Ericeira, Portugal.
I had previously been to Portugal twice. Lisbon (where I missed my flight as I forgot my passport - idiot) and Lagos (where all I did was drink and lay on the beach hungover as I had a good friend living there at the time, working at the infamous Three Monkeys Bar). So I was really excited to visit Portugal again with G and give it a proper go. This time surfing and exploring more of what the West coast had to offer.
Stay Here.
We stayed in Ericeira, close to Praia da Ribeira D'Ilhas which has, apparently, the best surf breaks in Europe and second best in the world. Beautiful cliffs and clear water. Definitely the most challenging surf we have attempted - it is quite rocky and the swell can get quite big. I also managed to get a sea urchin stuck in my toe even with booties on and without seeing any sea urchins...
There are a few Air BnB options for the area however if you are looking to surf where we did, then Filipa's apartment is in a great location as it is walking distance to the above mentioned beach. There is also a great cafe on her street for any pastry, bread and coffee requirements.
The only issue was that the apartment wasn't really walking to distance to the restaurants in Ericeira. It didn't bother us though as we had a car which I would recommend hiring in any case in order to get here from Lisbon (and to also visit other places in the area). Just note there are toll roads so have some cash handy if you do end up on one (at the time of visiting they did not accept card payment).
Visit Here.
Praia da Ribeira d'Ilhas.
This is the main reason we stayed in Ericeira. The surf. There are a number of surf hire shops should you need a board, wetsuit etc. We had a lesson with Pocean just to see if the Portuguese had anything hot tips for us and unfortunately we didn't get a lot out of it. I think it was more so because we weren't absolute beginners so he did focus more on those than us which is fine. So personally, I would recommend them more for board hire etc.
If you are looking to just chill out on the beach, walk through the rocks to the left of the main beach and there is a quiet cove where for some reason, not many people go to.
Berlenga Grande Island + Peniche.
About an hour or so drive away is the town of Peniche. Also known for its surfing however we visited here in order to get to the Berlenga Grande Island. A ferry ride across costs around €20 return per person departing from Peniche Harbour. The 30min ride over is quite choppy but totally worth it.
You can walk around the island on the trails so a wee bit of fitness is required however the highlight is definitely the Fort of the Berlengas. This is the reason I wanted to visit this island. The water is beautiful, there are caves you can swim into, fish you can swim next to with/without snorkels and at the bottom of the fort you can jump into the water. You can pay to go on a glass bottom boat but I don't see the point in that (unless you did not want to walk to the fort or back up). I would recommend just staying here for most of the day rather than going back to the ferry drop off part of the island where many people catch the sun and swim in the cove.
Tapada Nacional de Mafra.
A short drive away from Ericeira is this national park where you can take a number of trails to see the wildlife on offer. Deers, wild boars, foxes, badgers... As this was the hunting ground for the Royal family (the Mafra Palace is nearby), they do still offer hunting on the grounds. Not really my thing or something I agree with but the trek we did was pretty decent (and hot!). Stoked I got to see Pumba and mini Pumba too.
Eat Here.
Mar d'Areia, Ericeira.
Considering we were on the coast and in Portugal, seafood is on every menu. At Mar d'Areia, the seafood is fresh and basically all they serve with potatoes. The sardines were amazing as was the sea bream. We wanted the octopus as well so our waiter had the chef put it together with onions which was delish. It was definitely a locals place as it had a really cosy setting. Top marks from us.
Ribeira d'Ihas Beach Bar and Cafe.
Sometimes after a day at the beach (ok, 99% of the time) you want an ice, cold beer. Especially in Portugal where the weather can be rather hot so the location of this bar was ideal. The food wasn't too bad but I would mainly come here for beers. There is also an upper deck where, when it is open, you can recline on bean bags, drink beer and over-look the beach listening to tunes.
Kfe, Ericeira.
We were craving a decent coffee. Kfe is super cute and offers great coffee - it uses the same beans as Department of Coffee and Social Affairs, London. The breakfast is basic but tasty. I highly recommend the peanut butter with honey and coconut on toast.
Mar&Sol, Berlenga Grande.
Fresh seafood and great views. Not as over-priced as you would think considering it is one of two restaurants on the island. G had the mussels which were delicious.
The Base, Baleal.
This place has a really good vibe. Gutted we couldn't time it better so that we could watch the sunset here as it overlooks the beach of Baleal (near Peniche). The G&T was delicious (not cheap) and their sundowner sessions look pretty fun if you are staying in the area.
Taberna Do Ganhao, Baleal.
So not only does this place look good, it tastes bloody good. The octopus and potato salad was delicious but the spicy gumbo prawns were the best dish we tried there. The dessert was a traditional Portuguese condensed milk and biscuit style of treat but it was good whatever it was.
This week long beach trip to Portugal was not only good for the surfing, giving me some solid wipe out practice on bigger waves, but it was also perfect for experiencing other adventures (and food) this part of Portuguese coastline has to offer.
Flights can be so cheap from London to Lisbon depending on what month you want to visit. We flew with RyanAir and EasyJet. I recommend looking to comparison sites like Skyscanner or Kayak to get the best deal.
Car hire cost around £160 (for an automatic) for five days. I used Holiday Autos to compare but it is worth looking at a couple of comparison sites. Buy your third party car excess online and shop around for this as well.
Accommodation options are good across both Air BnB and Booking.com. It cost £173 per person for five nights so just over £30 a night for two.
Portugal is cheap. Lidl had a 20 pack of Sagres mini bottles for €8. Depending on where you go, dinner cost between €25-€40 for the two of us (including drinks and usually a dessert -also applicable when we ordered fresh seafood too).
