Porto Covo tides today
High and low water for today and tomorrow, computed live rather than copied from a table, with what the tide actually decides here: which coves the rising water takes back, and which beaches keep sand whatever it is doing.
Today and tomorrow
High and low water at Porto Covo
Right now the water is rising at 0.4 m.
| Today | ||
|---|---|---|
| High water | 05:05 | 0.8 m |
| Low water | 11:07 | -1.7 m |
| High water | 17:21 | 0.9 m |
| Low water | 23:32 | -1.7 m |
| Tomorrow | ||
| High water | 05:45 | 0.7 m |
| Low water | 11:49 | -1.5 m |
| High water | 18:05 | 0.7 m |
Computed at 15:37, Porto Covo time.
What it decides
Why the tide matters more here than it looks
On a wide beach the tide decides how far you walk to the water. On this coast it decides which beaches exist at all. Several of the coves south of the village are reached across sand that the rising water takes back, and the way in is not always the way out.
Praia Grande, Praia da Vieirinha and Praia do Pessegueiro keep sand at any state of the tide. The small coves are for a falling tide. Praia das Gaivotas is the one we know closes: the sand route from Praia do Banho shuts as the water comes in.
Use the rule rather than a list, because the list is not complete and we are not going to pretend it is. If the tide is rising, take a beach with steps down or wide open sand. If it is falling, the coves are yours for a few hours. A narrow way back that a sure-footed adult crosses in a minute is a different proposition with a pushchair, with small children, or on wet rock you do not know.
If what you actually want is a plan rather than a table, the beach day planner takes the hour you intend to leave and works out which beach suits the tide and the wind when you would arrive, including the time to be walking back.
Where these numbers come from
Read this before you plan a walk on it
These are not the Instituto Hidrográfico tables for a named port. They are computed here from Open-Meteo's hourly sea-level series at a grid point off this coast, with the turning points found from the shape of the curve. Two consequences worth knowing:
The times are close to an official table and good enough to decide when to start walking back. The heights are metres relative to mean sea level, while official Portuguese tables are relative to chart datum, so the numbers will not match and are not meant to. Measured on this coast the curve runs roughly -2.0 m to +1.3 m.
This is model prediction, not measurement. It is good enough to say "leave before the water turns". It is not good enough to be the only thing between somebody and a cut-off cove.
Common questions
Porto Covo tides FAQ
How many tides a day are there at Porto Covo?
What is the tidal range here?
Which Porto Covo beaches are cut off at high tide?
Is it better to swim at high or low tide here?
Are these official tide tables?
What we have learned here
Things worth passing on
Read them allWe live with this village for part of every year, and some of what that teaches you is not written down anywhere. This is the useful half.
Eating cheaply in Porto Covo
Two places, one number that matters, and a Sunday problem. What the price symbols on a listing site will not tell you.
The day to avoid eating out in Porto Covo
Five places shut on a Tuesday, including two of the best-known tables. Both of the cheap options shut on a Sunday. And for nine of them nobody publishes a closing day at all.
Why we built Blue Cove in Porto Covo
A Portuguese family, a long time away, and a village that keeps pulling us home. What we tried to fix, and the one thing we will not take credit for.
Your base in Porto Covo
Stay at Blue Cove
A 3-bedroom apartment with 3 bathrooms and a private heated pool, sleeping 6, 500 m from Praia Grande and 15 minutes from the Rota Vicentina trailhead. Booked directly with Ivy, who confirms every reservation herself.
Keep exploring
More Porto Covo guides
Beaches
All thirteen beaches sorted by swimming, surf, sunset and seclusion.
Plan your beach day
Pick a departure time and get the beach that suits the tide and wind.
With kids
Calm beaches, rock pools, lifeguards and the family day trips.
Surf
The breaks, the seasons, the wetsuit you need and where to learn.
Checked
Eat and buy
Going further
All of it