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punta dos picos
Surf spot · Portugal
Is it worth the trip?
40Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 2: 4 ft swell at 9 s
Mon 2 · 66 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 211kJ
- Wind
- ENE 5 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Tue 3 · 24 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 35kJ
- Wind
- ENE 5 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Wed 4 · 32 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft10 shollow
- Energy
- 65kJ
- Wind
- E 5 kn
- Temp
- 13°C
Thu 5 · 48 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft10 shollow
- Energy
- 110kJ
- Wind
- SSE 4 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Fri 6 · 39 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 81kJ
- Wind
- ESE 4 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Sat 7 · 10 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 41kJ
- Wind
- SSE 18 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Sun 8 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 shollow
- Energy
- 37kJ
- Wind
- S 21 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 143, poor
- Mon 266, good
- Tue 324, too small
- Wed 432, too small
- Thu 548, fair
- Fri 639, too small
- Sat 710, too small
- Sun 816, too small
- Mon 916, poor
- Tue 1040, poor
The spot in five 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
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
punta dos picos does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 43, poor | 5 ft9 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 394kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 4 knots | 18°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 66, good | 4 ft9 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 211kJ | offshorewind from the east-north-east, 5 knots, offshore | 16°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 24, too small | 2 ft9 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 35kJ | offshorewind from the east-north-east, 5 knots, offshore | 17°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 32, too small | 2 ft10 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 65kJ | offshorewind from the east, 5 knots, offshore | 13°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 48, fair | 3 ft10 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 110kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots | 14°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 39, too small | 2 ft8 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 81kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 4 knots, offshore | 15°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 10, too small | 2 ft9 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 41kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 18 knots | 15°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 16, too small | 3 ft5 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 37kJ | wind from the south, 21 knots | 18°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 16, poor | 5 ft6 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 181kJ | wind from the south, 19 knots | 17°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 40, poor | 5 ft7 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 284kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 4 knots | 15°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 00:45 −0.9 mHigh 07:10 +1.1 mLow 13:40 −1.0 mHigh 20:01 +0.8 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:01 −0.8 mHigh 08:30 +1.0 mLow 15:03 −1.0 mHigh 21:27 +0.7 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 03:26 −0.8 mHigh 09:52 +1.0 mLow 16:23 −1.0 mHigh 22:44 +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.
Best time to go
No month stands out
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot and its town
punta dos picos on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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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
5 places
- Praia de Moledo 2.4 km away
- Vila Praia de Ancora 6.9 km away
- Praia dos Ingleses 7.8 km away
- Praia da Arda 11.2 km away
- Praia de arda 11.2 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About punta dos picos
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces W (261°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (81°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves 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 14°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 17°C in June, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). The town to stay in is Caminha, 3 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.
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$1,020–US$1,920 each
about US$1,020–US$1,920 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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to VGO, estimated from distance and season, changing at MAD, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$442–US$918 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$100–US$174 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$181–US$301 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$201–US$375 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$94–US$154 |
| Total | about US$1,020–US$1,920 |
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
5 min by car · 19 places to stay
about US$67/nightcountry average
About Caminha its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Moledo on Booking.com
5 min by car · 5 places to stay
- Beds in Viana do Castelo on Booking.com
35 min by car · 63 places to stay
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 55m
About 17h 55m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → VGO, changing at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD), then 1h 05m by road
Flights ORD → VGO on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.