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Praia do Farol - lado poente, Portugal

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

Also within 20 km of Olhão

Watch this spot We email you when Praia do Farol - lado poente is worth the trip.

Praia da Ilha do Farol - Portugal
Praia do Farol - lado poente. Photo: Vitor Oliveira from Torres Vedras, PORTUGAL, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

About Praia do Farol - lado poente

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

The spot faces SE (133°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (313°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 2.2 km out (1 in 217). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 16°C in February, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 21°C in July, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For beginners the best months are usually January, February and December, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Olhão, 6.3 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 21°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 16 h 35 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

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

    See flights ORD → FAO · Skyscanner from about £410 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 30 min from the airport to Praia do Farol - lado poente.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in OlhãoAd

    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 Olhão · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Olhão · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Praia do Farol - lado poente on Google Maps · Directions

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Forecast

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

DayScoreSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct182 ft7 smushy38kJ20°C
Mon 19Oct111 ft8 smushy8kJ20°C
Tue 20Oct251 ft12 ssoft52kJ20°C
Wed 21Oct221 ft10 ssoft32kJ19°C
Thu 22Oct191 ft7 smushy17kJ19°C
Fri 23Oct141 ft7 smushy11kJ19°C
Sat 24Oct212 ft5 smushy9kJ18°C
Sun 25Oct121 ft4 smushy3kJ19°C
Mon 26Oct71 ft6 smushy5kJ20°C
Tue 27Oct191 ft7 smushy19kJ20°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 beginner surfers. Change dates

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly ORD to FAO, changing at LIS, then 30 min by road. About 16h 35 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf Ilha Deserta

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 2 ft at 12 s, wind 6 kn (12 km/h).

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Surf Ilha Deserta

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 1 ft at 10 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Ilha Deserta

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 2 ft at 7 s, wind 2 kn (4 km/h).

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 34 of 80.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf Ilha Deserta

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 2 ft at 5 s, wind 2 kn (3 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly ORD to FAO, changing at LIS, then 30 min by road. About 16h 35 door to door

The plan picks the best of 4 spots near Olhão each day: Ilha da culatra, Ilha Deserta, Ilha do farol, Praia do Farol - lado poente.

The trip from Olhão, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £845–£1,605 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 FAO, estimated from distance and season, changing at LIS, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£410–£850
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£20–£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£845–£1,605

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

Places to eat near Olhão

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.