
Surf Forecasts:
Bonza Bay surf forecast from 5 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 7 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 17s period, S swell with cross-shore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 6 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 18s period, S swell with 5,281 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 7 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 17s period with S swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Bonza Bay this week:
The surf forecast for Bonza Bay over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Sep 07) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 3.0m and 17s period with a secondary swell of 1.7m and 17s. Another secondary swell of 1.1m and 9s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-shore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Bonza Bay in the next 16 days are 3.0m 18s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 06) at 11PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.4m 8s period and expected on Tuesday (Sep 08) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Mon 7th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 17s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Mon 7th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 17s |
| Most Powerful | 11PM (Sun 6th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 18s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Bonza Bay over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, I’m Rusty. Let’s talk about what’s coming up at Bonza Bay.
Right off the bat, we’ve got a bit of a flat start. The first real chance to get wet won’t be until Saturday afternoon, the 5th of September. The swell is a modest 4ft from the south, with a period of 11 seconds – that’s a proper groundswell, so it’ll have some shape and energy. The combined wave energy is 560 (moderate), but the wind is cross-shore from the east-northeast at 12 mph, so it’s not going to be glassy. It’s a marginal call, honestly. The water temp is sitting at 67°, which is about average for this time of year.
Sunday the 6th sees a drop in size to 3ft on the morning, but the wind turns cross-onshore and choppy – not great. The afternoon pumps up to 5ft, but again, the wind is messy. The combined energy jumps to 1005 (strong) that afternoon, but the conditions are poor.
Monday the 7th brings a 7ft south swell with a very long period of 15 seconds, hitting 2276 (very strong) combined energy. But the wind is a fresh breeze from the northeast at 22 mph, making it lumpy and cross-shore. This is getting too big for beginners, and the wind is wrecking the quality. The period is so long it’s going to break pretty straight across the beach, so it’s not ideal for a beach break like this.
Things settle down a bit on Tuesday the 8th with 5ft from the east, but the period is short at 8 seconds, and the cross-onshore wind keeps it choppy. The energy is 632 (moderate). Wednesday the 9th drops to 5ft in the morning, still cross-onshore, and by the afternoon it’s tiny at 1ft with only 42 (weak) energy. Not worth paddling out.
From Thursday the 10th through to Friday the 11th, the swell hangs around 4ft to 3ft, but the wind is onshore or cross-onshore, with poor comments across the board. The water temp anomaly is missing, so we can’t say much about that.
Now, here’s a standout: Monday the 14th of September. We’ve got a 6ft swell from the south-southwest with a 12-second period, and the combined energy is 1195 (strong). The wind is a fresh breeze from the west-southwest at 22 mph, but it’s cross-offshore and the report says “clean.” That’s the key – clean conditions. The swell is solid, the period is long enough for good shape, and the wind is working with the break. This is the best on offer in the whole window. It’s a little big for beginners, but for intermediates and above, it’s a goer. The crowd factor is “sometimes,” so you might have a few others out, but it’s not going to be packed.
The rest of the second week is a bit of a mixed bag. Saturday the 12th has 7ft in the morning but cross-onshore and choppy. Sunday the 13th sees 10ft from the east with 19 mph winds – way too big, and the energy is 2982 (very strong). That’s only for experts, and even then, the wind is messy. Monday the 14th afternoon is the last good call at 5ft, but the wind turns cross-shore.
Later in the week, Wednesday the 16th afternoon has a 7ft swell with a short 7-second period and cross-offshore wind, giving 1097 (strong) energy. It’s clean, but the short period means the waves will be weaker and less organised. The 19th of September has a 10ft swell predicted, but it’s flagged as too big for this break, so we’ll skip that.
Look, overall, the pick of the entire 16 days is Monday the 14th at Bonza Bay. Get on it if you can. The rest of the run is choppy, messy, or just too big. Keep an eye on the forecasts, but for now, that’s your window.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Sat afternoon. Warm (max 25°C on Tue morning, min 17°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the NE on Mon afternoon, light winds from the NE by Tue morning). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Fri morning. Warm (max 30°C on Wed morning, min 19°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Sat 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | Thursday 10 | Friday 11 | ||||||||||||||
PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | S 11 | SSW 23 | SSW 20 | S 17 | S 15 | S 14 | S 11 | E 8 | E 9 | S 10 | E 9 | SSE 10 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | SSW 16 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSE 7 |
Wave Graph | ||||||||||||||||||||
291 | 326 | 623 | 1786 | 5183 | 2107 | 1281 | 229 | 368 | 377 | 49 | 297 | 31 | 304 | 190 | 194 | 575 | 236 | 220 | 137 | |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross |
High Tide | 10:55PM1.43m | 12:10PM1.43m | 00:47AM1.52m | 1:25PM1.62m | 1:47AM1.67m | 2:12PM1.81m | 2:31AM1.81m | 2:51PM1.97m | 3:07AM1.91m | 3:25PM2.08m | 3:40AM1.98m | 3:57PM2.13m | 4:11AM2.00m | |||||||
Low Tide | 3:53PM0.97m | 5:44AM0.92m | 6:35PM0.89m | 7:13AM0.77m | 7:44PM0.71m | 8:01AM0.60m | 8:28PM0.54m | 8:38AM0.45m | 9:04PM0.41m | 9:11AM0.34m | 9:36PM0.32m | 9:42AM0.27m | 10:06PM0.29m | |||||||
— | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | |
5:52 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:53 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:55 | — | — | 5:57 | — | |
mm | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | 4 |
Temp °C | 18 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 18 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 30 | 28 | 23 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 18 |
Feels °C | 15 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 24 | 22 | 22 | 29 | 27 | 24 | 22 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 19 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | SSW 20 | S 17 | S 15 | S 14 | S 11 | E 8 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | ENE 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | SSW 16 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 |
291 | 326 | 239 | 1786 | 5183 | 2107 | 1281 | 229 | 368 | 377 | 363 | 297 | 311 | 304 | 190 | 194 | 575 | 132 | 103 | 86 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 10 | SE 7 | SSW 23 | S 10 | SW 17 | — | — | SSW 13 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SW 14 | SSW 5 | SSW 19 | E 9 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 |
33 | 64 | 623 | 198 | 1722 | — | — | 229 | 198 | 106 | 49 | 55 | 31 | 46 | 8 | 143 | 162 | 236 | 220 | 93 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 15 | S 28 | SSE 13 | S 13 | — | — | — | — | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSE 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SSE 9 | SSW 12 | SSE 12 | SSW 5 | SSW 6 | SE 13 | SE 12 |
17 | 15 | 18 | 121 | — | — | — | — | 66 | 50 | 28 | 23 | 11 | 17 | 30 | 14 | 9 | 33 | 7 | 6 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | E 10 | ESE 7 | E 10 | E 9 | E 6 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | — | SW 4 | SW 5 | SW 5 | — | SSE 7 | SSE 7 |
219 | 125 | 125 | 204 | 202 | 169 | 385 | 472 | 606 | 567 | 689 | 541 | 554 | — | 12 | 6 | 23 | — | 45 | 137 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 455 | 34 | 177 | 455 | 237 | 427 | 435 | 99 | 19 | 249 | 54 | 19 | 99 | 0 | 5 | 52 | 52 | 52 | 476 | 19 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Eastern Cape - Wild Coast | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Bonza Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Bonza Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Bonza Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Bonza Bay surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Bonza Bay) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Bonza Bay may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Bonza Bay is 7 km (4 miles) from the city of East London. If you plan a holiday in Eastern Cape - Wild Coast, look for hotels and other accommodation in East London. East London has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.










