Surf Forecasts:
The Reef surf forecast from 16 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 17 Aug, 7AM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 8s period, NNW swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Friday 21 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 9s period, NNW swell with 1,205 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 17 Aug, 7AM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 8s period with NNW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Reef this week:
The surf forecast for The Reef over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 17) at 7AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.7m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.2m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at The Reef in the next 16 days are 3.0m 9s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Aug 21) at 10AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.2m 16s period and expected on Tuesday (Aug 18) at 4PM.
| Wave Type | Time (WEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 7AM (Mon 17th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 7AM (Mon 17th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 10AM (Fri 21st Aug) | 10ft (3.0m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Reef over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let’s break this down. The Reef – a solid reef break, loves NW swell. We’re looking at a long 16-day forecast.
First real action is early Sunday morning on the 16th of August – 2.0m swell from the NNW, light cross-off breeze out of the NNE at 6 mph. Water’s about 68°, normal for this time of year. Energy’s solid in the moderate zone (534). That’s your best clean window – punchy, hollow, and you’ll have company because it’s “often” crowded. Only for advanced surfers.
Monday morning the 17th goes glassy – 1.7m NNW swell, light air, energy at 405. Good backup.
Then we hit a rough patch – days of onshore or cross-onshore junk. Thursday 20th afternoon gets messy with a 19 mph cross-on breeze. Friday the 21st brings a big 3.0m NNW swell with 1231 energy, but it’s cross-shore at 22 mph – lumpy and chaotic. That’s kite-surf territory.
Sunday the 30th morning shows a 2.2m NW swell with 1056 energy and a cross-shore breeze – marginal but might offer a few.
The one to highlight is Monday the 31st of August morning – a 1.7m NNW groundswell with an 11-second period, light cross-off breeze from the north at 9 mph, energy at 783. Clean, long lines on a reef – that could be the best of the whole run. Crowds likely.
So for the advanced crew: aim for Sunday 16th and Monday 31st mornings. Everything else is blown or just too messy.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 26°C on Sun morning, min 20°C on Mon night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Warm (max 22°C on Wed morning, min 19°C on Thu night). Winds increasing (calm on Wed night, fresh winds from the NNW by Thu night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 16 | Monday 17 | Tuesday 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 7 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 7 | NNW 6 | WNW 9 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 524 | 344 | 220 | 392 | 291 | 237 | 284 | 284 | 163 | 155 | 117 | 59 | 67 | 226 | 512 | 1205 | 864 | 705 | 457 | 377 | 257 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-on | cross | glassy | on | glassy | cross | cross-on | cross | cross-on | on | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 6:01PM2.95m | 6:23AM2.67m | 6:40PM2.71m | 7:02AM2.50m | 7:21PM2.44m | 7:44AM2.32m | 8:08PM2.18m | 8:37AM2.15m | 9:12PM1.98m | 9:50AM2.03m | 10:42PM1.88m | 11:22AM2.03m | 00:11AM1.94m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 11:44AM0.20m | 00:12AM0.24m | 12:23PM0.38m | 00:49AM0.46m | 1:04PM0.59m | 1:27AM0.69m | 1:50PM0.80m | 2:12AM0.91m | 2:50PM1.00m | 3:15AM1.09m | 4:18PM1.11m | 4:48AM1.16m | 5:56PM1.07m | ||||||||
 |  |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | 6:50 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:52 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — |
 | — | 8:31 | — | — | 8:30 | — | — | 8:29 | — | — | 8:27 | — | — | 8:25 | — | — | 8:24 | — | — | 8:22 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 26 | 24 | 22 | 26 | 24 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 21 |
Feels °C | 26 | 23 | 20 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 22 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 18 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 19 | 19 | 22 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | W 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 7 | NNW 6 | NNW 6 | WNW 9 | NNW 12 | WNW 8 | WNW 9 | WNW 11 | WNW 10 | WNW 9 | W 9 |
| kJ | 524 | 344 | 5 | 392 | 291 | 237 | 284 | 284 | 163 | 155 | 117 | 59 | 62 | 46 | 55 | 14 | 15 | 40 | 55 | 61 | 41 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 16 | SW 16 | SW 15 | W 8 | W 9 | WNW 8 | W 8 | SSW 16 | WNW 8 | WNW 8 | NW 10 | WNW 9 | WNW 9 | NNW 11 | WNW 9 | SSW 15 | WNW 12 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 14 |
| kJ | 10 | 11 | 9 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 24 | 13 | 12 | 27 | 49 | 67 | 12 | 26 | 21 | 27 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | SW 15 | SW 15 | SSW 16 | SSW 16 | WNW 8 | SSW 15 | SW 14 | SSW 14 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 13 | SSW 15 | W 12 | SSW 15 | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | 9 | 9 | 26 | 25 | 6 | 21 | 33 | 20 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 21 | 12 | 21 | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | NNW 7 | — | — | — | — | SSW 3 | — | — | SW 2 | — | — | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 8 | NNW 9 | NNW 9 |
| kJ | — | — | 220 | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 226 | 512 | 1205 | 864 | 705 | 457 | 377 | 257 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 194 | 29 | 0 | 218 | 0 | 0 | 839 | 0 | 0 | 218 | 26 | 27 | 548 | 229 | 231 | 406 | 27 | 119 | 422 | 48 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Ericeira | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Portugal | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our The Reef surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the The Reef Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for The Reef provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Reef can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Reef surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (The Reef) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for The Reef may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
The Reef is 15 km (9 miles) from the city of Sintra. If you plan a holiday in Ericeira, look for hotels and other accommodation in Sintra. Sintra has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest