Early March 1 March
60°F
Typical afternoon high
37% historical wet-day frequency
Portugal · Beach
Is March a good time?
March averages 62°F afternoons and 57°F seas, with about 10 rain days. Later March is typically warmer.
Historical Norte regional averages, not a forecast or a measure of queues. Overnight demand compares average stays per day. Covers Porto, Douro Valley and Braga; conditions vary within the region.
Planning to sightsee in Porto? The weather score rates beach conditions. Sightseeing rates good (6.8/10).
What matters most?
Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%
#8 of 12 months here · Balanced mix
Overall combines weather, overnight demand and cost. It does not include sea temperature.
Plan your March
Afternoons around 62°F (17°C): light layers; nights around 45°F (7°C): a warm coat. Bring rain gear: about 10 days with at least 1 mm of rain. About 12 hours of daylight.
The sea averages 57°F. Our swimming guide: very cold: wetsuit weather. Your comfort will vary. This is open water near the coast, not a beach-specific reading.
Monthly coastal averages from NOAA, 2011–2025. Sea temperature is separate from the weather and Overall scores.
The sun rises about 06:45 and sets about 18:36 (local time, mid-month). Mornings start around 45°F (7°C); afternoons reach about 62°F (17°C). Expect rain on about 10 days in a typical March.
Early, middle or late?
Late March is typically warmer. The afternoon high averages 60°F on the 1st, versus 65°F on the 31st.
60°F
Typical afternoon high
37% historical wet-day frequency
63°F
Typical afternoon high
29% historical wet-day frequency
65°F
Typical afternoon high
34% historical wet-day frequency
Historical daily averages from 2011–2025, smoothed over two weeks. A seasonal pattern, not a forecast. This does not establish which week has the lowest prices or fewest visitors.
Public holidays · 2027: 26 Mar Good Friday; 28 Mar Easter Sunday.
Weather shows historical patterns, not a forecast. Holidays and events use the dates shown for 2027.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 160° | 260° | 360° | 460° | 560° | 660° | 761° |
| 861° | 961° | 1062° | 1162° | 1262° | 1362° | 1463° |
| 1563° | 1663° | 1763° | 1863° | 1963° | 2063° | 2163° |
| 2263° | 2363° | 2463° | 2564° | 2664° | 2764° | 2864° |
| 2964° | 3064° | 3165° |
Afternoon high rain likely (25%+) local school holidays public holiday event
Afternoons warm from about 60°F (16°C) in the first week to 64°F (18°C) in the last. The chance of a wet day runs 28–41%. Local schools are out 22–31 March 2027.
Schools here are off 22–31 March 2027 (Easter holidays). Public holidays: 26 Mar Good Friday; 28 Mar Easter Sunday. Elsewhere in March 2027, the share of people living where schools are out on a typical day: Germany 27%, Spain 30%, Italy 19%, France 10%. (School holidays: OpenHolidays, ODbL.)
Visitor season
Moderate season. March averages 47% of August's overnight stays per day. More overnight stays than February.
Overnight stays across Norte do not measure queues, day visitors or congestion at individual sights. For its size, typical for Europe this month.
Hotel price season
Well below usual. Historical regional hotel revenue (2024–2025 monthly average): €53 per guest-night. An average, not a booking quote.
Fewer overnight stays do not automatically mean cheaper rooms. Check actual quotes for your trip.
The historical regional amount comes from INE Portugal, Inquérito à Permanência de Hóspedes: hotel room revenue per guest-night; the country price level is national. Hotel averages are not live booking quotes.
Year-to-year variation
In the 15 years from 2011 to 2025, the month's afternoons averaged between 57°F (14°C) and 67°F (20°C); in 11 of them they were within 3°F (1.5°C) of the typical 62°F (17°C). Rain days ranged from 3 to 25; half the years had 4–14.
Rain days in each March
| Year | Afternoon high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 62°F | 9 |
| 2012 | 67°F | 4 |
| 2013 | 59°F | 20 |
| 2014 | 63°F | 10 |
| 2015 | 63°F | 3 |
| 2016 | 59°F | 12 |
| 2017 | 63°F | 10 |
| 2018 | 57°F | 25 |
| 2019 | 65°F | 4 |
| 2020 | 63°F | 10 |
| 2021 | 65°F | 3 |
| 2022 | 63°F | 14 |
| 2023 | 63°F | 13 |
| 2024 | 62°F | 17 |
| 2025 | 61°F | 14 |
Checked against official climate averages for Porto (Pedras Rubras). How we check
Compare dates
| Typical conditions | Feb | Mar | Apr |
|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoons | 58°F | 62°F | 67°F |
| Sea | 56°F | 57°F | 59°F |
| Rain days | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| Overnight demand | 39% | 47% | 60% |
February: Cooler afternoons than March. Less overnight demand. February guide →
April: Warmer afternoons and warmer sea than March. More overnight demand. April guide →
Overnight demand measures accommodation stays, not queues. Sea temperatures are monthly coastal averages.
Yellow marks the top three months on the Balanced mix. March stays as your reference.
April to October have a Weather score at least 1.0 point higher than March, but more overnight stays.
Your comparison
Overnight stays are 39% of the busiest month.
Historical regional hotel revenue (2024–2025 monthly average): €47 per guest-night. An average, not a booking quote.
