Surf Forecasts:
Long Beach surf forecast from 16 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 23 Aug, 8AM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 16s period, SSW swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 23 Aug, 11AM (local time) - 15ft (4.5m), 16s period, SSW swell with 9,057 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 17 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 8ft (2.5m), 13s period with WSW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Long Beach this week:
The surf forecast for Long Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 17) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 2.5m and 13s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Long Beach in the next 16 days are 4.5m 16s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 23) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.3m 5s period and expected on Friday (Aug 21) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Mon 17th Aug) | 8ft (2.5m) 13s |
| Best Surf | 8AM (Sun 23rd Aug) | 13ft (4.0m) 16s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Sun 23rd Aug) | 15ft (4.5m) 16s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Long Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, Rusty here again. Let’s talk feet and miles per hour.
We’ve got a 16-day window for Long Beach, and it’s a slow start. The real juice is in the second week. Water’s running a bit chilly at 57°, about 3° below average, so grab your thickest wetsuit.
Right off the bat, Sunday the 16th has an 8ft WSW swell with a 14-second period, but it’s cross-onshore and choppy. The energy is strong (2671), but it’s ugly. Monday morning is worse – onshore wind, total washout. Don’t bother.
Tuesday the 18th morning cleans up with a cross-offshore breeze and 7ft WSW swell, 12-second period. It’s clean but marginal. The afternoon gets bigger at 10ft, but so does the wind. A mixed bag.
Wednesday the 19th morning is a winner: offshore wind from the S, 8ft WSW swell, period 12 seconds. Strong energy (1978) and clean. That afternoon is even better with a gentle offshore breeze. This is a good session for intermediates.
Thursday the 20th brings a bigger pulse: 12ft SW swell, 13-second period, cross-offshore wind. Energy is massive at 3816. That’s expert territory. The afternoon holds at 10ft, still clean.
Friday the 21st is a nice, smaller day with 7ft SW swell and a light cross-offshore breeze. Clean and easy. The afternoon drops to 5ft, still clean.
Saturday the 22nd is a disaster – onshore winds and rain. Skip it.
Now, the big one: Sunday the 23rd. 15ft SSW swell with a very long 16-second period. The energy is enormous (9670). Gentle offshore wind keeps it clean and well-shaped. This is excellent but only for experts. That afternoon is nearly as good (8620 energy). The long period means it’ll be best at a point or reef; at a beach break it might close out, but the offshore wind helps.
Monday the 24th still has size (10ft) but the wind picks up. The 25th Tuesday morning drops to 4ft with light wind – a quiet, clean session.
Then a dry spell from Wednesday the 26th through Friday the 28th. Small, onshore, poor conditions. A few days of nothing.
Saturday the 29th is another standout: 8ft WSW swell with a light offshore breeze (from the S, 6 mph). Strong energy (2248) and clean. Excellent for strong intermediates. The afternoon is even cleaner with a gentle offshore breeze.
Sunday the 30th morning is a bit messy, but the afternoon turns offshore with 8ft WSW swell, clean and excellent.
Finally, Monday the 31st finishes strong: 12ft SW swell, light offshore breeze, and massive energy (4903). Excellent for experts.
For the best sessions, aim for Sunday the 23rd for the big, clean groundswell, or Saturday the 29th for a slightly smaller but still excellent day. Crowds will be likely on those peak days. Get out there.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Very mild (max 16°C on Mon morning, min 12°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 15°C on Fri afternoon, min 12°C on Thu night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the SE on Thu night, light winds from the WSW by Fri night). | |||||||||||||||||||
Sun 16 | Monday 17 | Tuesday 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | ||||||||||||||
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) | WSW 14 | WSW 14 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 12 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SSW 11 | WSW 11 | SW 10 | SW 12 | SSW 13 |
Wave Graph  | ||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 2671 | 3703 | 2709 | 2354 | 1624 | 1197 | 2815 | 2495 | 1978 | 1742 | 2254 | 3816 | 2984 | 1513 | 1017 | 572 | 300 | 789 | 2525 | 2101 |
Wind (km/h) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | on | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | off | off | off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 5:39PM1.55m | 5:56AM1.33m | 6:12PM1.43m | 6:31AM1.21m | 6:47PM1.29m | 7:10AM1.09m | 7:28PM1.15m | 8:04AM0.99m | 8:30PM1.04m | 9:46AM0.92m | 10:24PM0.98m | 11:55AM0.96m | 00:06AM1.03m | |||||||
Low Tide | 11:56PM0.19m | 11:56AM0.25m | 00:31AM0.30m | 12:29PM0.38m | 1:08AM0.42m | 1:05PM0.51m | 1:54AM0.54m | 1:55PM0.63m | 3:17AM0.62m | 3:49PM0.70m | 5:32AM0.61m | 6:07PM0.66m | ||||||||
 |  |  |  | | | |  | | | | | | | | | | |  |  | |
 | — | — | 7:24 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:22 | — | — | 7:20 | — | — | 7:18 | — | — | 7:18 | — | — |
 | 6:16 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:17 | — | — | 6:19 | — | — | 6:19 | — | — | 6:20 | — | — | 6:21 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
Temp °C | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 |
Feels °C | 11 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 11 | 12 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | WSW 14 | WSW 14 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 13 | WSW 12 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SSW 11 | WSW 11 | SW 10 | SW 12 | WSW 12 |
| kJ | 2671 | 3703 | 2709 | 2354 | 1624 | 1197 | 2815 | 2495 | 1978 | 1742 | 2254 | 3816 | 2984 | 1513 | 1017 | 572 | 300 | 789 | 2525 | 2101 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | WSW 16 | SW 14 | SW 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | WSW 11 | SSW 11 | — | — | SSW 13 |
| kJ | — | — | — | 211 | 304 | 921 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 359 | 265 | — | — | 2052 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | SW 16 | E 11 | E 11 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ESE 4 | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | 65 | 9 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | N 3 | — | — | — | — | ESE 4 | — | — | — | — | — | SE 5 | SE 5 | SE 4 | — | NW 4 | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | 8 | — | — | — | — | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | 65 | 47 | 14 | — | 10 | — | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 9 | 12 | 14 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 389 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 411 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 13 | 9 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Cape Town | ||||||||||||||||||||
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 Long Beach 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 Long Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Long Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Long Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Long Beach 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 (Long Beach) 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 Long Beach 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 Cape Town? If you are looking for accommodation near Long Beach, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Cape Town, consider staying in Cape Town which is 26 km (16 miles) away. Other places in and around Cape Town where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Robben Island which is 37 km (23 miles) away, Bellville, Stellenbosch and Kayamnandi.
Nearest