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Captains Surf Forecast
/ Cape Town (70 surf breaks) /
Surf Forecasts:
Captains surfForecast / Cape Town / South Africa
16 Day Weather and Surf, issued 1 pm Thursday 23 Apr 2026 SASTForecast 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
15.5° C
(Which is 2.0°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 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Apr 23) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.8m and 13s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Captains in the next 16 days are 3.5m 11s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Apr 27) at 5AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.4m 6s period and expected on Wednesday (Apr 29) at 8PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Thu 23rd Apr) | 6ft (1.8m) 13s |
| Best Surf | 5PM (Sun 26th Apr) | 7.5ft (2.3m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 5AM (Mon 27th Apr) | 11ft (3.5m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Captains over the next 16 days.
Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Sun morning. Warm (max 24°C on Fri afternoon, min 14°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 10mm), heaviest on Sun afternoon. Very mild (max 18°C on Tue afternoon, min 12°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thu 23 | Friday 24 | Saturday 25 | Sunday 26 | Monday 27 | Tuesday 28 | Wednesday 29 | |||||||||||||||
PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||
SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 11 | WSW 10 | WSW 8 | WSW 8 | SW 11 | WSW 12 | S 11 | S 11 | S 13 | S 13 | S 12 | S 12 | S 11 | SW 11 | SW 14 | |
1619 | 866 | 374 | 214 | 137 | 198 | 163 | 154 | 464 | 753 | 2542 | 1398 | 1246 | 1288 | 1879 | 1699 | 1148 | 666 | 628 | 172 | 450 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
cross | off | glassy | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | cross | on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | |
High Tide | 8:41PM1.15m | 9:24AM1.07m | 10:20PM1.17m | 11:03AM1.09m | 11:36PM1.25m | 12:11PM1.16m | 00:29AM1.34m | 1:00PM1.25m | 1:10AM1.42m | 1:38PM1.32m | 1:45AM1.47m | 2:12PM1.37m | 2:17AM1.50m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 2:07PM0.45m | 3:11AM0.53m | 3:47PM0.50m | 4:58AM0.49m | 5:15PM0.47m | 6:09AM0.39m | 6:16PM0.40m | 6:58AM0.29m | 7:02PM0.33m | 7:36AM0.21m | 7:39PM0.28m | 8:08AM0.15m | 8:13PM0.24m | 8:38AM0.12m | |||||||
 |  | | | |  | | |  |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | — | — | 7:13 | — | — | 7:15 | — | — | 7:16 | — | — | 7:16 | — | — | 7:16 | — | — | 7:18 | — | — | 7:18 |
 | 6:14 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:12 | — | — | 6:10 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:08 | — | — | 6:07 | — | 6:07 |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 7 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
Temp °C | 20 | 19 | 23 | 24 | 22 | 20 | 19 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 18 | 16 | 15 |
16 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 12 | 12 | |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 11 | WSW 10 | WSW 8 | SW 15 | WSW 13 | SSW 11 | S 11 | S 11 | S 13 | S 13 | S 12 | S 12 | SW 9 | SW 11 | SW 14 |
 kJ | 1619 | 866 | 374 | 214 | 137 | 198 | 163 | 154 | 464 | 55 | 282 | 1244 | 1246 | 1288 | 1879 | 1699 | 1148 | 666 | 103 | 172 | 450 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | W 15 | W 15 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | SW 16 | WSW 9 | S 15 | — | WSW 12 | WSW 12 | WSW 10 | SW 10 | SW 10 | SW 10 | SW 10 | SW 13 | SSE 11 | S 7 |
| kJ | — | — | 4 | 4 | 75 | 14 | 6 | 41 | 68 | 4 | — | 1398 | 889 | 485 | 451 | 408 | 185 | 157 | 168 | 133 | 88 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | W 10 | W 9 | S 10 | NW 13 | NW 13 | S 16 | SW 15 | NW 12 | — | — | NW 11 | — | SW 15 | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 14 | — | SW 13 | SW 10 |
| kJ | — | — | 2 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 56 | 6 | — | — | 5 | — | 9 | 40 | 39 | 72 | — | 111 | 94 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | N 2 | NW 3 | WNW 4 | — | WSW 8 | SW 11 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | S 11 | S 6 | SSE 6 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | 8 | — | 753 | 2542 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 628 | 104 | 121 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 9 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 44 | 38 | 1 | 38 | 45 | 121 | 121 | 1856 | 9 | 22 | 66 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Cape Town | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
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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.
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 16 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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