Surf Camps in Ericeira, Portugal: 17 Compared (2026)
Compare 17 surf camps in Ericeira, Portugal: rated 4.6/5, 5-9ft swell. Learner waves: All year. Ratings, surf conditions and season side by side.
Ericeira (8) · Foz do Lizandro (3) · Praia do Sul (3) · Ribeira d'Ilhas (1) · Praia do Norte (1) · Coxos (1)
Meals included at 12 of the 12 camps that state it. Yoga offered at 14 camps. Video analysis of your surfing at 9 camps. As stated on each camp’s own website.
Ericeira is the only World Surfing Reserve in Europe: about five kilometres of coast holding seven world-class waves, from the sand at Foz do Lizandro to the slab at Coxos. That range is the reason to come and the reason the choice is hard - a camp that suits a first week here is not the one that suits a fifth trip, and the two can be a ten-minute walk apart.
When to go: waves by month
How often each surf town here has waves for each level, month by month, 1995–2025. First lessons happen in the whitewater near the shore, so they are said in words; the other levels are named by what you can do and the size of the wave on the body. What’s my level? · How we calculate this
Ericeira · 17 camps
First lessons (whitewater near the shore): Almost every day, all year.
| % of days | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First lessons | 94% | 94% | 96% | 99% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 98% | 97% | 93% |
| Too small | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Too big | 6% | 6% | 4% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 2% | 3% | 7% |
| Beginner (green waves) | 55% | 61% | 69% | 81% | 95% | 97% | 98% | 99% | 94% | 79% | 74% | 61% |
| Intermediate | 92% | 90% | 91% | 88% | 80% | 67% | 64% | 62% | 74% | 86% | 90% | 89% |
| Advanced | 88% | 89% | 85% | 71% | 58% | 43% | 37% | 37% | 53% | 73% | 82% | 88% |
Beginner (green waves) (knee to chest high): most days, all year · Intermediate (chest high to just overhead): most days, all year · Advanced (head high and up): most days in Sep–May
Model estimate: no suitable buoy within 50 km to check it against.
Days that miss first lessons are too small when every learner spot is under 0.5 m, and too big when none is in the 0.5–2 m band and one is above it. The other levels are read on the face of the wave at its peak: beginner on green waves 0.6–1.2 m, intermediate 1.2–2 m, advanced 1.5 m and up.
What a surf week costs in Ericeira
From €510 to €799 per person, median €558, across the 6 of 17 camps that publish a week with surf lessons included (each camp’s lowest).
Lowest published surf weeks
- Ericeira Surf House · from €510 (7 nights · shared room · breakfast · 3 surf lessons (6 h) · board and wetsuit)
- Hostel & Surf 55 Ericeira · from €526 (6 nights · dorm bed · 6 surf lessons (12 h) · board and wetsuit · airport transfer)
- PURE Sunset Ericeira · from €548 (stay €329 + surf course €219 · 7 nights · dorm bed · breakfast · 5 surf lessons (10 h) · board and wetsuit)
Figures from each camp’s own site, with the date on its page. Room, season and what is included differ, so compare the package, not only the price.
1. Ericeira Surf House
★ 4.9/5 (154 reviews) · Foz do Lizandro
Surfer-focused bed and breakfast with a pool and sea views, a fifteen-minute walk from Foz do Lizandro - the sandy beach break most people learn on in Ericeira.
2. Hostel & Surf 55 Ericeira
★ 4.7/5 (156 reviews) · Praia do Sul
Ocean-front hostel and surf camp in the middle of Ericeira, known as the budget option in town, with two surf sessions a day plus a theory class.
3. PURE Sunset Ericeira
★ 4.5/5 (92 reviews) · Ericeira
A surf house at Ericeira. Breakfast included. Yoga, SUP, surf theory sessions, video analysis and excursions run alongside the surfing. Stays run as fixed weekly packages.
Half board · Suite · Yoga · SUP · Video analysis · Excursions
4. PURE Villa Ericeira
★ 4.5/5 (92 reviews) · Ericeira
A surf house at Ericeira. Breakfast included. Yoga, skateboarding, SUP, surf theory sessions, video analysis, excursions and a gym run alongside the surfing. Stays run as fixed weekly packages.
Half board · Suite · Yoga · Skateboarding · SUP · Video analysis · Excursions · Fitness
5. Lapoint Ericeira
★ 4.6/5 (492 reviews) · Foz do Lizandro
Lapoint's biggest surf camp in Portugal, close to Foz do Lizandro and about a 25-minute walk to Ericeira village. Offers surf packages for levels 1-4 plus guiding, with extras like coworking, yoga, and a big social scene.
Half board · Yoga · Fitness · Excursions
6. The Salty Surf & Yoga
★ 4.6/5 (160 reviews) · Ericeira
Surf and yoga house in Ericeira pairing daily sessions in the water with a mat-based programme on land.
7. Mauka Lodge
★ 5/5 (86 reviews) · Ericeira
Small retreat covering both paddle and surf, on the quieter side of Ericeira.
