Praia do Norte
ONLY IF YOU'RE ALREADY THERE

Portugal · Nazaré · #2 of Portugal's ten by fame

Praia do Norte

Do not get close to this beach.

How we rated it: up one for the record waves, down one for the drownings on record. Photo: Luis Ascenso · CC BY 2.0

The hang

Praia do Norte is the beach on the north side of Nazaré where the biggest waves ever surfed have been ridden. The record, 26.2 metres, was set here in October 2020. The waves come from the Nazaré Canyon, an underwater canyon about 5,000 metres deep whose upper end begins roughly one kilometre off the town. We measured 4.1 km of sand. You can walk down to it by a dirt road, and the local guide's advice for that is blunt: do not get too close, because several tourists have drowned here, carried away by waves. Most people watch from the hillside and from the Fort of São Miguel Arcanjo. The big waves come between October and March. In summer they are, in the guide's word, normal.

The real intel

Best months · warmest sea
August (18.3 °C), then June and July. Coldest: February (14.6 °C). One year of data, 2025.
Best months · emptiest
No crowd data by month. The crowds come on big-wave days, between October and March.
Getting there
Nazaré is about 120 km north of Lisbon: roughly 1h30 by car, or a long-distance bus for about €4 to €12 one way. On big-wave days, park well outside Sítio da Nazaré and expect to walk more than 1 km.
Cost reality
The beach and the hillside are free. The fort costs €2 and is open from 10am to 6pm.
The catch nobody tells you
The sea here is dangerous at close range. Several tourists have drowned, carried off the sand by waves.

The year at Praia do Norte

Warmest sea in August. Fewest wet days in June and July. Pick your fight.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Sea (°C)
15
14.6
14.8
16
17.1
17.8
17.7
18.3
16.8
17.2
17.4
15.3
Air (°C)
13.1
13.1
13.2
15.8
16.9
19.6
20.3
20.4
18.8
18.7
14.6
12.5
Sun (h/day)
6.4
7.2
8.9
10.2
12.9
13.1
13.4
12.1
10.7
8.2
6.9
7.1
Rain (days)
16
11
21
20
9
2
2
4
4
10
14
16

One year of data, 2025, from Open-Meteo at this beach's coordinates. A rain day is 1 mm or more. The red bar is the month to aim for in each row.

The crowd

Large crowds on big-wave days, with enough room on the hillside to move between viewpoints.

The receipts

Restaurants are more than 500 metres away and very crowded on big-wave days. A few food trucks up the hill, a few portable toilets.

Video: World Surf League on YouTube. It plays from their channel.

Praia do Norte in pictures

Praia do Norte
Photo: Miguel Ángel García. from Ólvega., España, CC BY 2.0
Praia do Norte
Photo: Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 3.0

The facts · we measured

Length
4,110 m
Mean width
157.4 m
Area
646,928 m²
Warmest sea (2025)
18.3 °C in Aug
Coldest sea (2025)
14.6 °C in Feb
Sea by month, °C
Jan 15.0 · Feb 14.6 · Mar 14.8 · Apr 16.0 · May 17.1 · Jun 17.8 · Jul 17.7 · Aug 18.3 · Sep 16.8 · Oct 17.2 · Nov 17.4 · Dec 15.3

Questions people ask

Can you swim at Praia do Norte in Nazaré?

Treat it as a beach to watch. The local guide tells visitors not to get too close to the sea and records that several tourists have drowned, carried away by waves.

When are the big waves in Nazaré?

Between October and March. September and April also work in some years. In summer the waves are normal.

Where do you watch the big waves in Nazaré?

From the hillside above Praia do Norte and from the Fort of São Miguel Arcanjo by the lighthouse, which costs €2 and is open from 10am to 6pm.

How do you get to Nazaré from Lisbon?

It is about 120 km north of Lisbon: roughly 1h30 by car, or about 1h45 by long-distance bus for €4 to €12 one way.

Sources

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