Cintsa West Surf Break

Lat Long: 32.83° S 28.12° E

Cintsa West Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 7 am 04 Aug 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's Cintsa West sea temperature is
17.1° C
2.8° 

Cintsa West surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.


Cintsa West surf forecast from 4 Aug 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Monday 10 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 15ft (4.5m), 12s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Monday 10 Aug, 5PM (local time) - 16ft (5.0m), 12s period, S swell with 7,059 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 4 Aug, 8PM (local time) - 5ft (1.5m), 10s period with E 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 Tuesday (Aug 04) at 8PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.5m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 12s. Another secondary swell of 1.3m and 6s 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 5.0m 12s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 10) at 5PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.9m 4s period and expected on Thursday (Aug 06) at 5AM.

Wave TypeTime (SAST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 8PM (Tue 4th Aug)5ft (1.5m) 10s
Best Surf11PM (Mon 10th Aug)15ft (4.5m) 12s
Most Powerful 5PM (Mon 10th Aug)16ft (5.0m) 12s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Cintsa West over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright, this is Rusty, and I’m lookin’ straight at the forecast for the Cintsa West area. What we’ve got here is a slow start, but then a serious pulse of energy comes through. Let’s break it down.

The first real chance to get wet comes in Tuesday morning, August 4th. Cintsa West is a point break, and it’s inconsistent, so you gotta be patient. The water’s sitting at 63°, which is a full 5° colder than usual for this time of year – that’s biting cold, so bring the thick rubber. The swell is 5ft from the ESE, with a period of 10 seconds, and the combined energy is moderate at 543. The wind is a light north-easterly at 6 mph, making it a cross-off breeze, and the conditions are clean. Looks like a decent window for a few lined-up waves, but don’t expect a crowd-free session – it gets busy here sometimes.

Wednesday morning, August 5th, is where it gets proper. The wind drops to glassy out of the WSW at 3 mph – that’s about as good as it gets. The swell drops a touch to 4ft from the east, still 10 seconds, but the energy is moderate at 346. It’s a classic point break setup, clean and glassy. This is the standout of the early week. The morning is the time to be out.

Thursday and Friday, August 6th and 7th, the swell turns smaller, dropping to 3ft, and the wind gets messy. Thursday has a cross-shore from the southwest, and the period jumps to 15 seconds, which is a long-period groundswell. That kind of energy can make the waves a bit too straight at the point, and with the cross-onshore later, it’s not worth the paddle. Friday stays small and marginal.

Then we hit a dry spell. Saturday, August 8th, the morning is a bit bumpy, but the afternoon glass-off returns with a 4ft, 14-second groundswell from the SSW. Clean, glassy, and the energy is 683 – that’s a nice moderate pulse. Worth a go, but it’s not the biggest.

Sunday, August 9th, the wind starts howling from the southwest at 15-18 mph. The swell drops, and it’s a write-off. The whole setup is a mess.

Now, hold on tight. Monday, August 10th, the ocean wakes up. The swell jumps to 15ft from the south with a 12-second period. The energy is massive – 6236 in the morning and 12,398 in the afternoon. That’s a serious amount of water moving. But the wind is a strong cross-shore from the southwest at 12 mph, and the conditions are just messy. This is big, powerful, but not clean. This is expert territory only, and even then, it’s a battle. The combined energy is extraordinary, but you’re fighting the wind.

Tuesday, August 11th, is the real standout of the whole forecast. The swell is still pumping at 12ft from the SSE with a 12-second period, and the energy is 3745. But the wind… the wind is out of the WSW at just 3 mph, making it a clean cross-off breeze. The report says “excellent surf conditions for experienced surfers.” This is a big, powerful point break session with clean lines. Only the brave and the skilled should paddle out, but if you are, this is the day. The water is still cold, but the waves will be proper.

