Conditions at Nazare in May
May: Shoulder-Season Cruising
May is noticeably smaller and more inconsistent. Average swell height is 5ft (1.5m) and the wave period has fallen to 10.0 seconds, so there is less push in the water. The swell direction is overwhelmingly north of west: NW 35.2 percent, WNW 23.7 percent, NNW 21.7 percent and W 10.4 percent. A lot of this is short-to-medium-period NW windswell and groundswell, which means fun, rippable waves on the inside but not much of the heaving canyon energy. Ideal offshore wind only happens 32 percent of the time; the dominant wind is NNW at 39.3 percent, often strengthening in the afternoon. Early morning can produce clean offshore-leaning windows before the sea breeze kicks in. Water temperature warms to 16.4°C and air temps average 16.3°C, so the small-wave board selection becomes more important than the big-wave quiver.
Average Spot conditions at Nazare in May
Swell history for May
Wind history for May
Swell quality
Analyze the groundswell consistency at Nazare during May. Based on historical data, there is a % probability of groundswell occurring this month. The chart below provides a detailed breakdown of the average wave height distribution, offering deep insights into the swell quality and surf potential you can expect at Nazare for your next trip in May.
Ground swell
Ground swell by size
Wind conditions
Evaluate the wind and swell alignment at Nazare for May. Our analysis shows that favorable offshore or side-shore winds coincide with surfable swell approximately % of the time. The accompanying graph illustrates the average size distribution of waves during these optimal wind windows at Nazare.