Staying Home Sucks, home
Vista parcial da Vila da Calheta, ilha de São Jorge, Açores, Portugal
Calheta, the nearest town, 6 km away. Photo: José Luís Ávila Silveira/Pedro Noronha e Costa, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons

Faja dos Cubres

Surf spot · Portugal

Is it worth the trip?

40Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Wed 4: 4 ft swell at 8 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 30 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 shollow
Energy
66kJ
Wind
ESE 10 kn
Temp
19°C

Tue 3 · 38 out of 100

Swell
4 ft9 shollow
Energy
204kJ
Wind
SSW 4 kn
Temp
18°C

Wed 4 · 69 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 shollow
Energy
188kJ
Wind
S 5 kn
Temp
17°C

Thu 5 · 29 out of 100

Swell
3 ft7 shollow
Energy
73kJ
Wind
NNW 5 kn
Temp
17°C

Fri 6 · 37 out of 100

Swell
3 ft7 shollow
Energy
60kJ
Wind
SSW 8 kn
Temp
17°C

Sat 7 · 33 out of 100

Swell
2 ft8 shollow
Energy
60kJ
Wind
S 5 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 7 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 smushy
Energy
55kJ
Wind
N 20 kn
Temp
18°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 10, too big
  2. Mon 230, too small
  3. Tue 338, poor
  4. Wed 469, good
  5. Thu 529, too small
  6. Fri 637, too small
  7. Sat 733, too small
  8. Sun 87, too small
  9. Mon 914, poor
  10. Tue 1030, poor

The spot in six facts

  • Faces NEtakes swell from the NE
  • Offshore: SWwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 4–14 ftof swell
  • Water 19 °C2 mm shorty
  • Best in Mar1 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Faja dos Cubres, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov0, too big7 ft8 smushy9 ft at break (est.)609kJwind from the east-north-east, 20 knots20°C
Mon 2Nov30, too small3 ft6 shollow4 ft at break (est.)66kJwind from the east-south-east, 10 knots19°C
Tue 3Nov38, poor4 ft9 shollow2 ft at break (est.)204kJwind from the south-south-west, 4 knots, offshore18°C
Wed 4Nov69, good4 ft8 shollow4 ft at break (est.)188kJwind from the south, 5 knots, offshore17°C
Thu 5Nov29, too small3 ft7 shollow4 ft at break (est.)73kJwind from the north-north-west, 5 knots17°C
Fri 6Nov37, too small3 ft7 shollow4 ft at break (est.)60kJwind from the south-south-west, 8 knots, offshore17°C
Sat 7Nov33, too small2 ft8 shollow4 ft at break (est.)60kJwind from the south, 5 knots, offshore18°C
Sun 8Nov7, too small3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)55kJwind from the north, 20 knots18°C
Mon 9Nov14, poor4 ft8 smushy6 ft at break (est.)225kJwind from the north, 24 knots17°C
Tue 10Nov30, poor5 ft7 shollow6 ft at break (est.)175kJwind from the north-west, 8 knots17°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

  • Sun 1 NovHigh 05:56 +0.5 mLow 12:28 −0.4 mHigh 18:38 +0.3 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 00:46 −0.4 mHigh 07:17 +0.5 mLow 13:54 −0.4 mHigh 20:05 +0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 02:11 −0.4 mHigh 08:35 +0.5 mLow 15:10 −0.5 mHigh 21:19 +0.4 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 and its town

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

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

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

More surf near here

2 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Faja dos Cubres

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

The spot faces NE (31°), so it takes swell from the NE. The wind blows offshore from the SW (211°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 4–14 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 10). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 16°C in February, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 24°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually March, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Calheta, 6 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.

Water about 19°C: 2 mm shorty. 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$945–US$1,770 each

about US$945–US$1,770 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 PIX, estimated from distance and season, changing at LIS, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$368–US$764
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$945–US$1,770

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

Where to stay: 2 towns

Closest

Ribeira Seca

8 min by car

about US$67/nightcountry average

See places to stay in Ribeira Seca · Booking.com

About Ribeira Seca 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 19h

About 19h door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → PIX, changing at Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS), then 1h 05m by road

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