8. Ocean House Ericeira
★ 4.8/5 (117 reviews) · Ericeira
Guest house a short walk from the water, aimed at surfers who want a quiet base rather than a camp programme.
9. Chill in Ericeira Surfhouse
★ 4.8/5 (91 reviews) · Praia do Sul · from €21 per night
Surf house run by former Portuguese national surf champion Joana Rocha, on a hill above Praia do Sul and two minutes from the town centre. Garden, hammocks and ocean views.
10. GiG Capsule Hostel
★ 4.9/5 (49 reviews) · Ericeira
Capsule hostel in the centre of Ericeira - each bed is an enclosed pod rather than an open bunk, which suits light sleepers on a hostel budget.
11. Laneez Ericeira Surf House
★ 4.7/5 (103 reviews) · Praia do Sul
Design-led surf house perched on the cliff over Praia do Sul, steps from the centre of Ericeira. Around twenty-four beds across dorms and private rooms.
12. Ericeira Surf Camp & Hostel
★ 4.6/5 (130 reviews) · Ribeira d'Ilhas
Long-running independent surf camp and hostel in the centre of Ericeira, a five-minute walk from the beach. Instructors are certified by the Portuguese Surf Federation, and the camp sits inside the Ericeira World Surfing Reserve - the only one in Europe.
13. Surfer's Den Ericeira
★ 4.6/5 (92 reviews) · Praia do Norte
Social surf hostel in Ericeira town with dorms and private rooms, built around a communal surf-house atmosphere rather than a resort setup.
14. WOT Ericeira Surf Social
★ 4.5/5 (712 reviews) · Ericeira
Large social surf hostel in Ericeira town, built around shared spaces and a steady turnover of surfers rather than fixed weekly camp intakes.
15. Rapture Ericeira Lizandro
Rapture's house beside Foz do Lizandro, the sandy beach break where most of Ericeira learns, with dorms, private rooms, doubles and suites for 30. Breakfast and dinner are included on 12 meals a week, and skateboarding, kayaking, SUP and surf theory fill the gaps between sessions.
Half board · Suite · Yoga · Skateboarding · SUP
16. Rapture Ericeira Coxos
A surf house beside Coxos in Ericeira. Half board included. Yoga, SUP and surf theory sessions run alongside the surfing. Stays run as fixed weekly packages.
All meals · Suite · Yoga · SUP
17. WOT Lodge Soul
★ 4/5 (141 reviews) · Ericeira
Second WOT property in Ericeira, quieter than the Surf Social hostel and closer to a lodge than a party hostel.
Pick the beach before the camp
The breaks differ more than the accommodation does. Foz do Lizandro is sand-bottomed, forgiving and where nearly every lesson happens. Ribeira d'Ilhas is the long, mellow right that lets an improver work on turns - it is where the pro contest runs, but on a normal swell it is nothing to be scared of. Praia do Sul and Praia do Norte sit within walking distance of town. Coxos, Cave and Reef are heavy reef and shallow: they are why advanced surfers come, and not somewhere to paddle out on week one. Choose the water you want, then the camp near it.
When to go
Ericeira works all year, which sets it apart from the French Landes. September to November is the sweet spot: consistent Atlantic swell, water still around 17-18°C, and the summer crowd gone. Winter brings the biggest surf and the reefs at their best, but also the most days when a beginner cannot go out. June to August is smallest and busiest - fine for a first lesson, thin for anyone past that.
Camps, hostels and surf houses
The three are not interchangeable. A camp sells a week: accommodation, lessons, transport to whichever break is working, and a group you eat with. A surf house rents you a bed near the water and leaves the surfing to you. A hostel is the cheapest way to sleep in town and usually sells lessons separately. If it is your first trip, the camp package is worth the premium precisely because someone else reads the forecast; if you already surf, you are paying for a service you will not use.
Getting there
Lisbon airport is about fifty minutes by car, and most camps offer a transfer. Public transport works but adds a couple of hours. A car is genuinely useful here - the difference between surfing the one break by your bed and following the swell along the reserve.
Common questions
Is Ericeira suitable for complete beginners?
Yes, at Foz do Lizandro and Praia do Sul, which are sandy and gentle. Ericeira also has some of the heaviest reef in Europe, so what matters is which break your camp teaches at - not the town's reputation.
Camp, surf house or hostel?
A camp bundles lessons, transport and a group into a fixed week and suits a first trip. A surf house gives you a bed near the water and no programme. A hostel is the cheapest bed and sells lessons separately.
What is the best month to surf Ericeira?
September to November: consistent swell, water around 17-18°C and far fewer people than summer. Winter is bigger and better for experienced surfers; June to August is the smallest and most crowded.
Do I need a car?
Not to surf - camps run transport and the town breaks are walkable. But a car is what lets you move between the reserve's breaks as conditions change through the week.
How does Ericeira compare with Taghazout or Fuerteventura?
Ericeira has the better and more varied waves and works year-round, but the water is colder and the reefs are unforgiving. Taghazout and Fuerteventura are warmer winter options with gentler point and beach breaks.