Pedro DominguesIf you’re reading this article, I’m sure you’re not the usual tourist who visits Aveiro just to take a moliceiro boat ride through the city’s canals. You probably know that there are some extraordinary beaches facing the Atlantic Ocean, and you’re looking for the best ones to take a dip in the summer.
Aveiro’s most famous beaches are Costa Nova and Barra (in Ílhavo), but there are many others scattered around the municipalities of Vagos, Murtosa, Ovar and Espinho. Aveiro’s coastline is extensive, so it won’t be difficult to find a beach you like. 😉
In this article I’m going to introduce you to the 15 best beaches in Aveiro, in my opinion. Read on!
MORE ARTICLES FROM CENTRAL PORTUGAL: - Things to do in Espinho - Things to do in Ovar - Things to do in Aveiro - Aveiro to Costa Nova - Things to do in Mira beach - Things to do in Coimbra - Schist Villages in Portugal - Things to do in Figueira da Foz - Visit Monsanto in Portugal - Historical Village of Piódão - Historical Villages of Portugal - Things to do in Leiria - Visit Batalha Monastery and surroundings - Visit Alcobaça Monastery and surroundings - Things to do in Fátima - Visit Mira de Aire Caves - Things to do in Nazaré - Visit Berlenga Island - Best beaches in Peniche - Things to do in Peniche - Best beaches in Ericeira - Visit Ursa Beach - Best Beaches in Sintra - Best Beaches in Cascais - Best Costa da Caparica beaches - Best beaches in Setúbal - Best Beaches in Sesimbra - Visit Ribeiro do Cavalo Beach - Best beaches in Tróia, Comporta and Melides
When to visit the best beaches in Aveiro?
To visit the best beaches in Aveiro, my recommendation is for the hottest months of the year. The sea water is cold, so I doubt you’ll want to dive in at any other time, unless you’re into surfing or other wave sports.
You could also consider the region’s main festivities, namely those that take place in the coastal area of the Aveiro district:
- In Vagos, consider the June festivities in honor of the Holy Spirit and Our Lady of Vagos. At the beginning of July, the Vagos Sensation Gourmet gastronomic event takes place in Vagueira.
- In Ílhavo, there’s the Costa Nova Sardine Festival in July, or the Seafood and Cod Festivals in August.
- In Aveiro, the São Jacinto Dunes Festival (August).
- In Murtosa, the São Paio da Torreira Festival (September).
- In Ovar, the Sea Festivals (Esmoriz, Cortegaça and Furadouro), on 3 consecutive weekends – August / September.
- And in Espinho, the Festival of Our Lady of the Sea, held in August.
How to get to the best beaches in Aveiro?
Getting to the city of Aveiro, in particular, is very easy by public transport, namely by bus or even train. Aveiro is one of the country’s largest cities, so there is no shortage of infrastructure.
From Aveiro, it’s also easy to get to Costa Nova and Praia da Barra by taking the transdev bus, which stops almost every hour near the CTT store on Avenue Dr. Lourenço Peixinho. This same bus also stops at Barra Fort, where you can catch the ferry to cross Ria de Aveiro to São Jacinto.
The beaches in the center of Espinho are another easy destination to reach, as there is a train station nearby. If you want to visit the other beaches, however, you really must have a car. If you don’t have your own car, you can hire one from Discover Cars, which allows you to compare different companies to ensure you get the best prices and conditions.
Accommodation tips to visit the best beaches in Aveiro
If you haven’t already booked your stay to visit the best beaches in Aveiro, consider doing so now by following my suggestions below, or by clicking on the blue button to do your own search for available accommodation for the dates of your trip! Whenever possible, opt for accommodation that allows free cancellation, just in case.
| Accommodation | Score | Location |
|---|---|---|
| What Apartment | 9.1 | Praia da Vagueira |
| Marinha | 8.9 | Praia da Vagueira |
| Terrazzos do Prado | 9.3 | Costa Nova |
| Cestaria Costa Nova | 9.6 | Costa Nova |
| House Barra Beach | 8.9 | Praia da Barra |
| Hotel Farol | 8.5 | Praia da Barra |
| Pousada da Ria | 8.3 | Torreira |
| Beach House Babylon | 9.1 | Torreira |
| Furadouro Surf Camp | 9.1 | Furadouro |
| Furadouro Boutique Hotel | 8.0 | Furadouro |
| BeHappy Lodge | 9.4 | Esmoriz |
| BeachWalk GuestHouse | 9.1 | Esmoriz |
| MyCasa | 9.0 | Espinho |
| Guest House A&z | 8.9 | Espinho |
Best beaches in Aveiro
Moving on to the main topic of this article, you’ll find this section organized from south to north, that is, by the sequence of beaches in the municipalities of Vagos to Espinho, passing through Ílhavo, Aveiro, Murtosa and Ovar.
