Marias Hostel & Surf

There’s a small terrace, and the beach is about 70 mts away. The accommodation has two kitchens and every room has its own bathroom. It’s a pleasant place to stay, especially if you want surf lessons. In the little town there are markets, bars, a couple of restaurants, and more. The locals are really friendly. ☺️

A great spot with legendary instructors. Lots of guests keep coming back, and I’m going to be one of them. 🤙

I’ve taken intermediate surf lessons at Marias twice, for two weeks each time, this year and last year, and loved both stays. Owner Bruno picks the best spot for the surf conditions and your level, and gives useful pointers to help you improve. A big plus is that the spots are usually uncrowded. Quite often we were the only ones surfing. :)

We had to chase down the instructors at 18.30 because they’d taken our things and the key was with them. We were running late for the 7pm train to Porto, and ended up missing it. The lesson was meant to finish at 6pm, but around 5.20 every instructor went out into deep water, leaving us complete beginners on our own. They didn’t return until after 18.30, surfing for fun while being paid for the lesson. The walk to the beach was 40 minutes each way with heavy boards, which was exhausting. They call it a three-hour lesson, longer than at other surf camps, but that includes the longer walk. The instruction itself was hardly there: about five minutes of telling us what to do, then they sent us into the sea. I spent the first 40 minutes standing in the water before an instructor came to help. Renting a board and watching a YouTube tutorial would be the same, and much cheaper. I was incredibly disappointed by how irresponsible the instructors were. My tip: take your belongings with you to the beach, and leave when they head into deep water to surf.