Portugal
- prozor
- Early morning before the surf/swimmer crowd; summer for water but busy. Shoulder season is quieter.
- plima
- High/mid-tide — low tide goes shallow and sandy; the reef margins fish better with more water.
- zaklon
- The south side of the tombolo sits in the lee of the dominant N/NW swell and the nortada — this is the 'calm' family side. Open to S/SW swell.
- uvjeti
- Good when the dominant N/NW swell is blocked by the island; clearer on calm days with no southerly. The rocky reef margins by the rocks hold fish.
- opasnost
- Strong currents noted here too, and in summer surfers/swimmers are in the water — watch for boards and never shoot near people. Sandy cove bottom — fish are on the rocky margins, not the sand.
- pristup
- Park in Baleal, walk straight in off the sandy beach on the south side of the tombolo — the easiest entry in the area.
The safest entry at Baleal: gentle sand entry, the island cuts the main swell. Hunt the rocky margins by the rocks, away from the bathing/surf zone; in summer it's a lifeguarded beach (1 Jun–15 Sep). ⚠️ Place is real (Praia do Baleal Sul, officially also 'Meia Praia'). TWO problems. (1) Coords mislocated: official playocean/bandeiraazul coords are 39.371938,-9.338484; claimed 39.3686,-9.3372 is ~370m too far S (lands off the beach proper, toward the inland/south end). (2) HAZARD INACCURATE — claim asserts 'strong currents noted here too', but this is the SHELTERED side: playocean states 'Sea waters are serene due to the natural protection provided by Peninsula do Baleal.' The strong-current warning appears copied from the exposed island side and does not apply here; the maxSafety=yellow downgrade is driven by a hazard that the sources contradict. The swimmer/surfer + sandy-bottom-vs-rocky-margins notes ARE honest.
Španjolska