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Praia de Cortegaça - Portugal
Cortegaça. Photo: Vitor Oliveira from Torres Vedras, PORTUGAL, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Cortegaça

Surf spot · Portugal

Is it worth the trip?

17Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Thu 5: 3 ft swell at 10 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 11 out of 100

Swell
1 ft12 ssoft
Energy
38kJ
Wind
ENE 9 kn
Temp
17°C

Wed 4 · 18 out of 100

Swell
2 ft11 ssoft
Energy
94kJ
Wind
ENE 7 kn
Temp
14°C

Thu 5 · 23 out of 100

Swell
3 ft10 ssoft
Energy
129kJ
Wind
SSW 5 kn
Temp
14°C

Fri 6 · 18 out of 100

Swell
2 ft9 ssoft
Energy
73kJ
Wind
ESE 3 kn
Temp
17°C

Sat 7 · 8 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
40kJ
Wind
SSE 14 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 6 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 smushy
Energy
57kJ
Wind
SSE 18 kn
Temp
19°C

Mon 9 · 21 out of 100

Swell
5 ft7 smushy
Energy
230kJ
Wind
SSE 16 kn
Temp
17°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 236, too small
  2. Tue 311, too small
  3. Wed 418, too small
  4. Thu 523, too small
  5. Fri 618, too small
  6. Sat 78, too small
  7. Sun 86, too small
  8. Mon 921, too small
  9. Tue 1046, fair

The spot in six facts

  • Faces Wtakes swell from the W
  • Offshore: Ewind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–8 ftof swell
  • Water 16 °C3/2 wetsuit
  • Best Jan, Sep, Nov2 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Cortegaça, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov36, too small4 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)292kJwind from the east-north-east, 4 knots, offshore15°C
Tue 3Nov11, too small1 ft12 ssoft3 ft at break (est.)38kJwind from the east-north-east, 9 knots, offshore17°C
Wed 4Nov18, too small2 ft11 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)94kJwind from the east-north-east, 7 knots, offshore14°C
Thu 5Nov23, too small3 ft10 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)129kJwind from the south-south-west, 5 knots14°C
Fri 6Nov18, too small2 ft9 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)73kJwind from the east-south-east, 3 knots, offshore17°C
Sat 7Nov8, too small3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.)40kJwind from the south-south-east, 14 knots18°C
Sun 8Nov6, too small3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.)57kJwind from the south-south-east, 18 knots19°C
Mon 9Nov21, too small5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.)230kJwind from the south-south-east, 16 knots17°C
Tue 10Nov46, fair7 ft8 smushy7 ft at break (est.)539kJwind from the south, 13 knots16°C

Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More

Tide

  • Mon 2 NovLow 01:55 −0.8 mHigh 08:24 +1.0 mLow 14:56 −0.9 mHigh 21:19 +0.7 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 03:20 −0.8 mHigh 09:45 +1.0 mLow 16:16 −1.0 mHigh 22:36 +0.8 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 04:38 −0.9 mHigh 10:57 +1.1 mLow 17:22 −1.1 mHigh 23:37 +1.0 m

Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of Cortegaça

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Cortegaça

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces W (276°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (96°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 2.3 km out (1 in 233). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 14°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 18°C in July, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually January, September and November, with about 2 good days in 7; in July, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Ovar, 9.6 km away (about 20 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots and 1 mountain bike area.

Water about 16°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,030–US$1,930 each

about US$1,030–US$1,930 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to OPO, estimated from distance and season, changing at JFK, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$449–US$925
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$100–US$174
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$181–US$301
Food7 days eating outabout US$201–US$375
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$94–US$154
Totalabout US$1,030–US$1,930

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 3 towns

Closest

Esmoriz

about 10 min by car · 5 places to stay

about US$67/nightcountry average

See 5 places to stay in Esmoriz · Booking.com

About Esmoriz its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$67 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 16h 50m

About 16h 50m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → OPO, changing at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), then 55 min by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.