in July, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 27°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually May, June and July, with about 2 good days in 7; in October and November, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Richards Bay, 3.4 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot and 1 wind sports spot.
Water about 23°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$1,290–US$2,550 each
about US$1,290–US$2,550 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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 RCB, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and JNB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$898–US$1,870 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$20–US$33 |
| 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$1,290–US$2,550 |
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
6 min by car · 14 places to stay
about US$60/nightcountry average
About Richards Bay its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Mtunzini on Booking.com
60 min by car · 19 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 30h 50m
About 30h 50m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → RCB, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and O.R. Tambo International Airport (JNB), then 30 min by road
Flights MDW → RCB on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.