Popular European country introduces strict new beach bans including no FOOTBALL – with fines up to £3,416

TravelNews Travel IF you’re heading to Europe this summer, you might want to leave the football and speakers out of your beach bag. The National Maritime Authority in Portugal has issued a number of beach bans, and it includes a lot of rules. If you don’t follow them you could be fined up to £3,416 Credit: Getty Under Beach Notice 2026, which includes mainland Portugal and Madeira, some of the strict rules ban anyone playing football on the beach. The use of beach bats are also banned, unless in the designated areas along the coastline. Sign up for the Travel newsletter Thank you! Forget about loud music too – this is banned if using your own speakers too. Putting up tents or camping on the beach is also not allowed. Read more on travel inspo And lighting fires or having barbecues is also prohibited. The list goes on – popular watersports activities such as windsurfing, kitesurfing and surfing must all take place in designated zones. Jet skis and other motorised watercraft are not allowed in bathing areas, and must use designated corridors. If you want to fish, you’ll have to wait for the bathing season to be over. Most read in Travel Several Portuguese beaches have specific areas for umbrellas as well – but these cannot cover more than 30 per cent of the beach, or 50 per cent of the seafront. The rules include no football and you can only do watersports in specific areas Credit: Getty The rest of the beach is then for the public to use, which means you can set up your umbrella in these areas only. Fines vary depending on the rule broken, but for example, if you were caught with a loud speaker you could be fined between €200 (£170.83) and €4,000 (£3,416.60). Camping, on the other hand, could set you back between €30 (£25.62) and €100 (£85.41), which is the same amount for playing football on the beach. If you were surfing and enter an area for swimmers, you could be fined between €55 (£46.98) and €550 (£469.78). The rules apply to inland river beaches as well. Each beach sets different dates where the rules will be in place until. Comment now