Madeira, Portugal

Funchal, Portugal

Porto Moniz, Portugal

Seixal, Portugal

Santa Cruz, Madeira, Portugal

Faial, Portugal

Madeira

Once you leave the airport, collect the car with which you will travel.

On the way to Caniço is it possible to go for a swim in Santa Cruz's beach, Praia das Palmeiras, a nice beach where you can watch planes taking off and landing at the airport.

After the first beach of the trip, you can continue the journey to the accomodation, I reccomend Caniço cause it's a small and quiet village well connected to the rest of the island.

Jardins do Oceano, Caniço

Ocean view Madeira, Caniço

The second day focuses on the north-western area of ​​the island, bring a swimming suit with you

The first stop would be Capelinha Nossa Sra. de Fatima in São Vicente where you can enjoy a gorgeous 360° view of the landscape, on one side the ocean and on the other the mountains.

Next will be the Praia do Porto do Seixal, a fantastic black sand beach.

Continuing you will arrive at Porto Moniz where you can dive into the natural pools.

On the way back you stop in the surreal Fanal Forest, where you can find sun, fog and rain, all in a matter of minutes.

The last stop of the day is the uncontaminated landscape of Paul da Serra where, weather conditions permitting, you can enjoy a wonderful sunset.

And now, time to go back to the accomodation, relax and sleep well.

Short but intense day for which I recommend technical clothing since you will be walking a lot

Have a nice breakfast because you will need a lot of energy, the day in starts with Pico do Arieiro and you will hike in the mountains till Pico Ruivo and then go back. This is the option for those who are well trained. Whereas, for those who prefer a less demanding hike, there is the option 2.

After this lovely outing you deserved a trip to the capital, Funchal, a vivid city full of life, even at night.

I reccomend you to check here all the details of the two (and more) hikes available:

Option 2 is the hike from Pico Ruivo, a medium difficult one.

I reccomend you to check here all the details of the two (and more) hikes 

From the airport to the beginning of the adventure

The southern area and a waterfall, all along the coast

The first stop of the day is a small town, Câmara de Lobos, population 34.000.

The tiny port of the town is extremely suggestive, full of small colourful boats.

Going on, not far away, there is a panoramic viewpoint know as Cabo Girão. Being 589 meters high, it is one of the highest promontories on the island, with an endless view over the ocean.

But the day doesn't end here, you can continue towards Ribeira Brava.  Here you have many choices about what to do, for example you can: lay down on the beach, visit the Museum of Ethnography or go up the Miradouro de São Sebastião.

Last stop of the day is Ponta do Sol and, a few meters further on, the famous waterfall. 

The north-eastern area and a "taste" of Brazil

Let's start immediately with Brazil. You will surely know the statue of Cristo do Rei, here, in Madeira there is a miniature copy. 

Natural pools of Porto da Cruz, this is the next stop where you can relax and have fun swimming in the pool but with the sea waves.

If you hadn't realized before, this island is full of scenic viewpoints, Miradouro in Portuguese. And the next stop will be one of these, Miradouro do Guindaste in Faial near and ancent fortress.

This stop will be short because the journey continue to Sao Jorge. Here there is a cafe with cuisine and breathtaking views. I'm talking about Cabo Aéreo Café Restaurant.

After a nice traditional lunch, you can go ahead, direction Santana, where you can see and visit the typical Madeiran houses of the past.

On the way back home, take the internal road to the Miradouro dos Balcões.

South-western area, the continuing of day four

Doing so you can also enjoy a tradinional dinner in one of these three restaurants, all of them on the way back to the accommodation, that I suggest you:

Avoid summer and winter, prefer early autumn and spring instead. In my opinion September and October, as well as March and April, are the best months, the temperatures are optimal both for taking a dip in the sea and for a hike.

What is the best period to visit Madeira?

Wait for breakfast, because there is a particular cafè on the way of today's itinerary. I'm talking about "Bentornato - A Rum Bar".

And after a generous breakfast it's time to visit Sociedade dos Engenhos a Calheta, a rum factory museum, you can also have a tasting experience with various kinds of rum.

The next stop is a small village less than 1 square kilometer in size named Jardim do Mar and his Miradouro Nossa Senhora do Rosário.

In case you are already hungry there is a very particular restaurant, a peculiarity that can already be understood from the name, Restaurante O Precipício. Yes, that's exactly what you're thinking, a restaurant on the edge of a cliff.

But don't be late, because the next stop is magnificent to enjoy the sunset. Farol da Ponta do Pargo is the place in question, complete with working a lighthouse.

Concluding the journey with landscapes in the eastern zone

Final day, the itinerary will be shorter and lighter, starting with Ponta de Sao Lourenco. This is the easternmost point of Madeira.

After that, for another beautiful panoramic point, move to Ponta do Bode.

Last stop before the airport is Machico and his beach. This beach has the particularity of being on the opposite side of a mountain on the other side of which is the airport, so you could enjoy landings and take-offs just lying on the beach. This is Praia de Machico.

And now, all you have left to do is going back to the airport and take the flight back to home.

To eat traditional you have to go to at least one "Abrigo" and eat some Espetadas de frango (chicken skewers), but also to the Fábrica Santo Antonio in Funchal where they sell all the Madeirene sweets, cakes, candies and biscuits.

The quintessential Madeira cocktail is the Poncha, mainly made of rum, honey and juice. Drink that you can find with lemon juice, orange juice or passion fruit juice. 

Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere for the best weather forecast, up to 10 days

A little less known is the Nikita, a very particular cocktail consisting of the combination of pineapple ice cream and white beer or white wine.

But the most famous and well-known product is wine, Vinho Madeira. A fortified wine which takes different names based on the type of grape used and the degree of sweetness. From driest to sweetest: Sercial, Verdelho, Bual, Malvasia.

Madeira

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