Month guide · May

Surfing in May

Warming water, softer swells and long, light days

May is the month when the season tips towards summer. The water climbs a couple of degrees, the light lasts until almost ten in the evening in Brittany and later still in Ireland and Scotland, and the swell, while smaller than in winter, is still regular enough for daily sessions on most Atlantic coasts.

For many surfers it is the most pleasant month of all. The waves are friendly, the towns are lively but not packed, and you can still park next to the beach. It is a fine month to learn, to improve, or to try a longer road trip: along the Spanish north coast, down Portugal's west coast, or around the beaches of Cornwall, Wales and the west of Ireland.

At a glance

🌡️ Water: 6.5 °C Lofoten – 20 °C Canaries
Averages rise to about 6.5 °C in Lofoten, 8.5 °C in Orkney, 11.5 °C at Galway and 12 °C off the Isles of Scilly, against 15.5 °C at Biarritz, 17 °C at Lisbon, 17.5 °C in the Azores and 20 °C around Gran Canaria.
🧥 Wetsuit: 4/3 mm; boots optional south
A 4/3 mm suit works from Brittany to Portugal, with boots optional in the south by the end of the month. Britain and Ireland stay cool enough for a 4/3 or 5/4 mm with boots, and Scandinavia for a 5/4 mm. The Canaries and Azores need only a 3/2 mm.
🌊 Swell: Small to medium, regular
Swells become smaller and gentler as the Atlantic storm track weakens. Regional guides to south-west France list May as the start of the best period for beginners and the end of the spring window for intermediates. Exposed beaches in Portugal, Cornwall and Ireland still catch most days' swell.
🌬️ Wind: Light mornings, sea breezes
Calm, sunny mornings are common, and an onshore sea breeze often builds in the afternoon. In Galicia and Asturias, north-easterly winds become more frequent as summer approaches. In Portugal the strong north wind, the nortada, is a summer-afternoon pattern, so spots sheltered from the north, like Baleal's Cantinho, are worth knowing.
☀️ Air: Highs 9–24 °C
Average highs are about 9 °C in Lofoten, 12 °C in Orkney, 16 °C in Galway, 20 °C in Biarritz, 22.5 °C in Lisbon and 24 °C in Gran Canaria.
👥 Crowds: Calm, busier long weekends
There are no French school holidays after the zone B spring break ends on 3 May 2027, but May's public holidays create several long weekends when surf towns fill up. Elsewhere it is the calm before the summer: popular learner beaches like Polzeath and Baleal are much quieter than in July and August.
🌅 Daylight: ~13.5–17 h · light nights north
Mid-month the sun rises around 06:40 and sets around 21:25 in Biarritz and 21:50 in Brest. Ireland and Scotland have 16–17 hours of daylight, with sunset around 21:30, while Las Palmas has about 13.5. Two sessions a day are easy.

Where to go

Cantabria

Somo and Loredo are ideal for learning and improving, with schools everywhere and calm late-spring line-ups.

Asturias

Long beaches with easy peaks, open schools and few visitors outside the holidays, as the regional tourism office notes for spring.

Landes

Banks are well shaped after winter and the summer rush has not started. Seignosse, Capbreton and the quieter beaches further north are all worth a look.

Galicia Norte

Doniños and Razo are at their best in spring and summer, and the line-ups are almost empty compared with France.

Portugal Centro

Peniche's Baleal bay is full of schools, and Baleal island shelters its corner from the north wind. There is a beach for every level on both sides of the peninsula.

Lisbon coast

Ericeira's Foz do Lizandro and the town beaches of Costa da Caparica are busy with schools, and the water reaches about 17 °C.

Cornwall

Polzeath, Watergate and the beaches around Newquay are at their friendliest before the summer holidays fill them.

Ireland North West

Rossnowlagh and Strandhill have long evenings, gentle peaks and few people. In mid-May the sun sets around 21:30.

Ireland West

Lahinch is Ireland's busiest surf town, with schools and cafés; the long beaches further along the Clare coast are much quieter.

Wales

Llangennith on Gower and Freshwater West in Pembrokeshire pick up the most swell in Wales, with schools for learners.

The 20 best spots in May

  1. Somo

    Ribamontán al Mar · Cantabria · Beginner · Beach break · live cam

    Waves on about 150 days a year, forgiving peaks like La Curva and El Camping, and many schools and surf camps. A classic place to learn or improve before the summer rush.

  2. Baleal – Cantinho da Baía

    Peniche · Portugal Centro · Beginner · Beach break

    The busiest surf-school corner around Peniche, a safe beach break where Baleal island shelters the bay from the north, so the afternoon north wind is nearly offshore. Ideal for learners and improvers; friendly, and calmer than in summer.

