Surfing
Surfing
The 9 best waves in Portugal
Boasting an abundance of beach breaks, a plethora of points and some of the tallest walls of water on the planet, Portugal has become one of the world's surfing hotspots. These are its headline acts.
Since 2010, when the Rip Curl Pro Search first brought the WSL Championship Tour to Portugal, surfing has become a huge part of the local landscape.
Although the Search was traditionally a one-time-only roaming event, after Kelly Slater beat Jordy Smith in the final on a day where Supertubos emphatically lived up to its name, the contest proved so popular that it didn't take much convincing for it to be added to the regular roster. Supertubos has been a fixture on the CT schedule ever since.
It makes sense that in one of the world's most storied seafaring nations – take a bow Vasco da Gama, Ferdinand Magellan et al. – surfing is now considered second only to football on the country's sporting landscape. Ironically, the Portuguese football team is nicknamed Os Navegadores (The Navigators).
13 min
Kanoa is back for 2021
Japanese-American surfer Kanoa Igarashi chases his world title dreams on the 2021 WSL Championship Tour.
There's beach breaks, reef breaks, slabs. It's good, it's fresh! I'm in paradise and I never want to leave.
As well as the stunning coastline, mild climate and abundance of swell, another big advantage for traveling surfers is that Portugal is a relatively small country, so visiting surfers can sample a huge variety of waves within a few hours drive of the nation's capital and biggest city, Lisbon.
Teresa Bonvalot
© Hugo Silva/Red Bull Content Pool
Portugal is incredibly varied, yet it still surprises me!
From flawless beach breaks to the biggest waves in the world and all points in between, there are waves for surfers of all abilities in Portugal, and no shortage of reasons why international surfers like Igarashi and Leonardo Fioravanti choose to fly into Lisbon and live on the west coast whenever they have time off. Here's our pick of the country's waves, from north to south.
01
Praia do Norte - Nazaré
Standing room only at Nazaré
© André Botelho
If you surf, or even if you don't, you know Nazaré, the Portuguese fishing village 120km north of Lisbon that lit up the global radar when big wave surfers started breaking big wave records at Praia do Norte in the mid-2000s. While Nazaré quickly became Europe's most famous wave thanks to its big days, what people might not know is that it is an incredible beach break on its not-so-big days too.
The Nazaré Canyon funnels Atlantic swells of all sizes into Praia do Norte and while the waves on smaller days might not break records they are more than capable of breaking boards and spirits, such is the ferocity of the shallow, sand-bottomed tubes.
3 min
Nazaré in numbers
A staggering string of stats shows just how powerful the waves get at Nazaré, Portugal.
Back on land the once-sleepy fishing village has more to offer than waves alone. The markets, squares and beautiful town are well worth a visit, and you'll find it much easier to park around surfing's most famous lighthouse, the "Forte de São Miguel Arcanjo", when there aren't 50ft waves blasting the cliffs it perches atop.
02
Supertubos - Peniche
Mick Fanning, perfectly poised in Peniche
© Trevor Moran
"Peniche is sick, it has some of my favourite waves in the world," Kanoa Igarashi told the No Contest crew, in 2018. Igarashi is not alone in his love for the historic town, it is a magnet to surfers of all abilities from all corners of the planet.
15 min
No Contest 2018 - Europe
Our latest instalment of No Contest is a deep dive into Western Europe's incredible surfing scene, filmed right as the World Surf League rolls in to the continent.
Just 90km north of Lisbon the town of Peniche sits on a tiny peninsula, connected to the mainland by a narrow causeway. Thanks to its multi-faceted geography a shrewd surfer can find surfable waves no matter the wind or swell direction, whether that's at Baleal, Lagide, Molhe Leste, or Supertubos to name a few.
Famous for its sizzling sandbar barrels, Supertubos is one of the best waves in the country, well worthy of its "European Pipeline" moniker. Supertubos impresses with its consistency and can be surfed year round, though the winter months from October to March are when it really comes into its own.
2 min
Watch the best sessions from Supertubos
Tiago Pires leads the pack at Portugal's best beachbreak barrels.
The MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal was originally held in October, but more recently has been moved to the depths of winter in March, not that it seems to bother the huge crowd on the beach every year.
03
Coxos - Ericeira
Kanoa Igarashi lining up a huge Portuguese wall
© Ricardo Bravo
"Twenty-five minutes to Lisbon, 45 minutes to Peniche, an hour to Nazaré," says Kanoa Igarashi, "I love Ericeira!"
That someone like Igarashi, who travels the world year-round chasing waves, chooses to base himself in Ericeira shows how good the conditions are around this bustling corner of coast.
