Supertubos is one of the most known spots in Portugal and in the world. It is a yearly stop for WSL, and any advanced surfer that knows how to barrel wants to come here at least once. Could you be next?
Description of the spot
Supertubos is a fast, powerful and hollow wave, that brings almost non-stop barrels on every set. The main peak it’s almost always working if there’s enough swell and offers a good left that holds longer than the right. However, you will need to paddle hard to get into the wave, and you may need to go through a couple wipeouts to learn which waves are just a close-out and which ones are the good ones.
Along the beach there are also other peaks that may work, the better the quality the more people you will find on it. On small days, the peaks with less quality and less people are also perfect for intermediate surfers that want to start practicing on fast waves.
When the swells are big Supertubos is definetely a spot only for advanced and pro surfers.
There are no big currents (even on big days), rocks or hazards to highlight at Supertubos, so the only things you need to be aware about are other people’s boards or surfers dropping-in on you (or you not dropping-in on anyone 😉 ).
Crowds and localism
Being a super known spot, you can be sure you will need to pull back a few ones because there’s some other surfer paddling for it or surfing it. So yes, that means that the quality of the barrels you can find here makes it one of the most crowded spots in Portugal.
As well Peniche is a small town, where everyone knows who is local and who is not. Locals know that Supertubos is a surf magnet in Portugal and in Europe, and they are OK with everyone surfing here. However, be aware that you will find quite a bit of a competitive crowd and guys that will paddle for every single wave they can. That means that, on busy days, if you are able to catch a couple or three waves per hour you should feel very happy about it.
Video of Supertubos waves
Check this short clip from Magicseaweed featuring a session on Supertubos on quite a big day:
Services and access to the spot
Access to Supertubos it’s easy: there are two big parking lots just in front of the beach. Also in the same beach there are two bars, and the town of Peniche is just around the corner.
