Back to results

The Hoek, South Africa

Stay in Hout Bay: see the trip Its beds, the way there and every spot near it.

Also within 20 km of Hout Bay

All 54 on Hout Bay's map

Watch this spot We email you when The Hoek is worth the trip.

Hout Bay beach
Hout Bay, the nearest town, 6 km away. Photo: The original uploader was PZFUN at English Wikipedia., CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

About The Hoek

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

The spot faces W (269°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (89°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 150 m out (1 in 16). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 15°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 18°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Hout Bay, 6.1 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 16 surf spots and 1 dive site.

Water about 16°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

Save this trip A link to come back to, or to send to the group.

Book the trip

From Chicago: about 26 h 35 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. 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
  2. Getting there. 50 min from the airport to The Hoek.

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in Hout BayAd

    Typical prices for a double room that month, not a quote.

    Room photos are examples, not these hotels (credits).

    See all places to stay in Hout Bay (ad) on Booking.com →

    Closest towns to stay in

    Typical prices for a double room that month, not a quote. Drives are estimates.

  4. Hire and lessons.

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Forecast

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at The Hoek, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct0, too big10 ft9 scrumbling1,640kJwind from the south-south-east, 10 knots15°C
Mon 19Oct0, too big8 ft8 scrumbling741kJwind from the south-west, 5 knots17°C
Tue 20Oct12, poor5 ft8 smushy298kJwind from the north, 8 knots15°C
Wed 21Oct0, too big10 ft9 smushy1,323kJwind from the north-west, 17 knots17°C
Thu 22Oct0, too big9 ft8 smushy800kJwind from the west, 7 knots17°C
Fri 23Oct0, too big7 ft8 scrumbling662kJwind from the south-east, 7 knots22°C
Sat 24Oct42, fair4 ft8 shollow138kJwind from the south-south-west, 6 knots21°C
Sun 25Oct14, too small2 ft7 shollow44kJwind from the south-south-east, 15 knots21°C
Mon 26Oct46, fair4 ft8 shollow195kJwind from the south-east, 15 knots, offshore23°C
Tue 27Oct31, too small3 ft8 shollow85kJwind from the north-north-west, 1 knot22°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

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly MDW to CPT, changing at ATL, then 50 min by road. About 26h 35 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf Hout Bay

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 5 ft at 8 s, offshore wind.

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf The Bluff left

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 8 s, wind 7 kn (13 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly MDW to CPT, changing at ATL, then 50 min by road. About 26h 35 door to door

The plan picks the best of 12 spots near Hout Bay each day: Chapman's Peak mystery lefts., Dungeons, Dungeons (The Slab section), Hout Bay, Hout Bay Harbour Wall, Mac's spot, Sandy Bay, Sandy Bay south, Secrets (Chapmans Peak Shorey), Tafelberg Reef, The Bluff left, The Hoek.

The trip from Hout Bay, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £1,125–£2,210 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book.

Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to CPT, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£765–£1,585
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Hire car6 days, shared£50–£85
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, shared£110–£185
Food7 days eating out£115–£210
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about £85 to fly your own£50–£80
Total£1,125–£2,210

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

Places to eat near Hout Bay

Within 2 km of the town centre, listed by how complete the listing is (website, opening hours, cuisine) and whether two sources name it. Not a judgement of the food: we have no reviews. Listings © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) and Overture Maps Foundation. Credits

Book the trip

Links marked Ad may pay us a small commission if you book. You pay the same price, and it never changes a score.