# Carrapateira surf guide Tiny village in the Costa Vicentina natural park between two wild beaches, Bordeira and Amado, the latter a long-time favourite of surf camps. - **Location:** Algarve (Costa Vicentina), Portugal (37.1928, -8.8986) - **Best season:** Sep – May (September, October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May) - **Water:** 15–20°C (3/2 mm (warmest) to 4/3 mm (coldest)) - **Waves:** Beach break - **Suits:** Beginner, Intermediate surfers - **Interactive map, stays and what's on:** https://swellcabin.com/town/carrapateira - **Feed (new YouTube surf videos and Instagram posts from Carrapateira):** https://swellcabin.com/town/carrapateira?feed ## Live surf cams - [Praia da Luz](https://beachcam.meo.pt/livecams/praia-da-luz/): MEO Beachcam, free ## Surf spots - **Praia da Bordeira**: Beach break, lefts and rights, all levels, faces NW (offshore wind from the SE), best at all tides. Suits all levels. (37.2019, -8.9044) - **Praia da Luz**: Beach break, lefts and rights, advanced surfers, faces S (offshore wind from the N), best at all tides (37.0858, -8.7250) - **Lagos**: Beach break, lefts and rights, all levels, faces SE (offshore wind from the NW). Suits all levels. (37.1098, -8.6587) ## What's on A tiny village on the wild west coast of the Algarve: evenings are sunsets over Bordeira and Amado and dinner at a handful of restaurants. No nightlife, fixed weekly nights or upcoming events in the village could be found. _Updated 2026-11-03._ ## Where to stay 39 places to stay within 10 km. Surf camps: Nomad Surf Resort - Russo Surf Camp, Russo Surfcamp - Vale Figueiras, Nomad Surf Camp - Vale Figueiras. Hostels: Surf'N'Sand Eco Farm, Hostel do Mar. ## FAQ ### When is the best time to surf in Carrapateira? The best surf season in Carrapateira is Sep – May (September, October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May). The sea ranges from 15°C to 20°C over the year. ### Which months have the most good surf days in Carrapateira? Measured over the last three years (2023-11-01 to 2026-10-31), the waves at Carrapateira's best spot were good or better most often in December (48% of days, 24% great), March (45% of days, 17% great) and January (45% of days, 12% great), and least often in August (6%). From each day's swell and wind (Open-Meteo), rated like Swell Cabin's forecast. ### Do I need a wetsuit in Carrapateira? Water temperature in Carrapateira is 15–20°C: 3/2 mm (warmest) to 4/3 mm (coldest). ### Is Carrapateira good for beginner surfers? Yes. Carrapateira suits beginner and intermediate surfers; spots that work for beginners or all levels include Praia da Bordeira and Lagos. ### What are the surf spots in Carrapateira? Carrapateira has 3 surf spots on Swell Cabin: Praia da Bordeira (Beach break, lefts and rights, all levels, faces NW (offshore wind from the SE), best at all tides); Praia da Luz (Beach break, lefts and rights, advanced surfers, faces S (offshore wind from the N), best at all tides); Lagos (Beach break, lefts and rights, all levels, faces SE (offshore wind from the NW)). ### Where should surfers stay in Carrapateira? Swell Cabin lists 39 places to stay within 10 km of Carrapateira, including 3 surf camps such as Nomad Surf Resort - Russo Surf Camp, Russo Surfcamp - Vale Figueiras and Nomad Surf Camp - Vale Figueiras, 2 hostels, 8 guesthouses and homestays, 7 rentals and villas. Each one shows its distance to the nearest surf spot. ### What is the nightlife like in Carrapateira? A tiny village on the wild west coast of the Algarve: evenings are sunsets over Bordeira and Amado and dinner at a handful of restaurants. No nightlife, fixed weekly nights or upcoming events in the village could be found. ### What is the surf forecast for Carrapateira this week? Swell Cabin shows a live 7-day surf forecast for Carrapateira and each of its 3 surf spots on https://swellcabin.com/town/carrapateira: each spot rated hour by hour (Flat, Poor, Fair, Good, Great or Epic) from the way its coast faces, the swell, its period, the wind and the tide, with the best time each day and why, the size in surfers' words (e.g. "chest to head high, clean"), tides, and how sure the forecast is (three wave models compared). It is checked live against the nearest buoy and airport wind reports where there are any, and refreshed every few hours (waves from Open-Meteo, wind from MET Norway). ### When is the best tide to surf in Carrapateira? It depends on the spot: shallow reefs usually want mid to high tide, most beach breaks work best around mid tide. Swell Cabin's forecast for Carrapateira weighs each spot's tide hour by hour and shows the best window each day with the high and low tide times, predicted from the Lagos Algarve tide gauge (23 km away). ### How accurate is the surf forecast for Carrapateira? Swell Cabin checks it against the Sines coastal buoy (81 km away, E.U. Copernicus Marine Service): over 287 hours from 2026-10-23 to 2026-11-05 the forecast wave height was within 20% of the buoy 86% of the time. Last checked 2026-11-05. ### Is the Carrapateira surf forecast checked against measurements? Yes. The open water off Carrapateira is checked against the satellite altimeters (Copernicus Marine's near-real-time wave heights): 60 satellite passes within 100 km since 2026-09-23, typically 51 km out, put the forecast wave height within 20% of the measurement 60% of the time. Of the three wave models compared, Météo-France has been the closest to the satellites here. Nearer the coast, the buoy above decides the correction. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information (https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00179). Last checked 2026-11-06. ### How reliable is Swell Cabin's information about Carrapateira? Trust in this page's data is low (45/100): the town has not been verified against sources in the last 12 months; 0 of 3 spots fully verified, 2 with a researched tide; season and water temperature checked against measured data; 2 open audit warnings. How we check: https://github.com/danielgalam/swellcabin/blob/main/docs/data-accuracy.md Last checked against sources on 2026-11-05. Every value comes from measured data (Open-Meteo, buoys), open databases (OpenStreetMap, Wikidata) or a published page we opened, never from visitor reports; a daily audit compares them and a weekly evaluation measures the error rate (https://github.com/danielgalam/swellcabin/blob/main/docs/data-quality.md). ### Is there a live surf cam in Carrapateira? Yes: Praia da Luz on MEO Beachcam (free). Swell Cabin checks these cams regularly. ### Where can I take surf lessons in Carrapateira? Surf schools in and around Carrapateira include Carrapateira Surfing Club Bar, Carrapateira Praia Do Bordeira and Amado Surf School.