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Porto da cruz, Portugal

Stay in Porto da Cruz: see the trip Its beds, the way there and every spot near it.

Also within 20 km of Porto da Cruz

Watch this spot We email you when Porto da cruz is worth the trip.

A ver a Praia da Maiata - panoramio
Near Porto da cruz. Photo: Jorge Daniel Guimarã…, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

About Porto da cruz

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

The spot faces NE (41°), so it takes swell from the NE. The wind blows offshore from the SW (221°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 3–13 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very steeply: 10 m deep about 50 m out (1 in 6). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 18°C in March, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 24°C in September, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually April, May, June and September, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Porto da Cruz, 0.8 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 23°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 17 h 35 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to FNC, changing at Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS). About 4 flights a week that month.

    See flights ORD → FNC · Skyscanner from about £385 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 30 min from the airport to Porto da cruz.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in Porto da CruzAd

    Typical prices for a double room that month, not a quote.

    Room photos are examples, not these hotels (credits).

    See all places to stay 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.

    Surf lessons in Porto da Cruz · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Porto da Cruz · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Porto da cruz on Google Maps · Directions

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Live webcam

LIVE CAM PRAIA DA ALAGOA BEACH PORTO DA CRUZ

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LIVE CAM PORTO DA CRUZ SWIMMING POOLS

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Forecast

The score for intermediates, coloured as on the area pages:GoodFairPoorToo bigToo small

DayScoreSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct164 ft10 smushy255kJ19°C
Mon 19Oct08 ft8 shollow770kJ18°C
Tue 20Oct466 ft8 shollow327kJ19°C
Wed 21Oct293 ft7 shollow86kJ18°C
Thu 22Oct444 ft9 shollow296kJ19°C
Fri 23Oct365 ft9 shollow451kJ18°C
Sat 24Oct365 ft9 shollow443kJ18°C
Sun 25Oct395 ft10 shollow361kJ18°C
Mon 26Oct524 ft9 shollow264kJ19°C
Tue 27Oct564 ft10 shollow281kJ19°C

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 Mon 19 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for intermediate surfers. Change dates

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly ORD to FNC, changing at LIS, then 30 min by road. About 17h 35 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf Porto da cruz

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 6 ft at 8 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 33 of 80.

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Porto da cruz

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 4 ft at 9 s, wind 5 kn (9 km/h).

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Surf Porto da cruz

    Best 13:00 to 16:00 local time: 5 ft at 9 s, wind 7 kn (13 km/h).

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf Porto da cruz

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 5 ft at 9 s, wind 5 kn (9 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly ORD to FNC, changing at LIS, then 30 min by road. About 17h 35 door to door

The trip from Porto da Cruz, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £815–£1,560 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book.

WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to FNC, estimated from distance and season, changing at LIS, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£385–£805
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£160–£265
Food7 days eating out£150–£280
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about £85 to fly your own£70–£115
Total£815–£1,560

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

Places to eat near Porto da Cruz

  • Restaurante Praça do EngenhoSeafood · 0.1 km from the centre
  • A PipaPortuguese · 0.1 km from the centre
  • Penha D'AveBrazilian · 0.1 km from the centre
  • Baia do Bago0.1 km from the centre
  • Praça Velha0.1 km from the centre
  • Restaurante Praia da Alagoa0.2 km from the centre

Within 2 km of the town centre, listed by how complete the listing is (website, opening hours, cuisine) and whether two sources name it. Not a judgement of the food: we have no reviews. Listings © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) and Overture Maps Foundation. Credits

Book the trip

Getting thereAd

Flights · Skyscanner Car hire · Discover Cars

Where to stayAd

Places to stay · Booking.com

In the waterAd

Surf lessons · GetYourGuide Board and wetsuit hire · GetYourGuide

Links marked Ad may pay us a small commission if you book. You pay the same price, and it never changes a score.