Best beaches in the municipality of Vagos
As far as Vagos coastline is concerned, I had the opportunity to visit the beaches of Areão and Vagueira, both of which have the blue flag, the latter being much busier than the former. Vagueira is in fact the main beach in the municipality of Vagos, where people still fish in a way called Arte Xávega.
Areão beach stands out for being quieter and more secluded, where you can have more direct contact with nature. It looks wild, although it does have some support infrastructure. Vagueira beach, on the other hand, has all the infrastructure you could wish for, including good restaurants where you can eat fresh fish or seafood.
Extra Tips: When visiting the municipality of Vagos, don’t just stop at the beaches. Pass through the town center to visit the Municipal Park (Quinta do Ega), and the Museum of Play. You can also discover Moliço Pier, on the Boco River, and have fun at the VagaSplash Water Park, located very close to Vagueira beach.
1. Areão beach
2. Vagueira beach
Best beaches in the municipality of Ílhavo
Next up are the beaches of Costa Nova and Barra, in the municipality of Ílhavo. I recommend at least a full day to visit them, following the Costa Nova Walkways to Praia da Barra, and then visiting other emblematic places in the region.
Costa Nova beach has rough seas and is popular for surfing. Barra beach, on the other hand, is close to the mouth of Ria de Aveiro and is protected by huge pontoons that give it a calmer sea and, at the same time, more people in the summer.
In Barra de Aveiro there is a lighthouse which, when it was built (1893), was the sixth largest in the world, at 60 meters high. You can climb its almost 300 steps to a fabulous viewpoint every Wednesday afternoon. As a curiosity, its light is visible up to 40km away.
Costa Nova is notable for its haystacks, in addition to the beach. These are houses with colored stripes on a white background, associated with the fishermen from Ílhavo who settled there in the 19th century. They served as shelter, housing or even as warehouses for salting or drying fish.
Extra Tips: If you’re passing through Ílhavo, don’t miss out on visiting its main museums, namely the Maritime Museum (with its cod aquarium), the Santo André Ship-Museum and the Vista Alegre Museum. You can also visit the cod fishing port to admire the gigantic ships moored there. 😉
Tours to visit Costa Nova and Barra beach: 1 - Aveiro Salt Flats & Moliceiro Cruise 2 - From Aveiro: Barra Beach Lighthouse & Costa Nova Guided Tour 3 - Aveiro and Costa Nova Day Trip (from Porto) 4 - Aveiro and Costa Nova Day Trip (from Coimbra)
3. Costa Nova Beach
4. Barra beach
Best beaches in the municipality of Aveiro
São Jacinto has the only beach on the coast of the municipality of Aveiro. Getting to São Jacinto from the city, however, is much more complicated than getting to Costa Nova and Barra beach, as access by road requires a huge detour through Estarreja, Murtosa and Torreira.
To make things easier, there is river transportation, which I mentioned at the beginning of this article, that connects Barra Fort to São Jacinto, allowing you to cross even with your car inside! This is ideal, because from São Jacinto you can drive along the N327 to Torreira, which is very scenic and always on the edge of Ria de Aveiro.
Don’t forget to take a walk through the São Jacinto Dunes Nature Reserve, for example to the North Jetty of Barra de Aveiro.
Extra Tips: In Aveiro you should visit the city by taking a moliceiro boat trip, but that’s not all. How about visiting the extraordinary Santa Joana Museum, discovering one of Portugal’s most beautiful churches inside? How about going for a walk through Aveiro’s beautiful City Park? How about shopping at the Aveiro Forum?
5. São Jacinto beach
Best beaches in the municipality of Murtosa
Murtosa is home to Torreira Beach. It has a long stretch of sand and excellent walkways on the south side, which you can walk along to reach great viewpoints from the dunes. To the north of the bathing area, Xávega Art is still practiced, so you may find some boats and even sets of fishing nets there.
