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Praia do Mindelo - Portugal
Pinhal. Photo: Vitor Oliveira from Torres Vedras, PORTUGAL, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Pinhal

Surf spot · Portugal

Is it worth the trip?

48Fair out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Mon 2: 4 ft swell at 9 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 79 out of 100

Swell
4 ft9 scrumbling
Energy
213kJ
Wind
E 8 kn
Temp
18°C

Tue 3 · 24 out of 100

Swell
1 ft14 shollow
Energy
52kJ
Wind
E 10 kn
Temp
17°C

Wed 4 · 37 out of 100

Swell
2 ft11 shollow
Energy
101kJ
Wind
ENE 6 kn
Temp
15°C

Thu 5 · 55 out of 100

Swell
3 ft10 shollow
Energy
122kJ
Wind
W 3 kn
Temp
14°C

Fri 6 · 43 out of 100

Swell
2 ft9 shollow
Energy
75kJ
Wind
ESE 3 kn
Temp
15°C

Sat 7 · 25 out of 100

Swell
2 ft9 shollow
Energy
37kJ
Wind
E 6 kn
Temp
16°C

Sun 8 · 27 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
36kJ
Wind
SSE 14 kn
Temp
17°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 117, poor
  2. Mon 279, good
  3. Tue 324, too small
  4. Wed 437, too small
  5. Thu 555, fair
  6. Fri 643, too small
  7. Sat 725, too small
  8. Sun 827, too small
  9. Mon 925, poor
  10. Tue 1051, 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 in Jan2 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

Pinhal does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Pinhal, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov17, poor5 ft10 smushy7 ft at break (est.)498kJwind from the north-west, 6 knots19°C
Mon 2Nov79, good4 ft9 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)213kJwind from the east, 8 knots, offshore18°C
Tue 3Nov24, too small1 ft14 shollow3 ft at break (est.)52kJwind from the east, 10 knots, offshore17°C
Wed 4Nov37, too small2 ft11 shollow4 ft at break (est.)101kJwind from the east-north-east, 6 knots, offshore15°C
Thu 5Nov55, fair3 ft10 shollow4 ft at break (est.)122kJwind from the west, 3 knots14°C
Fri 6Nov43, too small2 ft9 shollow3 ft at break (est.)75kJwind from the east-south-east, 3 knots15°C
Sat 7Nov25, too small2 ft9 shollow2 ft at break (est.)37kJwind from the east, 6 knots, offshore16°C
Sun 8Nov27, too small3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.)36kJwind from the south-south-east, 14 knots17°C
Mon 9Nov25, poor5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.)237kJwind from the south, 15 knots17°C
Tue 10Nov51, fair5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.)263kJwind from the south-south-east, 9 knots18°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 NovLow 00:42 −0.9 mHigh 07:07 +1.1 mLow 13:35 −1.0 mHigh 19:57 +0.8 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 01:57 −0.8 mHigh 08:26 +1.0 mLow 14:59 −0.9 mHigh 21:22 +0.7 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 03:22 −0.8 mHigh 09:47 +1.0 mLow 16:18 −1.0 mHigh 22:38 +0.8 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 beginners: 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.

Photos of Pinhal

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Pinhal

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

The spot faces W (257°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (77°). 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 moderately: 10 m deep about 250 m out (1 in 25). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 14°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 17°C in June, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually January, with about 2 good days in 7; in July, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Vila do Conde, 5.6 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.

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$958–US$1,810 each

about US$958–US$1,810 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$33–US$54
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$958–US$1,810

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

Mindelo Porto

4 min by car · 1 place to stay

about US$67/nightcountry average

See 1 place to stay in Mindelo Porto · Booking.com

About Mindelo Porto 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 30m

About 16h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → OPO, changing at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), then 35 min by road

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