Open Water Swimming
©Damir Spanic
A beautiful and safe place for open water swimming
For those who like to swim in the sea, Faial has great conditions for open water swimming, especially during the summer, when the sea is calm and has few currents. The average water temperature ranges from 22ºC in the summer (it can reach 25ºC in late August/early September) to 16ºC in the winter.
These are some recommendations for safe open water swimming in Faial:
– Almoxarife Beach: A beach with lifeguards during bathing season with black volcanic sand and crystal clear waters where you can swim parallel to the coast and with a magnificent view of Pico.
– Praia de Porto Pim: Since it is a very sheltered bay, it allows swimming all year round (except on days with southern coastal agitation). It has a lifeguard during bathing season.
– Porto do Comprido, Zona Balnear da Lajinha e da Feteira, Porto do Salão, Porto da Eira and Zona Balnear de Castelo Branco: During summer, these areas often have suitable conditions for open water swimming near the coast. However, some of these do not have lifeguards and it is recommended that in addition to your familiarity with open water swimming, you should talk to local people to familiarize yourself with the conditions.
WARNING! Before swimming in open water, check for the presence of jellyfish and Portuguese-man-of-war. In areas with lifeguards, the presence of these creatures in the water is signaled by flags.
We recommend that open water swimming be done under the supervision of someone on land or on board a boat.