Torreira beach has a huge support infrastructure, as it is located next to one of the main towns in the municipality. It has plenty of bars and restaurants where you can eat good fish and seafood. Next to the beach is the Varina Square and Monument, in honor of the Woman of Murtosa.
Extra Tips: Murtosa is one of the best municipalities for water activities in Ria de Aveiro. For this, I recommend that you go to the website of the region’s Nautical Station, where you’ll find contact details for those who can really offer them. 😉 Near Torreira you can try not only canoeing and paddle boarding, but also kitesurfing, windsurfing, wing foil, sailing, among other sports.
6. Torreira beach
Best beaches in the municipality of Ovar
Moving on to the best beaches in Ovar, you can choose from the following:
- Furadouro beach, near the town of the same name. It’s a beach with a lot of infrastructure, and it wins for its proximity to the city of Ovar when compared to the others.
- São Pedro de Maceda beach, with nice cliffs by the sea.
- And Esmoriz beach, further north. In addition to the beach, the Esmoriz / Paramos Lagoon stands out, with excellent walkways around it. Why not go for a walk there?
As a curiosity, you’ll find 3 campsites on the Ovar coast: in Furadouro, Cortegaça and Esmoriz. There is also a river beach, Areinho river beach, which is excellent for discovering the Ria de Aveiro on a kayak or pedal boat during the bathing season. You can rent them there.
Extra Tips: Ovar has a very beautiful historic center, where “azulejos” are undoubtedly one of the main highlights, lining most of the buildings. Don’t forget to visit the beautiful churches of Cortegaça and Válega, also lined with “azulejos”.
7. Furadouro beach
8. São Pedro de Maceda Beach
9. Esmoriz Beach
Best beaches in the municipality of Espinho
Finally, the municipality of Espinho, in the far north of the Aveiro district. I visited the following beaches during my time in the municipality, from south to north. There are a total of 8km of beaches:
- Paramos Beach. It’s a less busy beach, especially if you go to the area near the lagoon. 😉 You can also reach it by taking the walkways mentioned.
- Silvalde beach, very close to the Oporto Golf Club, the oldest golf course on the Iberian Peninsula. It is popular because it is located between two pontoons that protect it from the strongest waves in the sea.
- Fishermen’s beach, near the fishing district of Espinho. Here you can see many fishing boats on the sand and get in touch with the traditional art of trawling with nets, Arte Xávega.
- Bay beach, the most central beach in Espinho. It is undoubtedly the one with the most support infrastructure and has an area protected from the waves, which almost looks like a lagoon. It’s the most popular in the city.
- The Blue Front Beach, excellent for surfing, just north of the Espinho bay pier.
- And Marbelo beach, at the northern end of Espinho and on the border with Vila Nova de Gaia.
After the beaches of Costa Nova and Barra, in Ílhavo, these are the best beaches in Aveiro. Espinho is a fabulous destination, believe me! 😉
Extra Tips: In addition to the walkways at Esmoriz Lagoon, the coastal ecovia is also worth it. How about renting a bicycle or electric scooter?
10. Paramos beach
11. Silvalde beach
12. Fishermen’s beach
13. Bay beach
14. Blue Front beach
15. Marbelo beach
Map of the best beaches in Aveiro
Don’t forget Travel Insurance
Also, consider getting travel insurance when visiting Portugal, especially if you plan on engaging in hiking and more adventurous water sports. Opt for prevention against any potential mishaps!
More articles from Central Portugal
MORE ARTICLES FROM CENTRAL PORTUGAL: - Things to do in Espinho - Things to do in Ovar - Things to do in Aveiro - Aveiro to Costa Nova - Things to do in Mira beach - Things to do in Coimbra - Schist Villages in Portugal - Things to do in Figueira da Foz - Visit Monsanto in Portugal - Historical Village of Piódão - Historical Villages of Portugal - Things to do in Leiria - Visit Batalha Monastery and surroundings - Visit Alcobaça Monastery and surroundings - Things to do in Fátima - Visit Mira de Aire Caves - Things to do in Nazaré - Visit Berlenga Island - Best beaches in Peniche - Things to do in Peniche - Best beaches in Ericeira - Visit Ursa Beach - Best Beaches in Sintra - Best Beaches in Cascais - Best Costa da Caparica beaches - Best beaches in Setúbal - Best Beaches in Sesimbra - Visit Ribeiro do Cavalo Beach - Best beaches in Tróia, Comporta and Melides