"The number of waves in Ericeira is hard to believe," says German star Leon Glatzer, of the town that boasts over a dozen waves in a 10km stretch of coast, "It's like a cold Indonesia."
Leon training in Teahupo'o, Tahiti.
© Domenic Mosqueira / Red Bull Content Pool
For me, Portugal is the country with the best waves in Europe.
"My absolute favourite wave in Portugal is Coxos," says Glatzer. "The wave is longer than you think and on good days it's just perfect!"
Stretched out steep, powerful tube sections and plenty of room for big turns, the rifling point break has everything good surfers dream of. "It's like a mutated wave pool," Glatzer concludes.
04
Ribeira D'Ilhas - Ericeira
Perhaps the most popular spot in Ericeira is the pointbreak of Ribeira D'Ilhas, home to the WSL Challenger Series' annual EDP Ericeira Pro. Flanked by steep cliffs, offering protection from both northerly and southerly winds, long righthanders break into one of the most beautiful and well-equipped bays in surfing, on even the smallest of NW swells.
3 min
Red Bull Rivals Ribeira D'Ihlas - Action Clip
Action clip from the Red Bull Rivals Final in Ribeira D'Ilhas.
Thanks to its consistency and reliability in most winds and across all tides Ribeira D'Ilhas can get very busy, but the length of the wave spreads the pack, and sitting further down the line can see keen surfers rewarded with relatively empty waves.
Add easy parking, excellent facilities, a surf school and a beachfront café to the consistent waves and you might have designed the perfect surfing beach. There's always something to do in Ribeira, even if it's just a coffee with a beautiful view.
05
Foz do Lizandro - Ericeira
"One of my favourite beaches in Ericeira is Praia da Foz do Lizandro," says Leon Glatzer. The beach sits at the opening of the Rio Lizandro, and the river running out helps to maintain the sandbanks that make Lizandro so special.
"The conditions are best on south and west swells and from low to mid tide," says Glatzer. The beach can hold waves up to six-feet, at which point only the strong survive, as the current massively ramps up. Also recommended are the two reef breaks at the north end of the beach: Lage dos Tubos and Limipicos. As is often the case when surfing in Portugal, being faced with too many options can often be your biggest dilemma.
06
Praia de Carcavelos - Lisbon
On its day Lisbon's best beach break can deliver world class waves in front of a spectacular backdrop, with "Forte de São Julião da Barra" looming imperiously over the waves of Carcavelos.
Frustratingly for travelling surfers, as a result of its proximity to the city Carcavelos is often painfully overcrowded with surfers of all abilities on an average day, and completely gridlocked with local rippers when it turns on. If, however, you want to get terrifcally tubed in front of a castle, it might be a price worth paying.
07
Costa da Caparica - Lisbon
On the southside of Lisbon's Tagus River lies the Costa da Caparica, a 20km stretch of endless beach breaks that gets less crowded the further you get from the capital.
"In my eyes Caparica is the best spot to learn to surf in Portugal," says local legend Hugo Pinheiro, "and even to have a good time as an experienced surfer."
With the river ensuring constant sand flow and a string of jetties and breakwalls creating constant banks, surfers who make a little effort will be regularly rewarded with high quality, empty waves.
Like a lot of the Portuguese coast, the best time of year for surfing in Caparica is in the spring and the autumn, when the chances of winter swells and summer conditions colliding are at the highest.
08
Arrifana - Aljezur
Three hours south of Lisbon lies the holiday town of Arrifana, home to not only a thriving fishing industry but also the famed Arrifana Sunset Festival, which has played host to many a renowned musical act from around the world.
From Portugal to the world: top surfer Teresa Bonvalot in Tahiti.
© Domenic Mosqueira / Red Bull Content Pool
Portugal's south is beautiful! It's warm and blessed with waves on both the west and south coasts.
Surfers of all abilities get their money's worth in Arrifana. While the surrounding cliffs offers protection from strong winds, the long bay still hosts a variety of waves, from pointbreaks in the north to myriad beachbreak peaks in the middle and south. Winter sees bigger swells serving up more powerful waves and stronger currents, and naturally these conditions are best left to the experts.
09
Tonel - Sagres
The peninsula of Sagres hosts a number of great beach breaks with different orientations, and naturally this means a variety of waves can be surfed in different conditions. Praia Tonel, on the west coast of Sagres, is one of the best. As long as the sandbanks are in good shape this bay can deliver really crisp, hollow waves on a low to mid-tide.
On good days, when Tonel draws a crowd, clued in surfers can take comfort in knowing that the nearby beachbreaks of Beliche and Zavial will often get just as good, while never getting half as crowded.
