# Nazaré, a fishing town in Portugal, has the world's biggest waves > Nazaré is a popular surfing destination because of the high breaking waves that form due to the presence of the underwater Nazaré Canyon. The canyon increases and converges the incoming ocean swell which, in conjunction with the local water current, dramatically enlarges wave heights. ![[Nazaré waves.mp4]] _Credit: Diana Marques, National Geography_ --- Sources: - [National Geographic](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/article/what-its-like-to-surf-the-worlds-largest-waves) - [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazar%C3%A9,_Portugal#Surfing)