Surf spots and live cams in Azores

• Mosteiros Ponta Delgada · Advanced · Point break
  Mosteiros is a village on the far west tip of São Miguel, with a black-sand beach and rock islets offshore.
• Rabo de Peixe Ribeira Grande · Advanced · Reef break
  Rabo de Peixe is a fishing town on São Miguel's north coast with a reef break by its harbour.
• Santa Bárbara Ribeira Grande · Intermediate · Beach break
  Areal de Santa Bárbara is a black-sand beach almost 1 km long on São Miguel's north coast, and the island's best-known surf beach.
• Monte Verde Ribeira Grande · Beginner · Beach break · live cam
  Monte Verde is the black-sand town beach of Ribeira Grande, east of Santa Bárbara.
• Santa Iria Ribeira Grande · Intermediate · Point break
  Santa Iria is a rocky bay below high cliffs near Ribeirinha on São Miguel's north coast.
• Baixa da Viola Ribeira Grande · Expert · Reef break
  Baixa da Viola, also called Pico da Viola, is a big-wave reef off São Miguel's north coast.
• Pópulo Ponta Delgada · Beginner · Beach break
  Praia do Pópulo is a sheltered black-sand beach a few minutes east of Ponta Delgada on the south coast.
• Milícias Ponta Delgada · Beginner · Beach break
  Praia das Milícias is the long sand beach just west of Pópulo on São Miguel's south coast.
• Ribeira Quente Povoação · Intermediate · Reef break
  Ribeira Quente is a fishing village in a steep valley on São Miguel's south-east coast.
• Anjos Vila do Porto · Advanced · Reef break
  Anjos is a small village on the north-west coast of Santa Maria, the southernmost island of the Azores.
• Praia Formosa Vila do Porto · Intermediate · Beach break
  Praia Formosa is a sand bay on the south coast of Santa Maria.
• Santa Catarina Praia da Vitória · Expert · Slab
  Santa Catarina, by the port of Praia da Vitória on Terceira's east coast, is one of Europe's heaviest slabs.
• Praia da Vitória Intermediate · Beach break
  Praia da Vitória is the main town beach on Terceira's east coast.
• Porto Martins Praia da Vitória · Intermediate · Point break
  Porto Martins is a small village with cliffs and natural pools on Terceira's east coast.
• Contendas Praia da Vitória · Intermediate · Point break
  Contendas is a rocky volcanic shore by the lighthouse at the south-east tip of Terceira.
• Quatro Ribeiras Praia da Vitória · Advanced · Reef break
  Quatro Ribeiras is a bay on Terceira's north coast with a rocky reef that breaks left and right.
• Vila Nova Praia da Vitória · Expert · Reef break
  Vila Nova is an outer reef off Terceira's north coast that only wakes up on big swells.
• Fajã da Caldeira de Santo Cristo Calheta · Advanced · Point break
  The Fajã da Caldeira de Santo Cristo is a flat strip of land with a lagoon below the cliffs of São Jorge's north coast, with no road in.
• Praia do Norte Horta · Advanced · Point break
  Praia do Norte, also called Ribeira das Cabras, is a powerful left point over flat rocks on the north-west coast of Faial.
• Praia do Almoxarife Horta · Beginner · Beach break
  Praia do Almoxarife is a black sand and rock beach on Faial's east coast, looking across to the volcano on Pico.
• Fajã Grande Lajes das Flores · Intermediate · Reef break
  Fajã Grande is a village on the wild west coast of Flores, the westernmost island of the Azores, below cliffs full of waterfalls.

Azores in the guides

• Surfing in January
  January is the heart of the Atlantic storm season. Thick wetsuits in the north, warm water in the Canaries, and powerful swells that wake up Nazaré, Mundaka, Thurso East and the island reefs.
• Surfing in February
  February has the coldest water of the year in the north, but the days are getting longer and a cold high-pressure spell can bring offshore winds and long-period swell. Hossegor's legendary 2021 run happened in February, and the islands to the south are in full season.
• Surfing in March
  The islands' north coasts still get regular winter swells, with Santa Bárbara on São Miguel as the main beach and quiet reefs on Terceira and Santa Maria.
• Surfing in April
  April brings long, light evenings and steady spring swells to coasts that are only starting to wake up, from Cornwall and Ireland to Portugal and the Basque Country. The water is still cold, but the season of easy road trips has begun.
• Surfing in May
  May is a sweet spot for intermediates and improvers: the water starts to warm, the swell is steady but rarely huge, and the summer crowds have not arrived yet, from Portugal and north Spain to Cornwall, Wales and Ireland.
• Surfing in June
  June gives you summer weather and the longest days of the year before the school holidays begin. Swells are usually small, so think longboards, lessons and dawn patrols, or the exposed corners of Portugal, Cornwall and Ireland that catch what there is.
• Surfing in July
  July is peak holiday time across Europe. The water is warm in the south, the beaches are lively and the waves are usually small and friendly, which makes it a great month to learn, and a tricky one to find space.
• Surfing in August
  Summer south swells reach São Miguel's south coast, where Ribeira Quente has water warmed by undersea hot springs. The sea is about 23.5 °C.
• Surfing in September
  São Miguel's north coast picks up the first autumn swells while the water is at about 23 °C, one of the warmest seas on this list.
• Surfing in October
  October is many surfers' favourite month in Europe: real groundswell, water that still holds its summer warmth, and beaches that empty out after the holidays. The reefs of Portugal, Ireland and Scotland start their season too.
• Surfing in December
  December brings the shortest days and some of the year's biggest swells across Europe, from the Basque reefs to Nazaré, Thurso and the Cliffs of Moher. Chase the clean windows between storms, hide in the sheltered corners, or fly south to the islands.
• Summer family surf trip
  Pópulo, a sheltered black-sand beach a few minutes from Ponta Delgada, has small, gentle waves and water around 22–23.5 °C.
• Uncrowded winter waves
  The north coasts of São Miguel, Santa Maria and Faial have points and reefs with very few surfers, in water around 16–18 °C.
• Big waves and expert spots
  Santa Catarina on Terceira, one of Europe's heaviest slabs, and the deep-water big-wave reef of Baixa da Viola off São Miguel.
• Azores and Madeira surf trip
  Nine volcanic islands in mid-Atlantic: São Miguel has the beaches and surf schools, Terceira the heavy slabs and rock points, and Faial a quiet beach facing Pico.