  3. Loredo

    Ribamontán al Mar · Cantabria · Beginner · Beach break · 2 live cams

    The calmer east end of the Somo–Loredo beach, with mellow, shifting peaks that suit learners and longboarders and a quiet feel outside summer.

  4. Ericeira – Foz do Lizandro

    Ericeira · Lisbon coast · Beginner · Beach break · live cam

    Ericeira's best beginner spot, where the Lizandro river builds sandbanks with A-frame peaks along the beach. Schools use it every day, and the locals are described as friendly.

  5. Salinas

    Salinas (Castrillón) · Asturias · Beginner · Beach break · 2 live cams

    Spain's first surf school opened here in the 1960s, and it is still full of schools and clubs. The west end holds the most swell.

  6. Arrifana – beach

    Aljezur · Algarve · Beginner · Beach break · live cam

    A cliff-backed bay on the Costa Vicentina, sheltered from the north wind and full of surf schools. Peaks at either end of the bay suit learners and improvers, and May is quieter than the summer months.

  7. Xagó

    Xagó (Gozón) · Asturias · Beginner · Beach break · 2 live cams

    A consistent, dune-backed beach west of Cabo Peñas that works at every tide; surf schools use it from spring to autumn.

  8. Polzeath

    Cornwall · Beginner · Beach break

    One of Cornwall's best-known learner beaches, wide and flat, with gentle waves on most tides. In May it is still calm, before the summer families and schools arrive.

  9. Lahinch Beach

    Lahinch · Ireland West · Beginner · Beach break

    Ireland's best-known surf town has sandbanks for every level and schools along the promenade. A west swell with an east wind on a rising tide is ideal; busy but friendly.

  10. Ferrol – Doniños

    Ferrol · Galicia Norte · Beginner · Beach break

    Galician tourism names spring and summer as Doniños' best seasons. The northern end has the best lefts and a rip channel by the rocks.

  11. Seignosse – Le Penon

    Seignosse · Landes · Intermediate · Beach break · 2 live cams

    The heart of Seignosse surfing, with powerful peaks that are still uncrowded in late spring. Intermediates at low to mid tide with an east wind.

  12. Croyde

    Devon and the south coast · Intermediate · Beach break

    North Devon's punchy low-tide beach break is in the last weeks of its spring season. Powerful, hollow waves on a west to west-south-west swell; one of the busiest line-ups in Britain.

  13. Rossnowlagh

    Ireland North West · Beginner · Beach break

    A 3 km beach deep inside Donegal Bay, where the bay takes the power out of the swell. Gentle peaks, plenty of space and a relaxed, family mood make it one of Ireland's best places to learn.

  14. Capbreton – Le Prévent

    Capbreton · Landes · Beginner · Beach break

    Boxed in by jetties and relatively sheltered, with hollow, fun peaks. Popular with families and surf schools; there is nearly always something to ride.

  15. Llangennith

    Wales · Beginner · Beach break

    The best-known surf beach in South Wales faces straight into the Atlantic, with peaks along kilometres of sand. Schools teach near the main path; walk away from it for space.

  16. Santa Bárbara

    Ribeira Grande · Azores · Intermediate · Beach break

    A good spring choice in the Azores: several black-sand peaks on São Miguel's north coast that work at any tide, with the water at about 17.5 °C.

  17. Anglet – Les Sables d'Or

    Anglet · Pays Basque · Beginner · Beach break · live cam

    Fun peaks between groynes that work at every tide, with a surf school and a lively promenade. Good for all levels on a small to medium swell.

  18. Carballo – Razo

    Carballo · Galicia Norte · Beginner · Beach break

    A big, very exposed beach at the start of the Costa da Morte, about five kilometres long and suited to beginners, with many peaks and a long contest history.

  19. Thurso East

    Thurso · Scotland · Advanced · Reef break

    May is the end of Thurso East's main season, and the north of Scotland has nearly seventeen hours of daylight by mid-month. Advanced surfers; a solid north-west swell and a south-easterly are still needed.

  20. Fort-Bloqué (Pen er Malo)

    Guidel · Morbihan · Beginner · Beach break

    Nearly two kilometres of beach either side of the fort, with gentler waves at Pen er Malo than at Le Loch. A good spot for improvers on a spring swell.

Tips from the line-up

  1. This is the month to book a week of lessons: schools are open, waves are friendly and the water is warming.
  2. Surf early or late. On sunny days the afternoon sea breeze often blows the waves out.
  3. Watch the French long weekends: towns that are empty midweek can be packed on a bank-holiday Saturday.
  4. Bring sun cream. Long days on the water add up, even when the air feels cool.
  5. Swells get smaller: a longer board makes the most of the in-between days.
  6. Go north for the evenings: by mid-May Ireland and Scotland have light until about 21:30, so a session after dinner is easy.

Sources