Staying Home Sucks, home
Cape Town, South Africa (Unsplash xcxlpH8gv4s)
Scarborough Western Cape, the nearest town, 3 km away. Photo: Thomas PETRACCO tompec, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

Witsands

Surf spot · South Africa

Is it worth the trip?

35Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Tue 3: 6 ft swell at 9 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 46 out of 100

Swell
6 ft9 shollow
Energy
474kJ
Wind
SE 5 kn
Temp
24°C

Wed 4 · 37 out of 100

Swell
5 ft9 shollow
Energy
292kJ
Wind
SSW 2 kn
Temp
28°C

Thu 5 · 22 out of 100

Swell
7 ft10 shollow
Energy
865kJ
Wind
NW 17 kn
Temp
20°C

Fri 6 · 34 out of 100

Swell
8 ft8 scrumbling
Energy
804kJ
Wind
WNW 11 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 29 out of 100

Swell
7 ft7 smushy
Energy
494kJ
Wind
SSW 9 kn
Temp
17°C

Sun 8 · 36 out of 100

Swell
7 ft9 shollow
Energy
691kJ
Wind
SE 15 kn
Temp
22°C

Mon 9 · 21 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 shollow
Energy
205kJ
Wind
WNW 2 kn
Temp
27°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 221, poor
  2. Tue 346, fair
  3. Wed 437, too small
  4. Thu 522, poor
  5. Fri 634, poor
  6. Sat 729, poor
  7. Sun 836, poor
  8. Mon 921, too small
  9. Tue 1017, too small
  10. Wed 1148, fair

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 17 °C3/2 wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Witsands, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov21, poor7 ft9 smushy9 ft at break (est.)754kJwind from the south-south-east, 13 knots21°C
Tue 3Nov46, fair6 ft9 shollow7 ft at break (est.)474kJwind from the south-east, 5 knots24°C
Wed 4Nov37, too small5 ft9 shollow6 ft at break (est.)292kJwind from the south-south-west, 2 knots28°C
Thu 5Nov22, poor7 ft10 shollow8 ft at break (est.)865kJwind from the north-west, 17 knots20°C
Fri 6Nov34, poor8 ft8 scrumbling8 ft at break (est.)804kJwind from the west-north-west, 11 knots19°C
Sat 7Nov29, poor7 ft7 smushy8 ft at break (est.)494kJwind from the south-south-west, 9 knots17°C
Sun 8Nov36, poor7 ft9 shollow9 ft at break (est.)691kJwind from the south-east, 15 knots22°C
Mon 9Nov21, too small4 ft8 shollow6 ft at break (est.)205kJwind from the west-north-west, 2 knots27°C
Tue 10Nov17, too small5 ft12 shollow8 ft at break (est.)760kJwind from the west, 10 knots20°C
Wed 11Nov48, fair9 ft10 shollow10 ft at break (est.)1,235kJwind from the north-west, 10 knots21°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 02:48 −0.3 mHigh 09:15 +0.4 mLow 15:59 −0.4 mHigh 22:04 +0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 04:26 −0.3 mHigh 10:42 +0.5 mLow 17:23 −0.5 mHigh 23:28 +0.4 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 05:40 −0.4 mHigh 11:49 +0.5 mLow 18:23 −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.

Map

the spot and its town

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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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 Witsands

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

The spot faces SW (212°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (32°). 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 steeply: 10 m deep about 150 m out (1 in 14). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 15°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 19°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Scarborough Western Cape, 3.1 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 17 surf spots, 1 dive site and 1 climbing area.

Water about 17°C: 3/2 wetsuit. 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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to CPT, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$859–US$1,780
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$1,300–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

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

Closest

Scarborough Western Cape

about 5 min by car · 19 places to stay

about US$60/nightcountry average

See 19 places to stay in Scarborough Western Cape · Booking.com

About Scarborough Western Cape 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 26h 40m

About 26h 40m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → CPT, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 55 min by road

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

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