Surf Forecasts:
Richards Bay (Inside) surf forecast from 3 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Saturday 5 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 9s period, ESE swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Monday 7 Sep, 11AM (local time) - 8ft (2.4m), 18s period, S swell with 3,505 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 5 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 9s period with ESE 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 Saturday (Sep 05) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.6m and 9s period with a secondary swell of 1.0m and 9s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Richards Bay (Inside) in the next 16 days are 2.4m 18s and forecast to arrive on Monday (Sep 07) at 11AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.4m 7s period and expected on Wednesday (Sep 09) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Sat 5th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 9s |
| Best Surf | 11PM (Sat 5th Sep) | 5ft (1.6m) 9s |
| Most Powerful | 11AM (Mon 7th Sep) | 8ft (2.4m) 18s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Richards Bay (Inside) over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s have a look at what’s cookin’ for Richards Bay. Gotta be straight with you – this 16-day run has a tough start. The first real chance of anything rideable doesn't show up until Monday the 7th. That’s a solid gap of a few days with nothing on offer.
The Overall Pattern:
We start with a proper fallow period. Thursday the 3rd and Friday the 4th are a write-off: howling 25 mph winds and big, junky swell. Saturday the 5th is a marginal call with chest-high windswell but the wind is on it, so quality is a gamble. That long, slow stretch finally breaks on Monday the 7th with a sudden injection of energy. That’s our standout window.
The Standout:
The best of the 16-day period is going to be Monday morning, September 7th. An S’ly groundswell rolls in with a solid 7ft height and a long, proper period of 18 seconds. That’s serious energy cooking – over 3300 units of combined energy (3308). The wind is a light north-easterly, which is cross-shore here but light enough at 9 mph to keep things mostly clean for an intermediate surfer. That long period will make it powerful at the sandbar, but the direction is a good fit. A close second is Tuesday morning, September 15th, with a bigger 8ft S’ly groundswell and those long 16-second intervals generating nearly 5000 units of energy (4926) and a gentle cross-shore breeze. However, that's pushing the size limit and will only be for the experienced crew.
Rest of the Window:
The S’ly groundswell holds into the afternoon of the 7th, and there are a few more pulses like the 5ft from the south on the afternoon of the 14th, but the wind turns messy each time. After the 15th, it fades back into wind-affected, choppy conditions. Not much else to get excited about.
Water Temp:
The water is sitting at 70°F, which is about 1°F cooler than normal for this time of year – pretty average, nothing weird.
Stay patient, lads. That Monday the 7th is the one to circle.
- Rusty
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Fri morning. Warm (max 30°C on Thu night, min 17°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (strong winds from the SSW on Fri morning, calm by Sat night). | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 25°C on Wed afternoon, min 18°C on Sun night). Winds increasing (light winds from the SE on Sun night, fresh winds from the NE by Wed afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||
Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SSW 4 | S 8 | SSE 9 | SSE 10 | S 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | S 22 | S 18 | S 16 | S 14 | S 13 | SSE 13 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | E 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 57 | 1241 | 1667 | 1678 | 480 | 734 | 454 | 248 | 169 | 600 | 3505 | 2480 | 944 | 427 | 273 | 57 | 34 | 23 | 299 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | on | glassy | on | on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off |
High Tide | 7:29AM1.41m | 8:07PM1.38m | 8:47AM1.21m | 10:24PM1.22m | 12:06PM1.21m | 00:55AM1.33m | 1:34PM1.43m | 1:55AM1.53m | 2:21PM1.67m | 2:36AM1.72m | 2:58PM1.87m | 3:10AM1.86m | |||||||
Low Tide | 1:27AM0.52m | 1:43PM0.56m | 2:33AM0.71m | 3:18PM0.76m | 5:17AM0.79m | 6:25PM0.74m | 7:14AM0.61m | 7:44PM0.53m | 8:05AM0.39m | 8:29PM0.33m | 8:42AM0.20m | 9:05PM0.17m | |||||||
 |  |  |  |  | |  |  | |  | | | |  | | | | | | |
 | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:58 | — | — | 5:56 | — | — |
 | 5:37 | — | 5:37 | — | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:38 | — | — | 5:39 | — | — | 5:39 | — | — | 5:40 | — |
mm | — | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 30 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 22 | 23 | 20 | 23 | 25 | 20 |
Feels °C | 23 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 16 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 8 | E 8 | E 9 | E 10 | ESE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | ESE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 7 | S 18 | S 16 | S 14 | S 13 | SSE 13 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | E 8 |
| kJ | 197 | 50 | 45 | 17 | 475 | 734 | 454 | 248 | 169 | 114 | 3505 | 2480 | 944 | 427 | 273 | 57 | 34 | 23 | 299 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | E 10 | NE 8 | S 18 | S 10 | S 15 | E 9 | S 11 | S 11 | S 22 | E 9 | — | E 10 | ESE 10 | S 18 | S 12 | SE 12 | S 17 | SSE 10 |
| kJ | — | 48 | 20 | 6 | 480 | 104 | 43 | 152 | 146 | 600 | 133 | — | 49 | 32 | 6 | 25 | 6 | 6 | 9 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | S 18 | S 15 | E 11 | SSW 13 | SSE 14 | E 9 | S 10 | — | — | — | — | — | E 11 | S 16 | E 12 | S 16 |
| kJ | — | — | — | 25 | 74 | 37 | 53 | 41 | 43 | 106 | — | — | — | — | — | 20 | 5 | 12 | 5 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSW 4 | S 8 | SSE 9 | SSE 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | E 10 | E 4 | NE 4 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 7 | ENE 7 | NNE 5 |
| kJ | 57 | 1241 | 1667 | 1678 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 148 | 56 | 36 | 77 | 263 | 202 | 198 | 554 | 72 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 88 | 513 | 1371 | 649 | 156 | 1407 | 0 | 156 | 156 | 156 | 1037 | 1045 | 204 | 630 | 849 | 204 | 577 | 709 | 117 |
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