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Faial
Surf spot · Portugal
Is it worth the trip?
46Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Thu 5: 3 ft swell at 7 s, 3 hours of offshore wind, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Tue 3 · 56 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft7 shollow
- Energy
- 78kJ
- Wind
- N 3 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Wed 4 · 63 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 145kJ
- Wind
- SE 5 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Thu 5 · 67 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft7 shollow
- Energy
- 122kJ
- Wind
- S 8 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Fri 6 · 31 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 47kJ
- Wind
- S 5 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Sat 7 · 17 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft6 shollow
- Energy
- 8kJ
- Wind
- S 9 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Sun 8 · 32 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 shollow
- Energy
- 52kJ
- Wind
- WNW 3 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Mon 9 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 424kJ
- Wind
- S 2 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 272, good
- Tue 356, fair
- Wed 463, good
- Thu 567, good
- Fri 631, too small
- Sat 717, too small
- Sun 832, poor
- Mon 90, too big
- Tue 100, too big
- Wed 110, too big
The spot in five facts
- Faces NEtakes swell from the NE
- Offshore: SWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–11 ftof swell
- Water 22 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 72, good | 4 ft9 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 291kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 1 knot | 20°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 56, fair | 3 ft7 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 78kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 19°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 63, good | 4 ft8 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 145kJ | wind from the south-east, 5 knots | 19°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 67, good | 3 ft7 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 122kJ | offshorewind from the south, 8 knots, offshore | 21°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 31, too small | 2 ft8 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 47kJ | offshorewind from the south, 5 knots, offshore | 21°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 17, too small | 1 ft6 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 8kJ | offshorewind from the south, 9 knots, offshore | 20°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 32, poor | 3 ft5 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 52kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 3 knots | 20°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft8 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 424kJ | wind from the south, 2 knots | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft9 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 741kJ | wind from the north, 3 knots | 20°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 0, too big | 9 ft10 shollow8 ft at break (est.) | 1,483kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 6 knots | 19°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 01:06 −0.5 mHigh 07:36 +0.7 mLow 14:14 −0.7 mHigh 20:33 +0.5 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 02:35 −0.5 mHigh 08:57 +0.8 mLow 15:33 −0.7 mHigh 21:48 +0.6 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 03:51 −0.6 mHigh 10:06 +0.8 mLow 16:36 −0.8 mHigh 22:46 +0.7 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).
- Jan0of 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 Tue 3 Nov
- Dec0of 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, its town, photos
Faial on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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Photos of Faial
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Live webcam
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LIVE CAM PRAIA DA ALAGOA BEACH PORTO DA CRUZ, 2 km away
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More surf near here
5 places
- Porto da cruz 2.4 km away
- Machico 10.9 km away
- Ponta Delgada 13 km away
- Cais do funchal 16 km away
- Faja da Areia 16.9 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Faial
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NE (37°), so it takes swell from the NE. The wind blows offshore from the SW (217°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 3–11 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 9). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 18°C in March, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 24°C in September, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Faial, 0.8 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.
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$938–US$1,790 each
about US$938–US$1,790 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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to FNC, estimated from distance and season, changing at LIS, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$435–US$911 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$27–US$47 |
| 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$938–US$1,790 |
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
about 5 min by car · 5 places to stay
about US$67/nightcountry average
About Faial its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Porto da Cruz on Booking.com
about 5 min by car · 6 places to stay
- Beds in Machico on Booking.com
about 20 min by car · 15 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 35m
About 17h 35m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → FNC, changing at Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS), then 30 min by road
Flights ORD → FNC on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.