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Boskraal Strand 79.5

#1261 of 5756 surf spots in the world · 🇿🇦 South Africa · Western Cape · near Vanhynsdorp

Works almost every day, no off season, thick rubber.

Works all yearRemoteAdvanced
Surf score79.5 /100
Surfable days99% of the year
Clean days41% groundswell + friendly wind
Groundswell76% period 11 s+
Typical size1.9 m 6.3 ft median
Water14°C a 4/3 with boots

Best time to surf Boskraal Strand

The best time to surf Boskraal Strand is May, June, July. The season runs Mar to Aug. In June the water sits around 13°C, so pack a 4/3 with boots, and the typical wave is 2.1 m. The nearest airport is CPT (275 km) and the nearest town is Vanhynsdorp (63 km).

MonthSurfableCleanSizeWaterSuit
Jan100%16%1.9 m15°C4/3
Feb100%26%1.7 m16°C3/2
Mar100%47%1.6 m16°C4/3
Apr100%57%1.8 m14°C4/3
May100%61%1.9 m14°C4/3
Jun94%67%2.1 m13°C4/3
Jul97%67%2.3 m13°C5/4
Aug100%54%2.2 m12°C5/4
Sep100%35%2.0 m12°C5/4
Oct100%30%1.9 m13°C4/3
Nov100%16%1.8 m13°C4/3
Dec100%29%1.8 m15°C4/3

What is under Boskraal Strand

Eight kilometres out along its swell window the sea floor drops to 72 m, shoaling steadily over the last kilometres. Alongside the bank the survey finds a channel, 102 m against 72 m, deep enough to bend swell onto one peak instead of spreading it along the beach.

Depth 8 km out72 m
Depth 4 km out26 m
Channel beside it102 m

Measured, not estimated: NOAA ETOPO 2022 global relief at 15 arc-seconds, about 460 m per cell, sampled along this spot’s own swell window. At that scale the survey sees passes and channels; it cannot see a reef ledge, so nothing here is said about how the wave breaks.

Why 79.5

Seven parts, each normalised 0 to 1 and multiplied by its weight; the sum is scaled so the best spot in the world scores 100. Wave quality and what the spot does on its best days carry more than half of it, which is what separates this from a ranking of where the water is warm.

Wave quality 34.7%
19.5
Best days 22.4%
15.1
Clean days 18.4%
18.4
Consistency 10.2%
10.2
Season spread 4.1%
4.1
Water comfort 6.1%
0.4
Access 4.1%
1.1

The detail

Faces 230° with 50% open water around it. Friendly morning wind 54% of days. Mean peak period 12.0 s. Days over 3 m: 6%. On its best tenth of days it reaches 2.8 m, with a peak period of 14 s. Mellow days (0.4 to 1.2 m): 7%. Months that work: 12 of 12. Coordinates -31.536, 18.073 (OpenStreetMap).

What it costs to be here

Living here
€858/ month
typically €755 – €962
Rent, one bedroom€450
Groceries€178
Eating out€102
Getting around€60
Phone + internet€64
Renting by the month, cooking most days, local transport.
One month here
€1,670/ month
typically €1,470 – €1,870
Somewhere to stay€986
Eating out€353
Car, transfers, fuel€225
Data + extras€106
Short stays, eating out, a car or transfers.
48% cheaper if you live here instead of visiting

Remote spot, so the local estimate is 15% below the country average. Estimate: World Bank PPP price level for South Africa (2025, United States = 1.00) applied to a fixed surfer basket, then adjusted for how remote the spot is. Your own number moves with the season and how you live.

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Spots nearby

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