Ericeira’s beaches and waves are worldwide famous. Thousands of Portuguese and foreign travelers come to Ericeira to enjoy its wonderful beaches and fantastic waves. In this article, we will explore each of the best of Ericeira’s beaches, which are good for surfing, bathing, or sunbathing.
World-renowned for its waves, Ericeira was classified as a World surfing reserve in 2011. It was only the second-world surfing reserve in the world and is still the only one in Europe. This made Ericeira a top surf destination in the world.
The world reserve is only 4km long, starting at Empa Beach til São Lourenço Beach, but in this short distance, there are seven world-class waves: Pedra Branca, Reef, e Ribeira dailies, Cave, Crazy Left, Coxos e São Lourenço.
In this article, we will travel from south to north, exploring the 10 best beaches in Ericeira, some urban, others less developed, and obviously the world-surfing reserve.
Best beaches in Ericeira
Foz do Lizandro Beach
This is the biggest beach in Ericeira, but possibly our favorite. It’s both a surf beach (at least for learning and beginners) and for swimming. It always has lots of people and a diverse crowd – it’s full of foreigners, families, children, groups of teenagers, and surfers.
The beach in Foz do Lizandro has excellent infrastructure. It has several cafes/restaurants, surf schools, public showers, bathrooms, and parking lots.
Together with Ribeira d’ilhas, it’s the best beach for surfing lessons and renting boards. Renting a board should cost about 10 Euros, a lesson about 30 Euros, and a weekly pack a little over 100 Euros. We believe this is a fair price for an amazing surf week in a wonderful spot.
- Surf – Yes, great for learning. Has surf schools;
- Surf reserve – No;
- Swim – Good;
- Sand– Yes, and long;
- Accessibility – good, with showers and toilets;
Sul or Baleia Beach
Praia Sul (South Beach) is the best beach for non-surfers. It’s great for sunbathing and swimming in the ocean without worrying about surfers and bodyboarders. It’s also very well protected from the wind due to the high cliffs of Ericeira to the north. Furthermore, the rocks form a lagoon north of the beach during low tide, close to the wonderful Hotel Vila Galé.
As it’s right in the south of Ericeira, it’s still considered an urban beach and maybe the best beach that’s easily accessible on foot from the town center. It has a parking lot (but it fills up very quickly) and several services.
- Surf – No
- Surf Reserve – No
- Water – excellent for swimming
- Sandy – yes
- Accessibility – good with showers, toilets, and shades
Pescadores Beach
Praia dos Pescadores (Fisherman Beach) is the most central of the beaches in Ericeira and, consequently, the easiest to reach from the town center. It’s a beautiful non-surfer beach with a long stretch of sand and several wonderful lookouts from above. Unfortunately, the seaport of Ericeira is right next to it, which makes it a bit less pleasant.
On the other hand, it’s clearly the best-protected beach in Ericeira. The huge cliffs protect it from the wind, and the port protects it from the waves. In hindsight, it’s a very nice beach, particularly if you don’t feel like walking a lot or just want to sunbathe without wind.
- Surf – No
- Surf Reserve – No
- Water – just ok (it’s too close to the seaport)
- Sandy – long and big
- Accessibility – good with showers, toilets and shades
Praia Norte (Northern beach)
Praia Norte (northern beach) is another urban beach, now on the north side of Ericeira, as the name suggests. It’s a rather good beach, but in Ericeira’s terms, it’s only average. We believe it’s the least memorable of the beaches close to the center. It has a relatively long stretch of sand but is narrow, particularly during high tide.
- Surf – No
- Surf Reserve – No
- Water – Good
- Sandy – Yes, long but narrow
- Accessibility – Ok, but we know no public showers or toilets exist.
São Sebastião Beach
This beach almost disappears during high tide, so you may think it’s not good. However, it becomes much better during low tide, and it’s actually nice and lovely to be in. Located to the north of Ericeira, it’s a less developed and uncrowded beach, though it’s perfectly possible to walk there.
