Surf Forecasts:
Richards Bay (Inside) surf forecast from 29 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Friday 4 Sep, 5AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 9s period, S swell with cross-shore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 4 Sep, 2PM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 10s period, SSE swell with 2,800 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 30 Aug, 5AM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 8s period with E swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Richards Bay (Inside) this week:
The surf forecast for Richards Bay (Inside) over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 30) at 5AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.7m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Richards Bay (Inside) in the next 16 days are 3.5m 10s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 04) at 2PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.0m 8s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 03) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 5AM (Sun 30th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 5AM (Fri 4th Sep) | 11ft (3.5m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 2PM (Fri 4th Sep) | 11ft (3.5m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Richards Bay (Inside) over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, I’m Rusty. Let’s get straight into it.
Right now, Richards Bay (Inside) is looking pretty grim for the next week or so. The first solid window doesn’t show up until Saturday the 5th of September. Before that, you’ve got a long stretch of poor conditions – lumpy chop, cross-shore and onshore winds, and messy surf. Nothing worth paddling out for. Hang tight.
The first real standout is Saturday morning, September 5th. The swell jumps to 7ft from the SE, period 8 seconds, and the wind goes light WSW – cross-offshore and clean. The combined energy hits strong at 1317 – that’s a solid push. The water’s sitting around 71°F, pretty much normal for this time of year. This is the best on offer, no question. Expect some size and power, but with that short period it’ll be a bit crumbly – still, clean conditions make it a goer. Best for intermediate surfers; 7ft is pushing it for beginners.
Saturday afternoon keeps the goods going with 6ft from the SE and glassy conditions – dead calm, clean as a whistle. Energy drops to 614, moderate, but that glassy surface is gold. No crowds mentioned so you might have it quiet.
Sunday morning, September 6th, brings a long-period groundswell from the S at 15 seconds, 6ft, with a clean cross-offshore NNE breeze. Combined energy is strong at 1411. That’s proper groundswell – better for points or reefs, but at Richards Bay sandbar it’ll still offer nice lines. Needs a good tide though, so it’s a marginal call but worth a look.
After that, conditions go downhill again through the second week – more windy, choppy, and onshore. There’s a few scattered clean moments on Wednesday the 3rd and Thursday the 3rd afternoon, but those have cross-off winds with tiny swell (2ft to 6ft) – nothing to write home about.
Overall: Don’t get out of bed until Saturday the 5th. That’s your window. Everything else is a write-off or marginal. Keep an eye on the 6th if you’re keen on longer period waves and can handle the tide question.
Stay tuned, conditions can change – but for now, that Saturday morning is the pick.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 29°C on Tue afternoon, min 19°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the NNE on Sat night, calm by Mon morning). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 31°C on Thu afternoon, min 19°C on Wed morning). Winds increasing (light winds from the SW on Wed night, strong winds from the SW by Thu night). | ||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | ||||||||||||||
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) | E 8 | E 10 | S 8 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | ESE 9 | ENE 6 | E 6 | SSW 14 | S 15 | SSW 16 | S 14 | S 14 | S 8 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 383 | 347 | 466 | 198 | 175 | 171 | 160 | 134 | 186 | 112 | 261 | 155 | 427 | 203 | 132 | 1417 | 2731 | 2530 | 1631 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-on | on | cross | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 4:45AM1.98m | 5:03PM2.07m | 5:13AM1.95m | 5:31PM2.03m | 5:42AM1.88m | 6:01PM1.93m | 6:12AM1.76m | 6:34PM1.78m | 6:46AM1.60m | 7:12PM1.59m | 7:29AM1.41m | 8:07PM1.38m | |||||||
Low Tide | 10:42PM0.03m | 10:50AM-0.05m | 11:10PM0.03m | 11:18AM-0.02m | 11:39PM0.08m | 11:47AM0.06m | 00:10AM0.18m | 12:19PM0.18m | 00:45AM0.33m | 12:56PM0.36m | 1:27AM0.52m | 1:43PM0.56m | 2:33AM0.71m | ||||||
 |  |  |  | | | |  | | | | | | | | | | |  | |
 | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — |
 | 5:35 | — | 5:36 | — | — | 5:36 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:37 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
Temp °C | 20 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 25 | 29 | 24 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 30 | 31 | 25 | 21 | 21 | 20 |
Feels °C | 14 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 23 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 26 | 22 | 18 | 21 | 18 | 25 | 26 | 20 | 18 | 18 | 18 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | E 10 | E 10 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | E 9 | ESE 9 | S 8 | E 6 | E 8 | E 8 | SSW 16 | S 14 | S 14 | E 8 | ENE 10 | E 10 | ESE 8 |
| kJ | 383 | 347 | 257 | 198 | 175 | 171 | 160 | 134 | 5 | 112 | 113 | 86 | 427 | 203 | 132 | 69 | 18 | 31 | 493 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 12 | SSE 11 | SSE 14 | SSE 12 | SSE 6 | SSW 10 | SSE 6 | S 8 | S 15 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | S 15 | S 7 | E 8 | S 6 | E 9 | NE 7 | NE 8 | SSE 10 |
| kJ | 81 | 24 | 18 | 13 | 62 | 18 | 34 | 10 | 4 | 39 | 261 | 155 | 56 | 36 | 3 | 43 | 19 | 20 | 614 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | SE 15 | — | SSE 13 | SSE 12 | SSE 11 | S 8 | SE 10 | S 11 | S 8 | E 9 | E 8 | E 8 | SSW 6 | — | — | — | SSW 16 | SSW 15 |
| kJ | — | 8 | — | 18 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 73 | 51 | 50 | 13 | — | — | — | 51 | 72 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 5 | SSW 6 | S 8 | S 7 | — | SSE 6 | — | NE 4 | ENE 6 | NNE 6 | SSW 4 | S 7 | — | NE 6 | ENE 8 | S 8 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 |
| kJ | 78 | 255 | 466 | 159 | — | 65 | — | 10 | 186 | 84 | 58 | 134 | — | 74 | 483 | 1417 | 2731 | 2530 | 1631 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 116 | 204 | 559 | 0 | 55 | 201 | 55 | 156 | 116 | 36 | 1 | 1 | 116 | 391 | 141 | 207 | 207 | 2481 | 76 |
Best forecast wave conditions in KwaZulu-Natal North 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 Richards Bay (Inside) 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 Richards Bay (Inside) Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Richards Bay (Inside) provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Richards Bay (Inside) can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Richards Bay (Inside) 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 (Richards Bay (Inside)) 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 Richards Bay (Inside) 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.
Nearest