Travel Tips
Essential information for visiting Madeira Island
Camping in Madeira: the permit, the 21 forest areas and the only campsite
You may camp on Madeira in 21 named forest clearings and at one official campsite, and nowhere else. What the IFCN licence costs and how to apply for it, what the Porto Moniz campsite charges per person and per tent, the altitude of each zone, the bus numbers that changed in March 2026, and the rules for campervans.
The Monte toboggan: what it costs, and where it actually drops you
The wicker toboggan down from Monte costs 30 euros for one, 40 for two and 60 for three, runs Monday to Saturday from 09:00 to 18:00, and takes no bookings of any kind. The part that catches people out is the finish: it stops at Livramento, above Funchal, leaving you a twenty to thirty minute walk, a line 020 bus or a taxi you should price first. The cable car and bus fares up, what closes the run, what the accident record actually shows, and whether ten minutes is worth the money.
Grutas de São Vicente are closed: what still works in São Vicente
Madeira's lava caves at São Vicente have been shut since March 2020, and the council confirms the Volcanism Centre is closed too. What the valley still offers: the 07:35 bus from Funchal, three classified trails that are open, the basalt chapel at the river mouth, and the black sand at Seixal ten minutes west.
Levada do Caldeirão Verde (PR9): the booking, the four tunnels and getting to Queimadas
The north coast levada walk that suits people who do not want a mountain: it stays near the 900 metre contour the whole way, because water does not climb. What catches visitors out is everything around the walking. Since 1 January 2026 you book a timed slot through SIMplifica and pay 4.50 euros, the fee is lost if it rains or your flight is cancelled, no bus reaches the trailhead above Santana, and the far half of the official 17.4 kilometre route to Caldeirão do Inferno has been shut for most of 2026. The walk you can actually do, the four unlit tunnels and the torch they need, the refund rule in full, and the accessible shorter version nobody mentions.
Funchal's gardens: Monte Palace, the Botanical Garden and Palheiro, and what each costs
Three gardens above Funchal charge admission, and almost nobody does all three. Monte Palace is 18 euros with under-14s free, Palheiro is 11 euros with bus 37 to the gate, and the Botanical Garden is 10 euros this year, 12.50 in 2027, 15 in 2028 and 17.50 in 2029, because a regional order in force since 1 January 2026 writes the rises into a table. What each costs, which bus climbs where, the 22 euro cable car and the 11 euro one that crosses the valley, the toboggan that does not run on Sundays, and how to do two gardens in a day for 53 euros.
Rabaçal, 25 Fontes and Risco: the shuttle, the booking and the one-way rule
Three things have to be settled before you drive west: a paid time slot, the two kilometres of access road between the car park at 1,280 m and the trailhead, and which of the nine marked paths you are actually walking. The 2026 fee is 4.50 euros a person (free at 12 and under), the day rate of 9.00 euros saves nothing until the third walk, and rain is not a refund. The council's van runs 10:00 to 18:00 at 5 euros one way, no bus of any kind serves Rabaçal or the Paul da Serra, and the two official pages currently disagree about whether the 25 Fontes is still one way out and back along the Bypass.
Santana, Madeira: the thatched houses, the theme park and the 801 bus
Two ordinary mistakes ruin the trip to Madeira's postcard village: the Madeira Theme Park is closed on Mondays, and the last bus back to Funchal leaves at 17.25, before the park shuts at 18.00. The 2026 ticket prices, the bus numbers that changed in March 2026 (the 56 is now the 801, the 103 is the 850 and 860), the services marked as a direct connection to the park gate, what the thatched houses actually contain, and the marine reserve below the village.
Madeira whale museum, Caniçal: tickets, bus 702, closed Mondays
Madeira's whale museum in Caniçal: 15 euros for adults (2026), open Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00, bus 702 from Funchal (not the old 113) and what is inside.
The Desertas Islands from Madeira: the boat trip, the rules, and the monk seals
A full day from the Funchal marina runs about 90 to 100 euros, and the question nobody asks first is whether the boat actually puts you ashore. The Desertas are a nature reserve 22 nautical miles out: every boat sails on an IFCN permission, the only legal anchorage inside the integral reserve is the bay at Doca, walking is escorted and capped at 15 per guide, and the reserve takes no entry fee at all. What the two operators charge in 2026, what the 7.50 euro diving tariff covers after the February 2026 change, why pets and drones are banned, and the honest odds of seeing one of the twenty monk seals.
Fanal forest, Madeira: the fog, the drive up and trail fees
Fanal, Madeira: centuries-old til trees at 1,110 m, no bus, and trails at 4.50 euros on SIMplifica. Plus when the fog comes, the refund rule and where to stay.
Cabo Girão: the 5 euro ticket, the bus that is now 267, and the cable car that is not at the viewpoint
The drop under the glass floor is 580 metres, the ticket has been 5 euros since 1 January 2026, and on a weekday exactly two buses from Funchal pass the viewpoint at all. What nobody tells you is that the last bus back past it leaves Ribeira Brava at 12:35, that route 7 became ten numbers on 9 March 2026 and only 267 goes via the cape, that an advance ticket is valid for 180 days, and that the cable car everyone looks for starts in another village entirely. Also why the highest-in-Europe claim on the sign is wrong.
Curral das Freiras and Eira do Serrado: the viewpoint, the walk down and the bus that is now 181
The viewpoint above the nuns' valley sits at 1,095 metres and the village below it at about 461, which is the whole trip in two numbers. What nobody tells you is that the bus stopped being route 81 on 9 March 2026, that only three departures a day go past the viewpoint at all, and that it is served on request rather than as a scheduled stop. The 2026 fares, the departures that actually pass Eira do Serrado and the phone number you need, the free path down through the chestnut trees, why the long walk out of the valley is only half open, and what the 2004 tunnel replaced.
Planning Your Trip?
Complete guides to events and travel on the island.