Live · Cape Town wind

Which beach is sheltered right now?

Cape Town's wind rules the coast. Pick the wrong beach and the sand is in your sandwich. This tool reads live wind data and tells you where to go today.

NESW
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Loading live conditions…
Checking OpenWeatherMap for current wind at Sea Point.
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Updated
Live data unavailable. Use the compass below to pick a direction and see sheltered beaches.

Today's beach call

Based on the current wind reading, here is where to go and where to skip.

✓Best today

~Acceptable

✕Avoid

Peninsula at a glance

Each circle is a beach, coloured by today's shelter rating. Tap a beach for detail.

Atlantic Ocean Table Bay False Bay Table Mtn Cape of Good Hope Cape Point

Select a beach on the map to see today's read.

Next 12 hours

Wind picks up in the afternoon on most summer days. Plan your beach morning around it.

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The locals' shortcut

Three rules that cover most days in Cape Town.

Summer wind
South-easter howls. Go False Bay: Muizenberg, Kalk Bay, Fish Hoek.
Winter wind
North-wester rolls in. Atlantic Seaboard gets the calm: Camps Bay, Clifton, Llandudno.
Calm morning
Book the Table Mountain cable car immediately. Those hours are rare.

Pick a direction, get the answer

The live data above does this automatically. Use the compass to explore any direction.

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Sheltered beaches:

    South-easter (Cape Doctor)

    Spring and summer. Table Mountain and Lion's Head block it from False Bay, which stays calm while the Atlantic Seaboard gets hammered.

    North-wester

    Winter's cold-front wind. Reverses the pattern: Atlantic beaches calm, False Bay rough. Usually arrives with rain.

    Berg wind

    Hot and dry, blowing off the interior. Arrives a day or two ahead of a cold front. Raises fire risk sharply.

    Black south-easter

    South-easter with cloud and drizzle piling over Table Mountain. Dark, damp, and uniquely Cape Town.