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Surf Forecasts:

Captains surfForecast / Cape Town / South Africa

information circle12 Day Weather and Surf, issued 1 pm Tuesday 16 Sep 2025 SAST
Forecast update in hr  min  s Forecast update imminent
Captains surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.
Today's Captains sea temperature is
14.5° C
 (Which is 1.1°C colder than average for this time of year)

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Captains this week:

The surf forecast for Captains over the next 12 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 16) at 5PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 4.0m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 0.5m and 14s. The wind is predicted to be cross-onshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Captains in the next 12 days are 4.0m 12s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Sep 16) at 5PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.3m 5s period and expected on Sunday (Sep 21) at 8PM.

Wave TypeTime (SAST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 5PM (Tue 16th Sep)13ft (4.0m) 12s
Best Surf 5PM (Tue 16th Sep)13ft (4.0m) 12s
Most Powerful 5PM (Tue 16th Sep)13ft (4.0m) 12s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Captains over the next 12 days.

Updates in  hr  min  s Forecast update imminent 
12 DaysHourly
Print Table

Short Range Forecast Mostly dry. Very mild (max 16°C on Fri morning, min 11°C on Wed morning). Wind will be generally light.

Days 3-6 Weather Summary Light rain (total 6mm), mostly falling on Sun night. Warm (max 21°C on Sun afternoon, min 15°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light.

Tue
16
Wednesday
17
Thursday
18
Friday
19
Saturday
20
Sunday
21
Monday
22
PMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAMPMNightAM
Rating
(10 max)
!
!
!
!
!
3
1
3
3
2
2
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
Swell
Height Map
See all maps
Wave Height (m) & direction (?)
4
SW
2.5
SSW
3
SSW
2.5
SSW
2.2
SSW
1.6
S
1.5
S
1.5
S
1.6
S
1.5
S
1.3
S
0.9
S
0.8
S
0.6
S
0.5
S
0.3
SW
1
S
0.4
SW
0.6
SW
0.6
SW
1
WSW
Period(s) (?)12121212121111111110101211111212511131211
Wave
Graph
(?)Metric surfscale
Energy kJ (?)374718812459202713796295335536404683262201669176244731108120270
Wind
(km/h)
20
SW
10
S
10
SW
20
SW
5
SSE
10
SSW
20
S
15
SE
10
SE
10
SSW
10
ESE
5
W
20
S
10
SE
5
SE
15
SSW
15
SW
15
SW
20
W
10
WNW
20
WNW
Wind State (?)
onshore
cross-onshore
cross-shore
cross-offshore
offshore
glassy
cross-
on		cross-
off		cross-
on		cross-
on		cross-
off		crosscrosscross-
off		cross-
off		crosscross-
off		oncrosscross-
off		cross-
off		crosscross-
on		cross-
on		ononcross-
on
High Tide
/ height (m)
12:10AM
1.14
12:47PM
1.23
1:07AM
1.25
1:31PM
1.36
1:48AM
1.34
2:06PM
1.47
2:22AM
1.41
2:36PM
1.55
2:52AM
1.46
3:04PM
1.59
3:21AM
1.48
3:31PM
1.60
3:48AM
1.48
Low Tide
/ height (m)
6:04PM
0.51
6:33AM
0.41
7:05PM
0.38
7:20AM
0.30
7:48PM
0.26
7:57AM
0.21
8:22PM
0.17
8:28AM
0.15
8:52PM
0.11
8:57AM
0.11
9:20PM
0.07
9:24AM
0.11
9:47PM
0.07
9:50AM
0.13
Tue
16
Wednesday
17
Thursday
18
Friday
19
Saturday
20
Sunday
21
Monday
22
Sunrise--6:43--6:41--6:39--6:39--6:37--6:35--6:35
Sunset6:37--6:37--6:38--6:39--6:39--6:40--6:42--
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
part cloud
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
rain showers
thunderstorm
clear
part cloud
rain showers
Rain (mm)
----------------33--1
Temp. °C141313131214151316201817191719211617161515
Feels °C (?)91010891212914181616161519191415131412
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder

Eyeball surf reportRecent Eyeball Surf Reports for Cape Town

  1. weather stationWind Update Continuing clean conditions at Captains (light winds from the WSW at Plattekloof Glen wx 22 km from Captains). A 3.7m groundswell from the WSW is too big for here

    1 hour 6 minutes ago Captains
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22 km away, 1 h 6 min ago

10 km/h
WSW
0.0
14.5
Air / Water (°C)
Please reload the page to see if there are any updates.

FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website

The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Captains surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.

View detailed surf forecast for Captains at:
surf-forecast.com

Information about the Captains Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Captains provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 12 days. A general guide to surfing at Captains can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Captains 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 (Captains) 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 Captains 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.

Captains is 12 km (7 miles) from the city of Robben Island. If you plan a holiday in Cape Town, look for hotels and other accommodation in Robben Island. Robben Island has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.

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