Koeelbay (caves), South Africa

No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Pringle Bay, 13 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: Cape Town International Airport (CPT), 36 km.

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About Koeelbay (caves)

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated. Facts: verified, surf details estimated.

The spot faces W (251°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (71°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 22). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 15°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 19°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Pringle Bay, 13 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: Cape Town International Airport (CPT), 36 km. Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots.

Water about 17°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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Book the trip

From Chicago: about 26 h 45 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to Cape Town International Airport (CPT), changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL).
See flights MDW → CPT · Skyscanner from about £765 returnAd
Getting there. 55 min from the airport to Koeelbay (caves).
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Accommodation.
No town nearby
No stay checked for this site yet: Pringle Bay, 13 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: Cape Town International Airport (CPT), 36 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Koeelbay (caves) · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Koeelbay (caves) · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Koeelbay (caves) on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

Koeelbay (caves) does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

The score for intermediates, coloured as on the area pages:GoodFairPoorToo bigToo small

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Koeelbay (caves), each day
Day	Scorefor Intermediate	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	0, too big	8 ft9 scrumbling	1,088kJ	wind from the south-east, 8 knots	14°C
Mon 19Oct	11, poor	6 ft8 smushy	367kJ	wind from the south-west, 6 knots	14°C
Tue 20Oct	25, poor	5 ft7 smushy	229kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 6 knots	14°C
Wed 21Oct	0, too big	8 ft9 scrumbling	909kJ	wind from the north, 18 knots	16°C
Thu 22Oct	0, too big	7 ft8 smushy	586kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 9 knots	17°C
Fri 23Oct	0, too big	6 ft8 scrumbling	488kJ	wind from the east, 2 knots	18°C
Sat 24Oct	52, good	4 ft8 smushy	193kJ	wind from the south, 1 knot	18°C
Sun 25Oct	18, too small	2 ft7 smushy	52kJ	wind from the south-east, 13 knots	18°C
Mon 26Oct	29, poor	3 ft8 scrumbling	120kJ	wind from the south-east, 13 knots	17°C
Tue 27Oct	20, too small	2 ft6 smushy	33kJ	wind from the east-south-east, 14 knots, offshore	22°C

Day scores here are the conditions out of 80; a trip's score on the results is the same conditions out of 100. The journey never scores. The forecast reaches about 10 days. Energy is the swell's power in kJ per metre of wave, from its height and interval: it grows with the square of each, so a long-period swell hits far harder than a short one the same size. The word under the swell is the wave's shape, our estimate from the sea floor. Wind is in knots: 10 kn is about 19 km/h. The arrow points where the wind blows to; offshore wind, blowing from the land out to sea, is green and says so.

Your trip, day by day

6 nights from Mon 19 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for intermediate surfers. Change dates

Mon 19 Oct
Travel out
Fly MDW to CPT, changing at ATL, then 55 min by road. About 26h 45 door to door
Tue 20 Oct
Surf Koeelbay (caves)
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 5 ft at 7 s, wind 6 kn (12 km/h).
Wed 21 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.
Thu 22 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.
Fri 23 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Koeelbay (caves)
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 8 s, wind 1 kn (2 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Travel home
Fly MDW to CPT, changing at ATL, then 55 min by road. About 26h 45 door to door

Rough cost

About £1,015–£2,025 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book. No town nearby, so no stay is in it.

Rough cost per person for this trip
What	How we worked it out	Each
Flights	return MDW to CPT, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag	£765–£1,585
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Hire car	6 days, shared	£50–£85
Food	7 days eating out	£115–£210
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£50–£80
Total		£1,015–£2,025

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026: where they come from. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra.

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