Hawston, South Africa

No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Hermanus, 10 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: Cape Town International Airport (CPT), 67 km.

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About Hawston

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

The spot faces SW (238°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (58°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 450 m out (1 in 46). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. 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). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually April, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Hermanus, 10 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: Cape Town International Airport (CPT), 67 km. Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots.

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

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From Chicago: about 27 h 15 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. 1 h 30 from the airport to Hawston.
Car hire · Discover CarsAd
Accommodation.
No town nearby
No stay checked for this site yet: Hermanus, 10 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: Cape Town International Airport (CPT), 67 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Hawston · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Hawston · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Hawston on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Hawston, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	0, too big	10 ft9 ssoft	1,366kJ	wind from the east-south-east, 5 knots	14°C
Mon 19Oct	0, too big	8 ft8 ssoft	706kJ	wind from the north-west, 5 knots	15°C
Tue 20Oct	13, poor	6 ft7 smushy	309kJ	wind from the north-north-east, 7 knots, offshore	15°C
Wed 21Oct	0, too big	9 ft9 smushy	1,242kJ	wind from the north-west, 18 knots	17°C
Thu 22Oct	0, too big	8 ft8 smushy	774kJ	wind from the west-north-west, 10 knots	18°C
Fri 23Oct	33, poor	6 ft9 ssoft	429kJ	wind from the east-south-east, 4 knots	18°C
Sat 24Oct	60, good	4 ft8 smushy	179kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 3 knots	17°C
Sun 25Oct	20, too small	3 ft7 smushy	57kJ	wind from the south-east, 11 knots	17°C
Mon 26Oct	32, poor	4 ft8 smushy	203kJ	wind from the east-south-east, 14 knots	17°C
Tue 27Oct	29, poor	3 ft5 smushy	53kJ	wind from the east, 11 knots, offshore	21°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 1h 30 by road. About 27h 15 door to door
Tue 20 Oct
Surf Hawston
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 6 ft at 7 s, offshore wind.
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
Surf Hawston
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 6 ft at 9 s, wind 4 kn (6 km/h).
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Hawston
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 4 ft at 8 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Travel home
Fly MDW to CPT, changing at ATL, then 1h 30 by road. About 27h 15 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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