Thermopylae
Surf spot · South Africa
Is it worth the trip?
38Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sun 8: 7 ft swell at 8 s, 4 hours of offshore wind, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Mon 2 · 48 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 462kJ
- Wind
- SSE 13 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Tue 3 · 25 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 335kJ
- Wind
- S 10 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Wed 4 · 3 out of 100
- Swell
- under 1 ft14 s
- Energy
- 8kJ
- Wind
- SW 8 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Thu 5 · 21 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft9 smushy
- Energy
- 925kJ
- Wind
- NW 13 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Fri 6 · 35 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 612kJ
- Wind
- NW 10 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Sat 7 · 45 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft8 scrumbling
- Energy
- 690kJ
- Wind
- SSE 11 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sun 8 · 50 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft8 scrumbling
- Energy
- 551kJ
- Wind
- SE 14 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 178, good
- Mon 248, fair
- Tue 325, too small
- Wed 43, too small
- Thu 521, poor
- Fri 635, poor
- Sat 745, fair
- Sun 850, fair
- Mon 912, too small
- Tue 1010, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
- Offshore: SEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 5–20 ftof swell
- Water 15 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 78, good | 8 ft9 scrumbling6 ft at break (est.) | 982kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-east, 9 knots, offshore | 22°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 48, fair | 5 ft9 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.) | 462kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-east, 13 knots, offshore | 22°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 25, too small | 5 ft9 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 335kJ | wind from the south, 10 knots | 25°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 3, too small | under 1 ft14 s1 ft at break (est.) | 8kJ | wind from the south-west, 8 knots | 25°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 21, poor | 8 ft9 smushy8 ft at break (est.) | 925kJ | wind from the north-west, 13 knots | 20°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 35, poor | 7 ft8 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 612kJ | wind from the north-west, 10 knots | 19°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 45, fair | 7 ft8 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 690kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-east, 11 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 50, fair | 7 ft8 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 551kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 14 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 12, too small | 4 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 128kJ | offshorewind from the east, 2 knots, offshore | 23°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 10, too small | 3 ft12 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 185kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 7 knots | 20°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 01:19 −0.4 mHigh 07:47 +0.4 mLow 14:13 −0.3 mHigh 20:26 +0.3 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:50 −0.3 mHigh 09:17 +0.4 mLow 15:59 −0.4 mHigh 22:06 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:26 −0.4 mHigh 10:44 +0.5 mLow 17:24 −0.5 mHigh 23:29 +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.
Map
the spot, its town, photos
Thermopylae 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 Thermopylae
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More surf near here
5 places
- Off The Wall 0.5 km away
- Rocklands 2 km away
- Milton Pool left 2.9 km away
- Solly's 3.2 km away
- Gunties 3.4 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Thermopylae
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NW (310°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (130°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 250 m out (1 in 23). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 14°C in May, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 16°C in January, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). The town to stay in is Cape Town, 3.4 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 7 surf spots, 1 wind sports spot and 1 dive site.
Water about 15°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. 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
6 min by car · 397 places to stay
about US$60/nightcountry average
About Cape Town its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Camps Bay on Booking.com
11 min by car · 147 places to stay
- Beds in Milnerton on Booking.com
15 min by car · 68 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 26h 30m
About 26h 30m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → CPT, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 40 min by road
Flights MDW → CPT on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.