Staying Home Sucks, home
Madeira Praia Formosa Cliff
Pizo. Photo: TeWeBs, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Pizo

Surf spot · Portugal

Is it worth the trip?

40Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Sat 7: 4 ft swell at 5 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 52 out of 100

Swell
4 ft10 shollow
Energy
260kJ
Wind
ESE 2 kn
Temp
20°C

Tue 3 · 19 out of 100

Swell
2 ft9 shollow
Energy
68kJ
Wind
S 2 kn
Temp
18°C

Wed 4 · 12 out of 100

Swell
1 ft12 shollow
Energy
27kJ
Wind
SSW 1 kn
Temp
19°C

Thu 5 · 21 out of 100

Swell
2 ft10 shollow
Energy
101kJ
Wind
NNE 0 kn
Temp
19°C

Fri 6 · 57 out of 100

Swell
4 ft4 smushy
Energy
48kJ
Wind
N 1 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 59 out of 100

Swell
4 ft5 smushy
Energy
62kJ
Wind
SSW 3 kn
Temp
18°C

Sun 8 · 12 out of 100

Swell
5 ft7 shollow
Energy
183kJ
Wind
SW 6 kn
Temp
18°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 139, poor
  2. Mon 252, fair
  3. Tue 319, too small
  4. Wed 412, too small
  5. Thu 521, too small
  6. Fri 657, fair
  7. Sat 759, fair
  8. Sun 812, poor
  9. Mon 96, poor
  10. Tue 1060, good

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 3–15 ftof swell
  • Water 22 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Pizo, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov39, poor5 ft10 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)464kJwind from the east, 4 knots18°C
Mon 2Nov52, fair4 ft10 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)260kJwind from the east-south-east, 2 knots20°C
Tue 3Nov19, too small2 ft9 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)68kJwind from the south, 2 knots18°C
Wed 4Nov12, too small1 ft12 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)27kJwind from the south-south-west, 1 knot19°C
Thu 5Nov21, too small2 ft10 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)101kJwind from the north-north-east, 0 knots, offshore19°C
Fri 6Nov57, fair4 ft4 smushy4 ft at break (est.)48kJwind from the north, 1 knot, offshore19°C
Sat 7Nov59, fair4 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.)62kJwind from the south-south-west, 3 knots18°C
Sun 8Nov12, poor5 ft7 shollow4 ft at break (est.)183kJwind from the south-west, 6 knots18°C
Mon 9Nov6, poor5 ft8 shollow4 ft at break (est.)308kJwind from the west-north-west, 16 knots16°C
Tue 10Nov60, good4 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.)73kJwind from the south-east, 4 knots19°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 06:08 +0.7 mLow 12:40 −0.6 mHigh 19:01 +0.5 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 00:58 −0.5 mHigh 07:29 +0.7 mLow 14:08 −0.6 mHigh 20:28 +0.5 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 02:28 −0.5 mHigh 08:51 +0.7 mLow 15:28 −0.7 mHigh 21:43 +0.6 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 Pizo

Madeira-Camara de Lobos-Promenade da Praia Formosa-01ASD
Photo: Asurnipal, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Praia Formosa - Funchal - Portugal
Photo: Vitor Oliveira from Torres Vedras, PORTUGAL, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Madeira-Camara de Lobos-Promenade da Praia Formosa Salinas Bathing Complex)-01ASD
Photo: Asurnipal, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

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More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Pizo

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

The spot faces S (200°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (20°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 3–15 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 150 m out (1 in 13). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 19°C in January, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 24°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Funchal, 5.7 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots, 1 dive site and 1 climbing area.

Water about 22°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$1,800 each

about US$945–US$1,800 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 FNC, estimated from distance and season, changing at LIS, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$435–US$911
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$945–US$1,800

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

Funchal

10 min by car · 175 places to stay

about US$67/nightcountry average

See 175 places to stay in Funchal · Booking.com

About Funchal 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 17h 35m

About 17h 35m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → FNC, changing at Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS), then 35 min by road

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