Baixa da Viola, Portugal
No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Ribeira Grande, 13 km away, is the nearest town we list.
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About Baixa da Viola
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated. Facts: verified, surf details estimated.
The spot faces N (346°), so it takes swell from the N. The wind blows offshore from the S (166°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 18). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 16°C in March, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 24°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually August, with about 3 good days in 7; in January, February and March, about 0. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Ribeira Grande, 13 km away, is the nearest town we list.
Water about 22°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.
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From Chicago: about 15 h 10 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.
Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to PDL, changing at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).
See flights ORD → PDL · Skyscanner from about £335 returnAdGetting there. 50 min from the airport to Baixa da Viola.
Accommodation.
No town nearby
No stay checked for this site yet: Ribeira Grande, 13 km away, is the nearest town we list.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Baixa da Viola · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Baixa da Viola · GetYourGuideAd
Where it is
Baixa da Viola on Google Maps · Directions
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Forecast
Baixa da Viola does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
The score for intermediates, coloured as on the area pages:GoodFairPoorToo bigToo small
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 19Oct | 18, poor | 6 ft11 shollow | 658kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 9 knots | 18°C |
| Tue 20Oct | 36, fair | 4 ft7 smushy | 164kJ | wind from the north-east, 8 knots | 18°C |
| Wed 21Oct | 0, too big | 7 ft8 scrumbling | 550kJ | wind from the east, 9 knots | 19°C |
| Thu 22Oct | 24, poor | 5 ft9 scrumbling | 383kJ | wind from the north-west, 3 knots | 19°C |
| Fri 23Oct | 50, good | 5 ft9 scrumbling | 358kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 2 knots | 19°C |
| Sat 24Oct | 54, good | 5 ft10 shollow | 469kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-west, 2 knots, offshore | 20°C |
| Sun 25Oct | 57, good | 4 ft9 shollow | 182kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-west, 6 knots, offshore | 20°C |
| Mon 26Oct | 50, good | 4 ft7 smushy | 103kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 3 knots | 20°C |
| Tue 27Oct | 9, poor | 5 ft8 smushy | 281kJ | wind from the north-east, 9 knots | 18°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 Tue 20 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for intermediate surfers. Change dates
- Tue 20 OctTravel out
Fly ORD to PDL, changing at JFK, then 50 min by road. About 15h 10 door to door
- Wed 21 OctRest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.
- Thu 22 OctSurf Baixa da Viola
Best 18:00 to 21:00 local time: 5 ft at 9 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).
- Fri 23 OctSurf Baixa da Viola
Best 09:00 to 12:00 local time: 5 ft at 9 s, wind 2 kn (3 km/h).
- Sat 24 OctSurf Baixa da Viola
Best 18:00 to 21:00 local time: 5 ft at 10 s, offshore wind.
- Sun 25 OctSurf Baixa da Viola
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 9 s, offshore wind.
- Mon 26 OctTravel home
Fly ORD to PDL, changing at JFK, then 50 min by road. About 15h 10 door to door
Rough cost
About £665–£1,290 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book. No town nearby, so no stay is in it.
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to PDL, estimated from distance and season, changing at JFK, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | £335–£700 |
| To the UK airport | parking or the train, there and back | £35–£65 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | £75–£130 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | £150–£280 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about £85 to fly your own | £70–£115 |
| Total | £665–£1,290 |
Prices from public sources, checked in 2026: where they come from. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra.
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