Surfing in Algarve, Portugal in Spring: What's it like?

As surfers, we love Spring for surfing in the Algarve as, like the Autumn, it has the most optimal conditions with favorable winds and plenty of swells. This is due to the land not getting so hot and creating the trade winds that can make the surf choppy. In spring in the Algarve, we have nice sunny days that are warm but not too hot and consistently good wind conditions. 

Wave consistency

The Algarve is a beautiful part of the surf world that benefits from a west-facing coastline and a south-facing coastline. The west coast has many exposed beaches and some more protected facing beaches to help provide great setups for surfers of all different abilities. 

One thing we can say for certain running a surf camp in the Algarve, is we have yet to see a day with no waves at all. If you want to surf you can always surf. That being said, like all surf destinations that doesn’t mean it is perfect all the time just that the swell never leaves. The seasons, like most places, have a resounding effect on the quality of the waves. 

Sometimes the west coast can become big and wild. Therefore, we receive a huge benefit of being able to head to the south coast for protection and often in these situations friendly sized and high-quality waves.

South coast bliss

Spring in the Algarve can lead to regular days on the south coast for punchy manageable surf conditions and is littered with beach breaks, point breaks, and reef breaks. You can find nearly any type of wave you like. But I will say it is often fast, fun and punchy waves. The joy is that in summer it is very unlikely for you to find waves in the south. It’s easy to overlook the quality of the south coast waves because they are not year-round. 

West coast heavy days

The west coast in spring can lead you to more sheltered spots like Arrifana in Aljezur slightly more protected than most of the west coast and often offshore. Arrifana is home to a world-class right-hand point if it gets really big, or a few beautiful and consistent sandbanks on the beach. On the days that the west is not too big or if you want to challenge yourself in the bigger waves then the west is loaded with many setups as well. Rivermouth, huge beaches with sand bottoms, reef breaks and point breaks. Consistently we get a lot of swell in the spring.

Treasure hunting

Surfing in the spring in the Algarve is a bit like treasure hunting: you might have to work to find the prize but if you are willing to search you can find a great reward.

In summers anywhere in the world, as the land gets too hot the sea cools the land creating onshore wind and less high-quality surf. But because the weather is so great, it attracts bigger surf crowds. Surfing in the Spring is a bit like Europe’s best-kept surf secret.

Come join us for a spring surf camp so we have way more options of waves at this time of year in much quieter sea.