Praia da Costa Nova, Ílhavo

Costa Nova do Prado Beach, also known just as Costa Nova, is located on the west coast of Portugal, on the coastline of the Ria de Aveiro. It is located in the parish of Gafanha da Encarnação, in the Municipality of Ílhavo, just like Praia da Barra, in the Central Region of Portugal.

It had its origin in the opening of the bar of the Ria de Aveiro, from the year 1808. The designation, it is believed, is due to two facts. The first, "Costa Nova", as opposed to "Costa Velha". The second is due to the fact that in this place, there was a huge and verdant meadow.

It is one of the excellent Portuguese beaches for water sports, since, besides the Atlantic front, it also has a waterfront to the Mira Canal of the Ria de Aveiro. Besides one of the oldest sailing clubs in the Ria de Aveiro - the Costa Nova Sailing Club, there are also kitesurfing, canoeing and surfing schools, among other sports, with emphasis on one of the novelties: Paddle Surfing. The beach is also crossed by a modern bike path/road that connects it either to Barra Bridge and Barra Beach or to Vagueira Beach, the latter in the neighboring municipality of Vagos. One of the most frequent activities is minigolf, through the club that was installed here several decades ago. It also has several outdoor sports venues: tennis and soccer.

Gastronomically, the "tripa", one of the most famous regional sweets, originated in Costa Nova. In the Fish Market that can be found here, it is also possible to purchase previously prepared seafood, especially at the weekend. Every year, in August, the Ria a Gosto - Costa Nova Seafood Festival takes place. Here there are many good restaurants, specialized in codfish, fresh fish - grilled or in stews and also shellfish from the Ria de Aveiro.

The ex-libris of this beach are the "palheiros" - houses with interspersed vertical or horizontal stripes, former warehouses for fishing materials, or warehouses for salting sardines, now converted into bathing residences.