Surf Forecasts:
Cintsa West surf forecast from 18 Jul 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 18 Jul, 8PM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 11s period, SSW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 24 Jul, 11AM (local time) - 8ft (2.4m), 17s period, SSW swell with 3,214 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 18 Jul, 8PM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 11s period with SSW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Cintsa West this week:
The surf forecast for Cintsa West over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Saturday (Jul 18) at 8PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.7m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 1.4m and 11s. Another secondary swell of 0.6m and 10s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Cintsa West in the next 16 days are 2.4m 17s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Jul 24) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 8PM (Sat 18th Jul) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 8PM (Sat 18th Jul) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Fri 24th Jul) | 8ft (2.4m) 17s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Cintsa West over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Starting Saturday 18 July – a small, cross-shore, 1.4m swell from the S with 11s period. Not much to write home about, and the cross-breeze is light. The combined energy is moderate (738). It’s a marginal session, but at least you’re in the water.
Sunday 19 July – this is the standout. Both morning and afternoon are glassy – offshore, dead calm. Morning: 1.2m S swell, 10s, clean. Afternoon: 1.6m SSE, 10s, still glassy. Combined energy around 589–712 (moderate). The point should be holding nice lines, and with only “sometimes” crowds, you might score a few solo ones. The water stays cold, but the wind is perfect. This is your best bet.
Monday 20 July – a bit more size (1.4m SE, 12s) but the wind is cross-shore in the morning and onshore in the afternoon. Energy bumps up to 796–836 (moderate). Still rideable, but not as clean as Sunday.
Tuesday 21 July – morning glassy again with a 1.3m SE swell, 11s. Combined energy 651 (moderate). Another good window if you missed Sunday. Afternoon turns cross-shore with a 15 km/h breeze, choppy.
Wednesday 22 July – smaller, cross-shore, 1.2m SSW, 13s, but morning cross-shore, afternoon moderate cross-chop. Not worth chasing.
Thursday 23 July – building swell but poor wind. Morning 0.8m with cross-offshore, but only 345 energy (weak). Afternoon 1.6m SSW, but cross-onshore and choppy. Skip it.
Friday 24 July – here comes a big groundswell. Morning 2.4m SSW, 17s – very long period, combined energy 3273 (strong). But the wind is gentle cross-shore with slight chop. For a point break, that long period means powerful, lined-up waves, but the cross breeze will mess with the face. Still, for experienced surfers it could be a fun session. Afternoon 2.3m, 16s, 2570 energy, same cross-shore. If you’re an intermediate or above, this might be your heavier option, but it’s not as clean as Sunday.
Saturday 25 July – leftover 1.7m SSW, 15s, but cross-onshore. Energy 1301 (strong). Not great.
Sunday 26 July – dropping swell, strong NE wind. 1.1m S, 13s, but 20–30 km/h cross-shore, lumpy. Poor.
Monday 27 July – morning glassy! 1.2m S, 15s, clean cross-offshore wind. Combined energy 778 (moderate). That’s a solid morning session – long period groundswell, clean, and the point should handle the direction well. Recommended.
Tuesday 28 July – small and messy. Morning 0.8m, cross-onshore. Afternoon 2.2m SSW, 17s, but fresh cross-onshore at 30 km/h – lumpy and dangerous. Not for paddle surfing.
Wednesday 29 July – big 2.0m S, 11s, but fresh cross-offshore wind (30 km/h). Combined energy 1283 (strong). Clean, but strong wind will make it bumpy. Only for the experienced.
Thursday 30 July – onshore wind, rain, 1.7–1.8m S, 13s. Poor.
Friday 31 July – onshore, rain, 1.4–1.7m SSW. Poor.
