Staying Home Sucks, home
Praia da Viola, São Miguel Island, October, 2017-1
Baixa da Viola. Photo: Alexey Komarov, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Baixa da Viola

Surf spot · Portugal

Is it worth the trip?

61Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Sat 7: 4 ft swell at 8 s, 3 hours of offshore wind

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 58 out of 100

Swell
4 ft6 smushy
Energy
107kJ
Wind
E 8 kn
Temp
18°C

Tue 3 · 49 out of 100

Swell
3 ft11 shollow
Energy
166kJ
Wind
NNE 4 kn
Temp
17°C

Wed 4 · 79 out of 100

Swell
4 ft9 shollow
Energy
236kJ
Wind
SE 5 kn
Temp
18°C

Thu 5 · 60 out of 100

Swell
4 ft7 smushy
Energy
120kJ
Wind
SSW 9 kn
Temp
19°C

Fri 6 · 39 out of 100

Swell
3 ft9 shollow
Energy
108kJ
Wind
E 4 kn
Temp
18°C

Sat 7 · 80 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 shollow
Energy
161kJ
Wind
S 5 kn
Temp
17°C

Sun 8 · 11 out of 100

Swell
2 ft8 smushy
Energy
53kJ
Wind
W 12 kn
Temp
17°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 258, fair
  2. Tue 349, fair
  3. Wed 479, good
  4. Thu 560, good
  5. Fri 639, too small
  6. Sat 780, good
  7. Sun 811, too small
  8. Mon 910, poor
  9. Tue 100, too big
  10. Wed 110, too big

The spot in six facts

  • Faces Ntakes swell from the N
  • Offshore: Swind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 20 °C2 mm shorty
  • Best in Aug3 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Baixa da Viola, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov58, fair4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)107kJwind from the east, 8 knots18°C
Tue 3Nov49, fair3 ft11 shollow4 ft at break (est.)166kJwind from the north-north-east, 4 knots17°C
Wed 4Nov79, good4 ft9 shollow6 ft at break (est.)236kJwind from the south-east, 5 knots, offshore18°C
Thu 5Nov60, good4 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.)120kJwind from the south-south-west, 9 knots, offshore19°C
Fri 6Nov39, too small3 ft9 shollow4 ft at break (est.)108kJwind from the east, 4 knots18°C
Sat 7Nov80, good4 ft8 shollow5 ft at break (est.)161kJwind from the south, 5 knots, offshore17°C
Sun 8Nov11, too small2 ft8 smushy3 ft at break (est.)53kJwind from the west, 12 knots17°C
Mon 9Nov10, poor3 ft10 smushy5 ft at break (est.)229kJwind from the north-west, 27 knots17°C
Tue 10Nov0, too big13 ft10 smushy15 ft at break (est.)3,102kJwind from the north-west, 22 knots16°C
Wed 11Nov0, too big14 ft10 smushy15 ft at break (est.)3,566kJwind from the north-north-west, 22 knots16°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 00:47 −0.4 mHigh 07:16 +0.5 mLow 13:54 −0.5 mHigh 20:07 +0.4 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 02:12 −0.4 mHigh 08:35 +0.6 mLow 15:11 −0.5 mHigh 21:22 +0.4 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 03:26 −0.5 mHigh 09:43 +0.6 mLow 16:12 −0.6 mHigh 22:22 +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, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: 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 Baixa da Viola

Praia da Viola, São Miguel Island
Photo: cat_collector, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Aerial view of Viola Beach, São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal (PPL1-Corrected)-2
Photo: Jules Verne Times Two, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
House ruins at Viola Beach, São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal (PPL1-Corrected)
Photo: Jules Verne Times Two, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

1 place

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Baixa da Viola

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

The spot faces N (346°), so it takes swell from the N. The wind blows offshore from the S (166°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 18). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 16°C in March, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 24°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually August, with about 3 good days in 7; in January, February and March, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Furnas, 8.7 km away (about 15 min by car).

Water about 20°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$959–US$1,800 each

about US$959–US$1,800 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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to PDL, estimated from distance and season, changing at JFK, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$382–US$798
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$101–US$174
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$181–US$302
Food7 days eating outabout US$201–US$376
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$94–US$154
Totalabout US$959–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

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Furnas

about 15 min by car · 34 places to stay

about US$67/nightcountry average

See 34 places to stay in Furnas · Booking.com

About Furnas 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 15h 10m

About 15h 10m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → PDL, changing at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), then 50 min by road

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

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