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?

19Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Thu 5: too small (3 ft swell at 8 s), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 17 out of 100

Swell
3 ft9 shollow
Energy
163kJ
Wind
SE 5 kn
Temp
18°C

Wed 4 · 20 out of 100

Swell
4 ft9 shollow
Energy
175kJ
Wind
ESE 7 kn
Temp
18°C

Thu 5 · 24 out of 100

Swell
3 ft8 shollow
Energy
112kJ
Wind
WSW 7 kn
Temp
19°C

Fri 6 · 18 out of 100

Swell
2 ft7 shollow
Energy
43kJ
Wind
SSW 5 kn
Temp
18°C

Sat 7 · 8 out of 100

Swell
2 ft7 shollow
Energy
35kJ
Wind
WNW 9 kn
Temp
14°C

Sun 8 · 5 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 shollow
Energy
46kJ
Wind
WNW 12 kn
Temp
18°C

Mon 9 · 22 out of 100

Swell
8 ft10 smushy
Energy
1,172kJ
Wind
NNW 25 kn
Temp
17°C

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 220, too small
  2. Tue 317, too small
  3. Wed 420, too small
  4. Thu 524, too small
  5. Fri 618, too small
  6. Sat 78, too small
  7. Sun 85, too small
  8. Mon 922, poor
  9. Tue 1058, fair

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
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Faja dos Cubres, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov20, too small4 ft6 shollow5 ft at break (est.)98kJwind from the east-south-east, 11 knots19°C
Tue 3Nov17, too small3 ft9 shollow2 ft at break (est.)163kJwind from the south-east, 5 knots18°C
Wed 4Nov20, too small4 ft9 shollow3 ft at break (est.)175kJwind from the east-south-east, 7 knots18°C
Thu 5Nov24, too small3 ft8 shollow4 ft at break (est.)112kJwind from the west-south-west, 7 knots, offshore19°C
Fri 6Nov18, too small2 ft7 shollow3 ft at break (est.)43kJwind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore18°C
Sat 7Nov8, too small2 ft7 shollow3 ft at break (est.)35kJwind from the west-north-west, 9 knots14°C
Sun 8Nov5, too small3 ft5 shollow1 ft at break (est.)46kJwind from the west-north-west, 12 knots18°C
Mon 9Nov22, poor8 ft10 smushy11 ft at break (est.)1,172kJwind from the north-north-west, 25 knots17°C
Tue 10Nov58, fair6 ft8 shollow8 ft at break (est.)442kJwind from the west-south-west, 4 knots, offshore17°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 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
  • Wed 4 NovLow 03:23 −0.4 mHigh 09:41 +0.6 mLow 16:11 −0.5 mHigh 22:18 +0.5 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 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.

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

about 10 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.