Staying Home Sucks, home
Caparica January 2013-1a
Praia CDS. Photo: Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Praia CDS

Surf spot · Portugal

Is it worth the trip?

29Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Mon 2: too small (4 ft swell at 10 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 ssoft
Energy
248kJ
Wind
ENE 5 kn
Temp
24°C

Tue 3 · 10 out of 100

Swell
1 ft14 shollow
Energy
32kJ
Wind
NNE 4 kn
Temp
23°C

Wed 4 · 24 out of 100

Swell
2 ft10 scrumbling
Energy
69kJ
Wind
NE 7 kn
Temp
20°C

Thu 5 · 29 out of 100

Swell
2 ft10 scrumbling
Energy
94kJ
Wind
NNE 1 kn
Temp
19°C

Fri 6 · 12 out of 100

Swell
2 ft9 scrumbling
Energy
59kJ
Wind
ENE 4 kn
Temp
21°C

Sat 7 · 5 out of 100

Swell
1 ft11 shollow
Energy
13kJ
Wind
S 7 kn
Temp
21°C

Sun 8 · 30 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
40kJ
Wind
SE 7 kn
Temp
20°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 166, good
  2. Mon 252, fair
  3. Tue 310, too small
  4. Wed 424, too small
  5. Thu 529, too small
  6. Fri 612, too small
  7. Sat 75, too small
  8. Sun 830, too small
  9. Mon 914, poor
  10. Tue 100, too big

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 4–16 ftof swell
  • Water 18 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Praia CDS, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov66, good5 ft10 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)414kJwind from the west-south-west, 2 knots24°C
Mon 2Nov52, fair4 ft10 ssoft3 ft at break (est.)248kJwind from the east-north-east, 5 knots, offshore24°C
Tue 3Nov10, too small1 ft14 shollow2 ft at break (est.)32kJwind from the north-north-east, 4 knots, offshore23°C
Wed 4Nov24, too small2 ft10 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)69kJwind from the north-east, 7 knots, offshore20°C
Thu 5Nov29, too small2 ft10 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)94kJwind from the north-north-east, 1 knot, offshore19°C
Fri 6Nov12, too small2 ft9 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)59kJwind from the east-north-east, 4 knots, offshore21°C
Sat 7Nov5, too small1 ft11 shollow1 ft at break (est.)13kJwind from the south, 7 knots21°C
Sun 8Nov30, too small3 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.)40kJwind from the south-east, 7 knots20°C
Mon 9Nov14, poor6 ft6 smushy7 ft at break (est.)204kJwind from the south-west, 6 knots20°C
Tue 10Nov0, too big6 ft8 smushy8 ft at break (est.)429kJwind from the south, 3 knots20°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 00:18 −0.8 mHigh 06:46 +1.0 mLow 13:14 −0.9 mHigh 19:38 +0.7 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 01:35 −0.7 mHigh 08:05 +0.9 mLow 14:39 −0.9 mHigh 21:02 +0.7 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 03:02 −0.7 mHigh 09:26 +1.0 mLow 15:59 −1.0 mHigh 22:17 +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 Praia CDS

Caparica December 2011-1a
Photo: Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Plage de San-Antonio-Caparica - panoramio
Photo: Cossel, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Praia CDS

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

The spot faces SW (231°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (51°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 4–16 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 500 m out (1 in 50). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 15°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 18°C in June, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Costa da Caparica, 0.7 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 10 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 18°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$965–US$1,840 each

about US$965–US$1,840 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 LIS, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$449–US$938
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$40–US$74
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$965–US$1,840

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

Costa da Caparica

1 min by car · 61 places to stay

about US$67/nightcountry average

See 61 places to stay in Costa da Caparica · Booking.com

About Costa da Caparica 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 13h 10m

About 13h 10m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → LIS, direct, then 40 min by road

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