The rest of the second week, from Wednesday, August 12th, through Sunday, August 16th, the swell stays big – 8ft to 13ft – but the wind is a relentless cross-shore from the northeast, blowing 9 to 18 mph. It’s a lumpy, choppy mess. The energy is still high, but the quality is gone. Not worth a paddle unless you’re a kite surfer. The setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing during this stretch.

Monday, August 17th, we get a small reprieve. The swell drops to 6ft from the southwest, with a 12-second period, and the wind is a light cross-off from the north-northwest at 6 mph. The energy is 1378, solid. Conditions are clean. It’s a good, smaller option for the experienced.

Tuesday, August 18th, and Wednesday, August 19th, it’s back to poor conditions with strong winds and messy seas. The run ends with nothing.

So, to sum it up: the first week has a couple of gems, especially Wednesday morning, August 5th, and the big, clean, expert-only session on Tuesday, August 11th. The second week is mostly a battle with the wind. The best on offer is that Tuesday, August 11th, for the big-wave crew. Get out there if you’ve got the nerve.

Rusty.

Short Range Forecast

Mostly dry. Warm (max 26°C on Wed afternoon, min 15°C on Tue morning). Wind will be generally light.

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Heavy rain (total 37mm), heaviest during Sun night. Warm (max 26°C on Sat afternoon, min 11°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (calm on Fri night, fresh winds from the SW by Sun night).

Tuesday
4
Wednesday
5
Thursday
6
Friday
7
Saturday
8
Sunday
9
Monday
10
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
3
2
3
2
1
3
0
1
3
1
1
3
2
3
1
1
0
0
5
7
7
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
1.5
ESE
10
1.6
ESE
10
1.5
E
10
1.2
E
10
1.1
E
10
0.9
SSW
16
0.9
SSW
15
1
SSW
14
1.2
SSW
13
1.1
SSW
12
1.1
SSW
12
0.9
SSW
17
1.4
SSW
15
1.2
SSW
14
1
SSW
13
1.3
SSW
14
1.1
SSW
13
3.5
SSW
11
4.5
S
12
5
S
12
4
SSE
12
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
425
473
450
273
221
366
309
378
461
333
328
409
822
557
342
651
390
3091
5051
7059
4459
Wind (km/h)
10
NE
15
NE
10
N
5
WSW
5
NE
10
NW
15
SW
15
S
5
ENE
5
ENE
5
ENE
5
N
15
NE
5
E
15
WSW
25
WSW
30
SW
35
SSW
20
SW
20
SW
15
WSW
Wind State
cross-off
cross
cross-off
glassy
cross
off
cross
cross-on
glassy
cross
cross-on
glassy
cross
glassy
cross-off
cross-off
cross
cross-on
cross
cross
cross-off
High Tide
7:09PM1.49m
7:21AM1.27m
7:53PM1.38m
8:12AM1.14m
8:56PM1.26m
9:39AM1.03m
10:42PM1.18m
11:55AM1.04m
00:36AM1.23m
1:27PM1.18m
1:48AM1.35m
2:24PM1.36m
2:40AM1.48m
Low Tide
12:47PM0.21m
1:24AM0.34m
1:26PM0.32m
2:15AM0.44m
2:19PM0.45m
3:32AM0.54m
3:46PM0.56m
5:31AM0.56m
5:55PM0.57m
7:11AM0.45m
7:30PM0.45m
8:11AM0.30m
8:30PM0.30m
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
clear
clear
part cloud
clear
light rain
heavy rain
light rain
light rain
light rain
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
6:56
6:54
6:54
6:52
6:52
6:50
6:50
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:30
5:31
5:31
5:32
5:34
5:35
5:35
 mm
2
35
5
4
5
Temp °C
22
25
20
24
26
21
20
20
19
20
20
18
22
26
18
18
14
12
12
12
12
Feels °C
19
22
17
22
23
18
19
18
19
20
19
20
20
24
18
13
7
6
5
7
8
  • 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
How to use the Wavefinder 
submit an eyeball surf report

Quick surf report for Cintsa West:

join our community of surf reporters

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 locationNearest