A Portuguese surf trip isn’t exactly your stereotypical surf trip. Wake up with a quick espresso and croissant for breakfast, throw in a castle tour or two between surf sessions, patrol whatever ancient town you’re in, walking along cobblestone streets, and cap off just about every meal with a healthy amount of wine. It’s an experience like no other. And the waves are worth the effort, to boot.
“When people think about Portugal and surfing, it’s all about Ericeira, Nazaré, Peniche,” Nic von Rupp says. “The truth is Portugal is filled with waves off the beaten path, (you) just gotta look.”
Porto is the perfect example of this. It’s a place von Rupp turns to for all that old European history as well as “Mexico-style point breaks,” as he puts it. The coastal city is the country’s second-largest, well-known for its port wine, lined with bright, colorful homes and buildings on narrow streets. It’s not your first vision of a surf trip, but the fact that the busy city has easy access to quality waves hiding in plain sight makes for a unique style of strike mission.
Porto’s culture also provided something else for von Rupp to throw into the mix of his latest trip; he brought one of his oldest friends, Freddie Meadows, as well as both of their fathers. Waves, wine, and quality time with dads? That’ll top just about any all-time surf trip, hands down.
