On the hunt for the best Lisbon surf camp right now? We’ve done the legwork. The result is this list of particularly excellent surf camps in the Lisbon region, which will let you check off the sights of the capital while catching some frothing Portuguese waves.
In a country with more than 580 miles of coastline on the Atlantic Ocean and some of the coolest surf towns in the whole of Europe, we’d rarely recommend you stick around Lisbon for too long. But even the capital is a bit of a surf town, with some excellent urban waves within a 30-minute transfer of the center.
You can spend a day or two exploring the great neighborhoods of downtown Lisbon, from the moody Alfama to the hedonistic Bairro Alto, and then head for a surf camp on one of the nearby beaches. Alternatively, there are now even surf camps that are tailored specifically to city breakers who only have a few days, allowing for some surf time plus all that sightseeing in one fell swoop.
It’s not likely that you’ll get a surf camp actually in the core of Lisbon itself. Most sit closer to the beaches on the surrounding shores. There are two coastlines to know about: The Estoril Coast, which goes west and then north towards Sintra, and the Costa da Caparica, which is just over the Tagus river to the south. Both have great options (see below) and are usually under an hour from the heart of the capital.
We might use affiliate links in this post. Basically, you click em’ and we get a little something from your booking or purchase. They help us keep offering more and more in-depth surf guides to awesome places all around the globe. So, thanks for that!
This is just one part of our complete overall guide to surfing in Portugal
It’s also a part of our complete guide to surf camps
Surf Cascais
The best Lisbon surf camp for 2023
- Location: Cascais
- Price: Deals start at $444 (£362) for seven nights
There are certainly some purists here who will cry foul when they see we’ve chosen Surf Cascais as our numero uno. The reason? It’s not strictly in Lisbon itself, but rather just down the Estoril Coast near the resort of Cascais (the clue’s in the name, eh?). In our defense, that’s actually a great place to be if surfing is your main priority and sightseeing is your second, plus Cascais and Lisbon are now linked by a direct train that takes just one hour.
What you’ll gain by coming out here is an action-packed surf itinerary that has a whopping 12 hours of surfing spread across six days. That’s two hours of surfing per day, with just one day off. The location also makes it easy to get access to the less-bust Sintra coastline, which means you can leave behind busy Carcavelos and do some sessions on gorgeous Praia Grande to the west.
The guys here manage to create a very sociable atmosphere. Everyone dines together in the evening. Everyone chills together post-surf by the pool (and it’s a lovely pool, BTW!). Most accommodation is in shared dorms. Packages start at around $450 for the full eight days.
A note on why we partner with BookSurfCamps.com: Book Surf Camps are probably the biggest online aggregator of surf camps and surf-yoga packages in the world. We sounded out a quite a few potential partners before we affiliated with them. But, in the end, the abundance of choice for beginners, intermediates, and female-only surfing sealed it. We also love the simplicity of their booking system and the trusted brand name, along with the focus on connecting with homegrown local businesses on the ground.
Surf Lisbon House & School
The best city break surf camp in Lisbon
- Location: Caxias, Lisbon
- Price: 4 days/3 nights starting at (£168) per person
Surf Lisbon House & School unapologetically bill themselves as the “best surf camp in Lisbon.” We find it hard to disagree. They’re one of the few true surf camps here that actually offer you a stay in the city itself. Just stroll out to Caxias station and you can catch the light rail into the downtown to be sipping Sagres beers in the bars of the Bairro Alto in less than 10 minutes. The incredible history sights of the Belém Tower and the Jerónimos Monastery are even closer than that.
They back that up with a very comprehensive surf package that’s perfectly calibrated for fly-in city breakers. It lasts just four days and includes two full half days of guided tuition. If that doesn’t seem like long enough to improve, then we see you and raise you the fact that there’s NEVER a worse ratio than five learners to one instructor on this course, plus all instructors are certified by the Portuguese Surfing Federation.
That brings us neatly to where you’ll be staying. It’s a real home-away-from-home sorta’ place, only probably a whole load better than your own pad. The reason? It’s got gorgeous views of the Tagus Estuary and a choice of both shared and private rooms that are done out in charming Portuguese styles. There will never be more than 18 people staying there at once, which helps to nurture camaraderie and good vibes from the get-go. Oh yea, and at just $200 or so, the package here is a bargain!
Moby Dick Lodge
The best off-the-beaten-track Lisbon surf camp
- Location: Cascais
- Price: 8 days/7 nights starting at $599 (£488) per person)
The family-owned Moby Dick Lodge is a fantastic surf camp option for surfers who want to escape to the less-crowded waves of the Sintra Coast. Okay, so doing that means sacrificing life in the big city itself, but the packages these guys run balance that out by offering guided tours of Sintra town, an unforgettable UNESCO World Heritage Site that’s like something plucked from the pages of a Disney script.
We have a lot of time for the casual and friendly approach to teaching that’s championed by the in-house instructors (and owners) Caetano Machado and Paulo Machado. They’re a father-and-son duo with over 70 years of combined experience teaching the basics right up to more technical maneuvers for advanced surfers. They’ll take you out on five, two-hour sessions, usually on the gorgeous beaches around Praia do Guincho to the west of the camp.
The Salty Pelican
The best Lisbon surf camp for yogis
- Location: Cascais
- Price: 4 days/3 nights starting at $388 (£316) per person
Regular readers will know that we often tout the high-quality packages offered by The Salty Pelican brand. In the last few years they seem to have expanded at a breakneck speed, conquering the bays of south Sri Lanka and the World Surfing Reserve of Ericeira. But there’s something to be said for returning to the original in 2023. It’s down on the sunny shores of Cascais, just an hour’s train outside of Lisbon.
They offer a 4-day meditation and yoga package that’s really heavily weighted to the chill side of things. You’ll do daily yoga, sometimes twice daily, sometimes more – guests actually get UNLIMITED access to the in-house yoga classes. There’s only one guided surf lesson included but that’s a bit of a misnomer, since you’ll also have use of the boards and wetsuits whenever you like.
The property itself is something exquisite. Expect a grand Portuguese townhouse with painted exteriors and vintage-cool interiors. At night, the garden area becomes a party zone. You’re sure to leave with a whole bunch of new yoga-surf buddies!
Lisbon Surf Villa
The best Lisbon surf camp for quiet waves
- Location: Costa da Caparica, Lisbon
- Price: Deals start at $350 (£368) for four nights
The Lisbon Surf Villa is sat over on the south side of the Tagus River, close to the long and seemingly endless beach breaks of the Costa da Caparica. This is where we go to get the unbusy waves and escape the localism that plagues the breaks of the Estoril Coast closer to the city. Okay, getting to the heart of the capital for your dose of nightlife and sightseeing will take longer. The payoff is dawnies all to yourself, not another soul around.
A couple of pretty good surf camps are now popping up along the 14-mile Costa da Caparica. However, the Lisbon Surf Villa still reigns supreme in our eyes. It’s a classic backpacker surf stay with shared dorm rooms, a shared kitchen, and a sunny garden and pool area. It’s 20 minutes’ walk to the beach though sleepy neighborhoods and just has great vibes all round.
We might use affiliate links in this post. Basically, you click em’ and we get a little something from your booking or purchase. They help us keep offering more and more in-depth surf guides to awesome places all around the globe. So, thanks for that!