Read the February guide →| Typical conditions | March | February |
|---|---|---|
| Afternoons | 62°F | 58°F |
| Nights | 45°F | 43°F |
| Sea | 57°F | 56°F |
| Rain days | 10 | 9 |
| Visitor season | Moderate season | Moderate season |
| Overall / 10 | 6.2 | 5.1 |
| Month rank | #8 | #10 |
| Month | Overall | Rank | High | Low | Sea | Rain days | Weather | Visitor season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.3 | #12 | 56°F | 42°F | 57°F | 11 | 2.3 | Low season |
| February | 5.1 | #10 | 58°F | 43°F | 56°F | 9 | 3.1 | Moderate season |
| March | 6.2 | #8 | 62°F | 45°F | 57°F | 10 | 4.2 | Moderate season |
| April | 6.5 | #7 | 67°F | 48°F | 59°F | 11 | 5.4 | Busy season |
| May | 7.2 | #5 | 72°F | 52°F | 60°F | 8 | 7.4 | Busy season |
| June | 7.7 | #4 | 77°F | 55°F | 62°F | 5 | 8.5 | Busy season |
| July | 8.3 | #1 | 83°F | 58°F | 63°F | 2 | 10.0 | Busy season |
| August | 7.8 | #2 | 83°F | 58°F | 63°F | 2 | 10.0 | Peak season |
| September | 7.8 | #3 | 78°F | 57°F | 63°F | 5 | 9.1 | Busy season |
| October | 6.8 | #6 | 71°F | 54°F | 63°F | 11 | 6.3 | Busy season |
| November | 5.7 | #9 | 61°F | 48°F | 61°F | 14 | 3.7 | Moderate season |
| December | 4.7 | #11 | 58°F | 44°F | 59°F | 13 | 2.7 | Moderate season |
Near here
Nearby regions, nearest first. Distances are centre to centre, as the crow flies; they are not road distances or journey times.
Central Portugalabout 80 miles
Balanced Overall 6.6 · Fair weather, 63°F (17°C) · Moderate season · Cost cheap
GaliciaSpain · about 90 miles
Balanced Overall 5.4 · Fair weather, 61°F (16°C) · Low season · Cost cheap
Castile and LeónSpain · about 150 miles
Balanced Overall 7.5 · Good weather, 57°F (14°C) · Moderate season · Cost cheap
AsturiasSpain · about 150 miles
Balanced Overall 5.6 · Fair weather, 61°F (16°C) · Low season · Cost cheap
Óbidos, Nazaré & the Tagus ValleyPortugal · about 160 miles
Balanced Overall 7.3 · Good weather, 65°F (18°C) · Moderate season · Cost cheap
Elsewhere in Europe
Porto & northern Portugal's weather ranks 36 of 77 beach regions this month. These beach regions outside Portugal have clearly better weather on your dates, nearest first, each compared with Porto & northern Portugal.
AndalusiaSpain · about 320 miles
Good weather (6.5): 5°F warmer afternoons, 3 fewer rain days, pricier
Valencia & the Costa BlancaSpain · about 400 miles
Good weather (6.8): 5°F warmer afternoons, 6 fewer rain days, pricier
CeutaSpain · about 400 miles
Good weather (6.1): 3°F warmer afternoons, 2 fewer rain days
MurciaSpain · about 410 miles
Very good weather (7.2): 6°F warmer afternoons, 6 fewer rain days
MelillaSpain · about 500 miles
Very good weather (8.1): 8°F warmer afternoons, 2 fewer rain days, pricier
It's moderate season, 47% of the busiest month and 21% below its average month. That means about 33,000 overnight visitors on a typical March night across the region, 39% of them from Portugal itself. Rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor add up to 19,000 more: 58 for every 100 counted above. Some are the same properties counted twice.
| Climate suitability (HCI:Beach, 0–100) | 56 |
| How our weather was checked | Official climate averages for Porto (Pedras Rubras) from the national weather service, every month: afternoon highs typically within 3°F (1.5°C), night lows within 1°F (0.5°C). |
| Tourist nights per 1,000 residents per day | 9 |
| Busiest month here | August · 19 |
| Visitors as share of people present | 0.9% |
| Rank among Europe's regions this month | 52nd percentile |
| Domestic share of nights | 39% |
| Platform rental nights per 100 counted nights | 58 |
| Visitor share if every platform night were extra | 1.4% |
| Population used | 3.7 million |
| Statistical region | PT11 · Norte |
Crowds: Eurostat nights spent at tourist accommodation, by month and NUTS 2 region, 2024–2025 average. Overnight visitors per night is the month's nights divided by its days; the per-1,000 figure is Eurostat's, against each year's population. Platform rentals: Eurostat nights booked via Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor, 2024–2025 average, shown separately because some properties are in both counts. Weather: Holiday Climate Index computed from ERA5 reanalysis with daily highs, night lows and rain days corrected from open national weather-service station records, 2011–2025, population-weighted to the region; day-by-day figures are the same data averaged by date. Heat and rain odds are counted across those years. Sunrise and sunset: NOAA solar equations, local time. Prices: Eurostat price level index and HICP, national; the first figure is regional (INE Portugal, Inquérito à Permanência de Hóspedes: hotel room revenue per guest-night). Full method · this region's data.