Saturday 1 August – a new swell from the E, 2.5m, but short period (8s) and cross-onshore. Energy
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 21°C on Sat afternoon, min 13°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummarySome drizzle, heaviest during Thu night. Warm (max 24°C on Wed morning, min 15°C on Wed night). Wind will be generally light. | |||||||||||||||||||
Sat 18 | Sunday 19 | Monday 20 | Tuesday 21 | Wednesday 22 | Thursday 23 | Friday 24 | ||||||||||||||
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 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SW 9 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 11 | SSW 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 11 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 476 | 514 | 313 | 490 | 1157 | 574 | 565 | 583 | 403 | 314 | 721 | 454 | 224 | 167 | 189 | 637 | 363 | 3214 | 2523 | 1248 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross-off | glassy | glassy | cross-off | cross | on | cross-off | glassy | cross | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | off |
High Tide | 6:40PM1.58m | 6:47AM1.37m | 7:18PM1.48m | 7:24AM1.25m | 7:57PM1.36m | 8:06AM1.13m | 8:42PM1.23m | 9:00AM1.03m | 9:46PM1.13m | 10:35AM0.96m | 11:25PM1.08m | 12:34PM0.98m | 00:57AM1.11m | |||||||
Low Tide | 00:50AM0.28m | 12:52PM0.20m | 1:29AM0.38m | 1:28PM0.32m | 2:11AM0.48m | 2:08PM0.45m | 3:03AM0.57m | 3:00PM0.58m | 4:20AM0.64m | 4:26PM0.66m | 6:10AM0.64m | 6:23PM0.66m | ||||||||
 |  |  |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | |  | | | | |
 | — | — | 7:05 | — | — | 7:05 | — | — | 7:05 | — | — | 7:05 | — | — | 7:03 | — | — | 7:03 | — | — |
 | 5:20 | — | — | 5:21 | — | — | 5:21 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:22 | — | — | 5:23 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 21 | 17 | 19 | 20 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 16 | 19 | 21 | 17 | 24 | 23 | 17 | 20 | 21 | 17 | 21 | 22 | 17 |
Feels °C | 18 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 14 | 21 | 20 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | SSE 10 | SSW 10 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SE 12 | SSW 11 | SSW 17 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
| kJ | 476 | 514 | 313 | 490 | 651 | 574 | 565 | 583 | 403 | 314 | 721 | 454 | 224 | 167 | 189 | 84 | 363 | 3214 | 2523 | 1248 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 10 | E 10 | SE 12 | SE 13 | SE 12 | SSW 9 | SSW 12 | SSW 12 | SSW 16 | SSW 15 | SE 11 | SE 13 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 12 | ENE 7 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | S 19 |
| kJ | 94 | 69 | 192 | 173 | 555 | 164 | 254 | 88 | 201 | 314 | 246 | 230 | 172 | 167 | 108 | 11 | 59 | 59 | 42 | 270 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 16 | SE 12 | SW 9 | SSW 9 | E 10 | SSW 13 | E 10 | SSW 15 | SSW 11 | E 9 | E 5 | E 7 | ENE 8 | SSW 6 | ENE 8 | E 8 | SSW 21 | — | ENE 7 | SE 11 |
| kJ | 5 | 66 | 84 | 49 | 32 | 58 | 17 | 47 | 47 | 7 | 12 | 68 | 51 | 27 | 20 | 5 | 43 | — | 5 | 30 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 10 | — | — | — | SW 9 | — | — | — | — | ENE 3 | — | SW 4 | SSW 6 | SW 6 | SSW 6 | SSW 11 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 163 | — | — | — | 1157 | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | 2 | 74 | 61 | 28 | 637 | — | — | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 261 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 0 | 1 | 105 | 1 | 262 | 131 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Eastern Cape - Wild Coast | ||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | ||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
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 Cintsa West 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 Cintsa West Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Cintsa West provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Cintsa West can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Cintsa West 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 (Cintsa West) 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 Cintsa West 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.
Are you planning a holiday in Eastern Cape - Wild Coast? If you are looking for accommodation near Cintsa West, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Eastern Cape - Wild Coast, consider staying in East London which is 28 km (17 miles) away. Other places in and around Eastern Cape - Wild Coast where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Butterworth which is 56 km (35 miles) away, Stutterheim and Bisho.
Nearest