The famous S. Sebatião chapel and a huge parking lot are close to the beach, which is very useful in the Summer and on weekends.
- Surf – No
- Surf Reserve – No
- Water – not the easiest place to swim
- Sandy – yes, long but very narrow
- Accessibility – only stairs, no toilets or showers
Matadouro beach
Matadouro Beach is clearly a surfer’s beach, especially for surfer schools. It’s a completely rocky beach with little to no sand, making it inadequate for sunbathers and swimmers.
On the other hand, the low tide created small pools where you can play with children and walk around. Unfortunately, access to Matadouro Beach isn’t very easy, and there are barely any parking spots.
- Surf – Yes, it is good for learning. Several schools go there.
- Surf Reserve – No
- Water – not for swimmers
- Sandy – no. rocky beach
- Accessibility – Difficult. We know of no showers or WCs.
Empa Beach
Empa Beach is a beach for surfers and bodyboarders, but it has some sand, making it suitable for other beachgoers. It’s the first beach inside the Surf reserve, and it has two waves: Pedra Branca and Reef.
This makes Empa a very popular beach among surfers and people who enjoy seeing surf. You should also note that Empa is a very rocky beach, making going to the water an adventure. However, due to the same rocks, the water is crystal clear and calm in some parts of the beach.
- Surf – Yes, but no surf schools
- Surf Reserve – Yes, two waves, Pedra Branca and Reef.
- Water – Good for swimmers
- Sandy – sandy and rocky beach.
- Accessibility – Not the easiest beach to access. No showers or WC
Ribeira d’ilhas Beach
The most legendary of the beaches in Ericeira and the world-surfing reserve. Besides the famous Ribeira d’ilhas wave, you can find several surf schools where you can learn how to surf or rent aboard. The sand stretch is huge, so you’ll find a very eclectic crowd with tourists and locals, surfers and non-surfers, youngsters, families, and couples.
It’s similar to Foz do Lizandro in many ways, but with the “detail” of having a famous wave as part of a surfing reserve. It has excellent access and infrastructure, several cafes, public toilets, showers, and a huge parking lot.
Finally, we must mention the Ribeira d’ilhas lookout, which offers absolutely wonderful beach views and lovely sunsets. It’s also on this lookout that it was placed the surfer statue.
- Surf – Yes, with surf school for beginners
- Surf Reserve – Yes, ribeira d’ilhas wave
- Water – Excellent for swimmers
- Sandy – a huge stretch of sand
- Accessibility – excellent. It has everything you may need and more.
Coxos beach
Another excellent surfers’ beach, part of the surfing reserve. Coxos Wave is well-known and one of the most popular among local surfers. It’s said that this wave and the passion of local surfers led to the reserve’s candidature. As it’s already well outside Ericeira, it becomes less popular among foreigners and non-specialists.
Although it’s mainly a surfer’s beach, it has a short but nice sand stretch with a small bar and toilets. It’s also one of the easiest beaches to admire surfers and their skills.
- Surf – Yes, but no surf school.
- Surf Reserve – Yes, Coxos wave
- Water – Good for swimmers, too
- Sandy – yes
- Accessibility – Ok, with a ramp. It has a small bar, too.
São Lourenço Beach
Coming from the south, this is the last beach on the World Reserve and also the last beach on this list. It is similar to Ribeira d’ilhas, and Foz do Lizandro, as it has a small course of water, huge sands, and a surf school.
Maybe because it’s further away from Ericeira, it’s the least popular of the three. The waves are certainly good in terms of surf, but you’ll see far fewer surfers there.
- Surf – Yes, with a surf school
- Surf Reserve – Yes, S. Lourenço wave
- Water – Good for swimmers, too
- Sandy – yes, long and wide.
- Accessibility – good, with ramp, bars, showers, toilets, etc
These are the beaches of Ericeira, and as you can see, there’s a little of everything. But, mainly, there are a lot of options for aquatic sports like surfing and bodyboarding, but also SUP or even windsurfing.
On the other hand, Ericeira has much more than just its beaches, so we strongly suggest you look at what you can do there!
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