- Temperature
- Feels like
- Rain
- Wind
- Sea water
- Waves
- Updated
Sea water: 16.5°C, cooling slightly to around 16°C over the coming days
Waves: 1.7m
At 16.5 °C the water in Vila do Conde is cold. Without a wetsuit, a swim stays short.
Sunrise: 07:44 · Sunset: 18:57 · Day length: 11h 13m
| Day | Sea water | Waves |
|---|---|---|
| Monday 12/10 | 16.5 °C | 1.7 m |
| Tuesday 13/10 | 16.5 °C | 1.6 m |
| Wednesday 14/10 | 16.6 °C | 1.7 m |
| Thursday 15/10 | 16.5 °C | 1.8 m |
| Friday 16/10 | 16.3 °C | 1.9 m |
| Saturday 17/10 | 16.2 °C | 1.8 m |
| Sunday 18/10 | 15.7 °C | 1.4 m |
| Month | Average water |
|---|---|
| January | 13.8 °C |
| February | 13.8 °C |
| March | 14.2 °C |
| April | 15.6 °C |
| May | 15.7 °C |
| June | 17.3 °C |
| July | 16.6 °C |
| August | 16.5 °C |
| September | 16.5 °C |
| October | 18.0 °C |
| November | 16.7 °C |
| December | 14.8 °C |
Monthly averages for 2022–2025.
This page shows the water temperature at Vila do Conde today and over the next seven days, so you can pick the best beach day before you go.
Sea temperature moves much more slowly than air temperature. A hot afternoon does not warm the ocean, and a windy day can cool it fast. Checking the water itself is the only reliable way to know what to expect.
Vila do Conde stands at the mouth of the Ave river, with its beaches stretching north from the river bar along an open Atlantic shore. The river adds a little warmth and a lot of movement to the water near the mouth, but the coast itself is fully exposed to the summer northerly. The sea sits near 16.3 °C in August, marginally milder than Póvoa just up the coast and still cold enough that most swimmers stay in wetsuits.
The water is warmest in October, averaging 18.0 °C, and coldest in January at 13.8 °C. This is Portugal's coldest water: upwelling is at its most persistent here and holds the warming back even at the height of summer.
The ocean gains and loses heat far more slowly than land, so it runs months behind the seasons. On top of that, the summer northerly wind pushes surface water offshore and draws cold deep water up in its place, which is why a heatwave on land so often coincides with a colder sea.
The beaches north of the Ave give open Atlantic surf, with schools running in summer and consistent waves outside it. Along the river there is calmer water for kayaking and paddling, and the walk past the Santa Clara convent and its aqueduct is the town classic. Swimming is a quick-dip affair here unless you have a wetsuit.