When to surf · Lisbon and Cascais
When to surf in Carcavelos
Carcavelos is best October to March, when swell reaches the bay and mornings can be clean before the wind. Summer is small and blown out by the afternoon nortada, so it is a dawn-only wave then. The Capítulo Perfeito tube contest waits on a swell somewhere between January and March.
Right now: October
Prime autumn and the heart of contest season: the WSL Championship Tour at Supertubos in Peniche and the Challenger Series at Ribeira d'Ilhas in Ericeira both run this month. Solid swell, manageable crowds, water still wearable in a 3/2 early on.
Month by month
- JanuaryWinter
- Deep winter. Big, cold and heavy on the west coast, prime Nazaré season, and the Capítulo Perfeito tube contest waits on a swell at Carcavelos. For experienced surfers, or beginners sticking to sheltered bays on the small days.
- FebruaryWinter
- Still full winter, still the biggest surf. Storms roll through in sequence. The Algarve's south coast is the fallback when the west is closed out, and the Nazaré big-wave window is open.
- MarchSpring
- The swell starts to settle but the water is at its coldest of the year. Quiet line-ups and low-season prices. A good month for improvers who want size without the winter chaos.
- AprilSpring
- Mid-spring. Swell dropping to a friendly size, water slowly warming, and the Easter weekend brings the first national contest of the year to Figueira da Foz. Still quiet on the beaches.
- MaySpring
- Late spring. Smaller, cleaner conditions and water finally past the winter low. One of the best-value months: warm enough, uncrowded, and the schools are not yet at summer capacity.
- JuneSummer
- Summer proper begins. Small, gentle surf, warming water, and the nortada starting to blow in the afternoons. Learner season is on; book camps and lessons ahead.
- JulySummer
- Peak summer. Smallest surf of the year, warmest water, busiest beaches, and the nortada blowing hard by early afternoon most days. Surf at dawn, learn on the sheltered bays, or go to the Algarve. Camps are fully booked.
- AugustSummer
- Still peak season and still small, but the first autumn pulses sometimes arrive late in the month. Water is at its warmest. The Sintra bodyboard world-tour event runs at Praia Grande in early September, on the shoulder of the month.
- SeptemberAutumn
- The month a lot of people rate as the best of the year. Consistent swell returns, the water is still warm, the wind drops and the crowds thin. Everything the coast does well lines up at once.
- OctoberAutumn
- Prime autumn and the heart of contest season: the WSL Championship Tour at Supertubos in Peniche and the Challenger Series at Ribeira d'Ilhas in Ericeira both run this month. Solid swell, manageable crowds, water still wearable in a 3/2 early on.
- NovemberAutumn
- Autumn tips toward winter. Swell gets bigger and more frequent, water cools toward a 4/3, and the national Liga MEO circuit closes at Supertubos. Fewer daylight hours but often the cleanest, emptiest waves of the year for those who commit.
- DecemberWinter
- Winter sets in. Big, cold and serious on the west coast, with the Nazaré big-wave window open and called on the right forecast. Short days, low crowds. Beginners should stick to sheltered spots and small days or head south.
Spots here
Carcavelos
Carcavelos
Lisbon's home beach and the busiest wave in Portugal on a good day. A wide, forgiving beach break one stop from the city on the Cascais train line, with a fort at one end and peaks spread along the sand.
All levelsAutumn to springParede
A right-hand rock reef on the Cascais train line that sleeps most of the year and wakes up on a big west or south-west swell. A local's wave for experienced surfers, not a learner's beach.
Advanced surfersAutumn and winter, on the bigger swellsThe whole coast When to surf in Cascais When to surf in Costa da Caparica