Back to results

Shelly Beach, South Africa

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

Also within 20 km of Shelly Beach

All 16 on Shelly Beach's map

Watch this spot We email you when Shelly Beach is worth the trip.

About Shelly Beach

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

The spot faces SE (118°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (298°). 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 600 m out (1 in 58). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 22°C in July, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 27°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually June, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Shelly Beach, 0.2 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots.

Water about 22°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

Saved: this link opens the same trip

Email itRemind me to book

The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.

Book the trip

From Chicago: about 30 h 55 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to MGH, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and O.R. Tambo International Airport (JNB).

    See flights MDW → MGH · Skyscanner from about £800 returnAd
  2. Getting there. 30 min from the airport to Shelly Beach.

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in Shelly BeachAd

    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 Shelly Beach (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 experts, coloured as on the area pages:GoodFairPoorToo bigToo small

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Shelly Beach, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 19Oct9, too small4 ft10 ssoft327kJwind from the south-west, 16 knots22°C
Tue 20Oct34, poor7 ft7 smushy506kJwind from the north-east, 8 knots21°C
Wed 21Oct18, too small4 ft8 ssoft169kJwind from the north-north-east, 7 knots23°C
Thu 22Oct32, poor8 ft9 ssoft882kJwind from the south-south-west, 7 knots22°C
Fri 23Oct22, poor7 ft9 ssoft623kJwind from the south-west, 14 knots22°C
Sat 24Oct19, poor6 ft9 ssoft557kJwind from the north-north-east, 13 knots23°C
Sun 25Oct13, too small5 ft6 smushy125kJwind from the south-south-west, 11 knots23°C
Mon 26Oct7, too small2 ft7 smushy46kJwind from the south-south-west, 11 knots22°C
Tue 27Oct4, too small3 ft8 smushy84kJwind from the north-east, 21 knots22°C
Wed 28Oct0, poor––––

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 today, leaving from Chicago, for expert surfers. Change dates

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly MDW to MGH, changing at ATL and JNB, then 30 min by road. About 30h 55 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf Shelly Beach

    Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 7 ft at 7 s, wind 8 kn (16 km/h).

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 4 ft at best.

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Shelly Beach

    Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 8 ft at 9 s, wind 7 kn (12 km/h).

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 35 of 80.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf Shelly Beach

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 6 ft at 9 s, wind 13 kn (23 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly MDW to MGH, changing at ATL and JNB, then 30 min by road. About 30h 55 door to door

The trip from Shelly Beach, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £1,125–£2,235 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 MGH, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and JNB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£800–£1,665
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£15–£30
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–£2,235

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

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.