Praia Santana
Surf spot · Portugal
Is it worth the trip?
55Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 4 ft swell at 9 s
Tue 3 · 61 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 shollow
- Energy
- 90kJ
- Wind
- NNE 3 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Wed 4 · 78 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 213kJ
- Wind
- SE 5 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Thu 5 · 63 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 172kJ
- Wind
- SSW 6 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Fri 6 · 56 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 191kJ
- Wind
- S 4 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Sat 7 · 61 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 302kJ
- Wind
- W 6 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Sun 8 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 555kJ
- Wind
- NW 9 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Mon 9 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 663kJ
- Wind
- NW 11 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Tue 361, good
- Wed 478, good
- Thu 563, good
- Fri 656, fair
- Sat 761, good
- Sun 80, too big
- Mon 90, too big
- Tue 100, too big
- Wed 110, too big
The spot in five facts
- Faces Ntakes swell from the N
- Offshore: Swind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–10 ftof swell
- Water 20 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Praia Santana does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 3Nov | 61, good | 4 ft6 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 90kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 3 knots | 18°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 78, good | 4 ft9 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 213kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 5 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 63, good | 4 ft8 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 172kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-west, 6 knots, offshore | 19°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 56, fair | 4 ft8 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 191kJ | offshorewind from the south, 4 knots, offshore | 16°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 61, good | 4 ft9 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 302kJ | wind from the west, 6 knots | 16°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft8 shollow8 ft at break (est.) | 555kJ | wind from the north-west, 9 knots | 16°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft8 shollow9 ft at break (est.) | 663kJ | wind from the north-west, 11 knots | 16°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 0, too big | 12 ft9 smushy13 ft at break (est.) | 2,012kJ | wind from the north-west, 12 knots | 16°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 0, too big | 11 ft9 smushy13 ft at break (est.) | 1,692kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 13 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
- Tue 3 NovLow 02:09 −0.4 mHigh 08:33 +0.6 mLow 15:09 −0.5 mHigh 21:20 +0.4 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 03:23 −0.5 mHigh 09:41 +0.6 mLow 16:10 −0.6 mHigh 22:19 +0.5 m
- Thu 5 NovLow 04:23 −0.5 mHigh 10:36 +0.7 mLow 17:00 −0.6 mHigh 23:08 +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.
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
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep2of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Wed 4 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
Praia Santana 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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Photos of Praia Santana
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More surf near here
5 places
- Areias 1.1 km away
- Praia Santa Barbara (Ribeira Grande) 1.5 km away
- Rabo de Peixe 2 km away
- Santa Iria 8 km away
- Populo 8.8 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Praia Santana
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces N (0°), so it takes swell from the N. The wind blows offshore from the S (180°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 12). 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). The town to stay in is Ribeira Grande, 3.7 km away (5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots.
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$892–US$1,690 each
about US$892–US$1,690 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 2 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to PDL, estimated from distance and season, changing at JFK, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$382–US$798 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$34–US$60 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$181–US$302 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$201–US$376 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$94–US$154 |
| Total | about US$892–US$1,690 |
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
5 min by car · 31 places to stay
about US$67/nightcountry average
About Ribeira Grande its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Capelas on Booking.com
17 min by car · 13 places to stay
- Beds in Ponta Delgada on Booking.com
17 min by car · 164 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 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 14h 55m
About 14h 55m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → PDL, changing at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), then 35 min by road
Flights ORD → PDL on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
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.