Going on holiday to this beach? Wild boars may steal your lunch

Published on 26/06/2026 - 20:22 GMT+2

Coming across wild boar in the Serra da Arrábida in Portugal is nothing new, but lately they have been seen more frequently in areas that attract large numbers of people. The beach appears to be one of the animals’ favourite destinations, an ideal place to forage for supplies among tourists’ belongings.

These incidents are naturally more common in summer, when beachgoers leave food scraps in rubbish bins. If you are planning to spend your holidays on the Arrábida beaches, avoid leaving food out in the open, tie rubbish bags securely and keep a safe distance if you encounter wild boar.

This week, videos from June 2026 have even been circulating on social media showing wild boar stealing food from bathers on Portinho da Arrábida beach. The footage shows the animals approaching towels with no one nearby and feeding on food left behind by people.

The beaches of Portinho da Arrábida, Creiro and Galapinhos, in the district of Setúbal, are those with the highest number of wild boar sightings. Galapinhos is particularly prone to such encounters, as it lies deep within the Serra da Arrábida.

Voted Europe’s most beautiful beach in 2017, Galapinhos beach has attracted large numbers of foreign tourists. For these visitors, the presence of wild boar on the sand usually comes as a surprise, but for locals it is seen as a common phenomenon, even if it can at times cause concern.

Number of wild boar culled has risen

The number of wild boar culled in the Serra da Arrábida has increased significantly this year, with 85 capture operations authorised, according to the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF). These operations involve controlled hunting or night-time waits with traps, which are usually set up on farms, in areas close to the beaches or in places where the animals find food.

"The wild boar population in the Arrábida Natural Park remains large and stable, with a slight increase in the numbers culled. The number of animals killed each year within the boundaries of the Park stands at between 600 and 700," the ICNF said.

Even so, nature conservation experts argue that wild boar hunting operations should be accompanied by continuous monitoring, in order to preserve ecological balance and respond to the increase in the wild boar population.

Managing the wild boar population remains one of the main environmental challenges in the Setúbal region. It is also common to see wild boar in urban areas of the city, as they come down from the Serra da Arrábida in search of food.