Nestled on the southernmost tip of the African continent, South Africa offers wonderful coastal destinations stretching along the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean. In between, visitors can experience everything from golden sandy beaches to craggy mountains, deserts, forests, savannah, and the lush Cape Winelands. Kruger National Park is home to the famous Big Five wildlife species, while Garden Route of the Western Cape offers adventure sports, pretty villages, and more. The major cities of Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, and Cape Town are bustling metropolises, with plenty to see and do. However, for those who love to surf, scroll below to read about the top surf spots in South Africa.
1. Durban, KwaZulu-Natal (from USD 29.0)
Durban, with its Golden Mile, is a popular seaside city for locals and international travelers alike. The city has a beautiful coastline with endless sand, and while it doesn’t necessarily have the best waves in South Africa for surfing, the city does attract a huge number of surfers. This is due to the year-round excellent climate, with baking hot summers and warm winters. Surfers head to the south swells around the Bluff Peninsula and love the long piers along the coastline. When conditions are perfect, powerful, hollow beach breaks are often experienced. On top of this, surfers can enjoy world-class tubes at Cave Rock. Due to the shark nets introduced in 1962, the area is safe from deadly shark attacks. Also, the warm Indian Ocean is just perfect.
Durban Surfing Excursion
Duration: 1 hour
2. Elands Bay, West Coast, Western Cape
Nestled on the West Coast in Western Cape, Elands Bay is another small town with a big surfing attraction. The bay tends to get crowded during the summer season, due to its perfect left-hand break, speed runs, and lip turns that allow for high-performance surfing. Unlike Durban, with its warm, Indian Ocean, here you meet the wild Atlantic Ocean in all its splendor. The wind tends to howl along the coast, and there are so many waves that it’s the perfect place for surfing.
Elands Bay
Address: Elands Bay, Cederberg Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa
3. Big Bay, Bloubergstrand, Western Cape
When it comes to Bloubergstrand, or Blouberg for short, Big Bay is the place to be for a surfing adventure. Big Bay is separated from Little Bay, the other main beach here, by a rocky point. The windy coastline with its postcard Table Mountain sunset view is classic. The beachfront has plenty of shops and dining options, but the main attraction for surfers is the exposed beach break that offers fairly consistent surf at any time of the year. Clean groundswells are experienced ideally from the southwest, and surfers experience both left and right beach breaks.
Big Bay, Blouberg, Cape Town
Address: Big Bay, Bloubergstrand, Cape Town, South Africa
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4. The Dungeons, Hout Bay, Western Cape
Hout Bay is a charming village, just outside of Cape Town on the Western Cape coast, famous for its attractive scenic location and great seafood restaurants. The Dungeons at Hout Bay are near Seal Island and are known for being one of the deadliest surfing locations in the world, due to the many sharks that hang around the coast. It is only accessible by boat from Hout Bay Harbor. Each year in winter, Dungeons Beach is home to the Red Bull Big Wave Africa contest, where some of the world’s top local and international surfers compete. The beach offers a selection of shallow open reefs and high-impact zones. With its cold waters and unpredictable waves, this extreme surf destination is known for attracting the most experienced surfers.
The Dungeons, Hout Bay
Address: Hout Bay, Western Cape, South Africa
5. Long Beach, Kommetjie, Cape Town
The charming seaside town of Kommetjie is home to Long Beach, which is literally a long and sandy beach and a favorite among surfers. Long Beach is one of the few beach breaks in Cape Town that consistently holds up a southeast wind. A permanent sand bar runs through the center of the break, offering peaks breaking on both sides. The town itself is a friendly and popular place to stay with a number of great restaurants and beach bars.
Long Beach
Address: Long Beach, Kommetjie, Cape Town, South Africa
6. Victoria Bay, George, Garden Route, Western Cape
Heading down the Garden Route of the Western Cape, Victoria Bay is located in the town of George. The bay offers an exposed reef and a point break with a consistent surf. This is due to the offshore winds, which hail from the northwest. With an onshore breeze, Victoria Bay is very surfable when there are clean groundswells. Surfers will enjoy a right-hand reef break here but must beware of the rocks.
Victoria Bay
Address: Victoria Bay, George, Garden Route, Western Cape, South Africa
7. Llandudno Beach, Cape Town, Western Cape
Llandudno Beach is popular for sunbathing and surfing and lies on the Western Cape coast of Cape Town. This laidback beach is perfect for surfing and offers one of the more scenic settings anywhere in the world. Located around a 15-minute drive from the center of Cape Town, Llandudno Beach isn’t for the faint-hearted, as the waves can get really hollow, and there are a number of large, granite boulders close to the right-hand wedge. This surf spot is recommended for intermediate to advanced surfers.
Llandudno Beach
Address: Llandudno Beach, Llandudno, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
8. Sharks Point, Wild Coast, Eastern Cape
The Wild Coast of the Eastern Cape offers a number of great surf destinations and is known for its excellent waves. It is also relatively uncrowded. However, visitors are warned that the area does have a number of sharks. Speaking of sharks, Sharks Point offers great waves but is quite difficult to reach as the bay is enclosed by cliffs. However, the surfing gets good here with a south swell or with moderate winds from the west.
Sharks Point Wild Coast
Address: Sharks Point Wild Coast, Eastern Cape, South Africa
9. Muizenberg, Cape Town, Western Cape (from USD 46.0)
Muizenberg is a small town, around a 30-minute drive from the center of Cape Town, and is the ideal place for learning how to surf. Surfer’s Corner is ideal, as the waves are gentle and the wind runs in a north-westerly direction. This means that the wind blows from the beach out to the sea, creating long, clean waves. The level of surfing experience required here is from beginner to intermediate, and surfing lessons are available to get you going.
Surfing Lessons in Cape Town
Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes
10. Jeffreys Bay, Eastern Cape (from USD 15.0)
The picturesque coastal town of Jeffreys Bay in the Eastern Cape might be small, but when it comes to surfing, JBay, as it is known in short, is huge. The bay is famous for producing the best right-hand surf break in the world, among six different surf breaks. This attracts many of the best surfers from all over the world on a regular basis. The town itself is tiny, with only one set of traffic lights, but the people here are friendly and welcoming, resulting in a great place to stay as well as surf. If you are a novice, Jeffreys Bay is also a great place to learn the sport!
Surf Lessons
Duration: 2 hours
Surf's up in South Africa, any time of the year!
Surfing fans can enjoy a variety of experiences in versatile South Africa, with its Atlantic and Indian Ocean coastlines as well as many great cities, tourist attractions, safari options, and beautiful sceneries. To help make your choice, read up on some of the top surf spots in South Africa.
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