Praia do Norte · 39.61°N, -9.08°W
Nazaré waves today
Current wave height, period and direction, plus the live cam. Updated hourly from the Open-Meteo marine model, recorded in our own wave log.
Nazaré waves today, Monday 19 October: 1.5 m (5 ft) at 9 seconds, swell from the NNW. Big Wave Score 16/100 — Quiet day. Best day this week: Friday 23 October, 53/100 — Worth a look.
Watch the live camRIGHT NOW AT PRAIA DO NORTE
1.5 m (5 ft) at 9 seconds from the NNW, wind 5 km/h (3 mph) ENE.
Wave height
1.5 m
5 ft
Period
9 s
swell period
Swell direction
NNW
337°
Wind
5 km/h
3 mph · ENE
Next 48 hours · wave height
peak 2.0 m (7 ft)
Should I go to Nazaré?
Today
1.5 m5 ft · 9 s · NNW
- Wind at peak
- 4 km/h (2 mph) E
- Best viewing window
- 07:00–10:00
The period is under 10 seconds, which is wind chop rather than groundswell.
Tomorrow
2.0 m7 ft · 11 s · NW
- Wind at peak
- 13 km/h (8 mph) NNW
- Best viewing window
- 10:00–13:00
Not enough swell energy for the canyon to build big waves.
Viewing windows are for Praia do Norte seen from the lighthouse headland. Check again the morning you plan to travel.
Plan your trip
Drive up from Lisbon
About 1h30 on the A8 from Lisbon airport. Compare rental prices across suppliers.
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Tides today
Local time
- low tide at 03:00
- high tide at 09:00
- low tide at 16:00
- high tide at 22:00
How to read the forecast
- Quiet day · 0–40 — Nothing big at Praia do Norte. Any day with a period under 10 seconds is also a Quiet day, whatever the height: that's wind chop.
- Worth a look · 41–59 — Some swell. Worth a look if you're already nearby. Bigger days held back by the period, the swell direction or a strong onshore wind also land here.
- Worth the trip · 60–75 — A proper swell aimed at the canyon: a period of 12 seconds or more, swell from the west through north-west, no strong onshore wind.
- Big-wave day · 76–100 — The canyon is working: 13 seconds or more, with the same direction and wind conditions. Possible tow-in session — watch the cam.
7-day outlook
low 1.4 m (5 ft)
NNW · 9 s
high confidence
low 1.7 m (6 ft)
NW · 11 s
high confidence
low 1.6 m (5 ft)
NW · 10 s
low confidence
low 2.4 m (8 ft)
NW · 11 s
low confidence
Best this week
low 2.5 m (8 ft)
NW · 12 s
low confidence
low 2.6 m (9 ft)
NW · 11 s
low confidence
low 2.1 m (7 ft)
NNW · 12 s
low confidence
Score, height, period and direction from each day's biggest daylight hour; low is the daily minimum significant wave height offshore of Praia do Norte.
Our wave log
We record the Praia do Norte forecast model every hour and keep it. Our log starts on 20 September 2026.
Biggest wave
2.5 m (8 ft)
17 Oct
Best score
Quiet day · 15 Oct
Trip-worthy days
0
in the selected period
Each day is scored from its biggest daylight hour (07:00–19:00), exactly like the forecast above.
The log is new — season records will fill in as the winter swells arrive.
How we make the call
Every rating on this page comes from the Open-Meteo marine and weather models for 39.61° N, 9.08° W, just offshore of Praia do Norte. The height we quote is significant wave height in open water. The Nazaré Canyon focuses that swell as it reaches the headland, so the wave faces people photograph from the lighthouse are considerably larger than the offshore figure — treat our metres as an input, not as the size of the wave you will see.
For each day we take the biggest daylight hour, from 07:00 to 19:00 local time, and turn its height and period into a Big Wave Score from 0 to 100. The score measures swell energy: it grows with the square of the height and with the period, on a logarithmic scale, so a 3 m swell at 12 seconds scores about 48 and a 6 m swell at 14 seconds about 76. The bands and the extra conditions for each one are in the legend above.
Confidence falls with distance: high for today and tomorrow, medium for days three and four, low beyond that, and one step lower when the score sits within 4 points of a band boundary. We do not use buoy data yet. These thresholds are a first calibration; we will check them against our own wave log as the winter swells arrive.
Watch the live cam
The action lives on the Farol da Nazaré webcam, pointed at Praia do Norte. We link out rather than re-host any video.
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Nazaré tours and experiences
Lighthouse walks, food tastings and guided days out — bookable with free cancellation.
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Where to sleep in Nazaré
Big swells fill the town fast. Compare hotels and apartments near Praia do Norte.
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