Madeira: Levada Walks, Mountains & the Atlantic

Today you explore beautiful Funchal. You visit the colourful Mercado dos Lavradores, its stalls piled with exotic flowers, tropical fruits and fresh fish, wander the historic old town with its painted doors and cobbled lanes, and sample Madeira wine, the island's famous fortified wine, in a historic lodge. In the afternoon you ride the cable car high above the city to the hilltop village of Monte, with its beautiful tropical gardens, exotic plants and pilgrimage church, enjoying sweeping views over Funchal and the bay. For the daring, there is the chance to hurtle back down the steep streets in a traditional wicker toboggan, steered by drivers in straw hats. The charm, colour and setting are captivating. This evening, savour Madeiran cuisine in the old town. Rest well, ready for your first levada walk tomorrow.

Today you set out on a classic levada walk through Madeira's ancient laurisilva forest. You journey into the green interior and follow a levada path, one of the centuries-old irrigation channels whose gentle trails wind through the island's most beautiful scenery. You walk deep into the laurisilva, a UNESCO World Heritage laurel forest of mossy, primeval greenery draped with lichen and ferns, past cascading waterfalls, along dramatic mountainsides and through cool, green ravines, perhaps on the beautiful Levada do Caldeirao Verde or the Levada das 25 Fontes to a spring-fed pool. The walking is gentle yet spectacular, immersing you in the island's lush natural beauty and birdsong. The greenery, water and peace are magical. This evening you return to Funchal for a relaxed dinner. Rest well, ready for the high mountains tomorrow.

Today you climb into the spectacular mountainous heart of Madeira for a breathtaking high-mountain walk. You journey up to Pico do Arieiro, the island's third-highest peak at over 1,800 metres, often standing above a sea of clouds with the jagged volcanic ridges rising like islands around you. You walk a stretch of the dramatic, exhilarating trail toward Pico Ruivo, the highest point on Madeira, along knife-edge ridges, through tunnels carved in the rock and up stone stairways, with breathtaking views in every direction over the whole island and the ocean beyond. The mountain air is crisp and the scenery sublime. The scale, drama and beauty are breathtaking. This evening you return to Funchal, tired and exhilarated, for a hearty Madeiran dinner. Rest well, ready to explore the dramatic north coast tomorrow.

Today you explore the dramatic north and west of the island. You journey along spectacular cliff roads and through the misty, otherworldly Fanal forest of ancient, gnarled laurel trees wreathed in cloud, past the plunging waterfalls and deep green ravines of the north coast, and through hidden villages clinging to the mountainsides. You reach Porto Moniz on the northwestern tip, where natural volcanic rock pools, formed by ancient lava flows and filled by the Atlantic surf, offer a beautiful and unforgettable swim in clear, sheltered sea water beside the crashing ocean. You take in soaring sea cliffs and viewpoints along the way, perhaps at Sao Vicente or the Seixal black-sand beach. The drama, greenery and beauty are captivating. This evening you return to Funchal for dinner. Rest well, ready for whales and dolphins tomorrow.

Today you head out onto the Atlantic in search of whales and dolphins. You board a boat from Funchal and cruise out onto the sparkling ocean, one of the world's great havens for cetaceans, watching for pods of playful common, spotted and bottlenose dolphins that leap and surf alongside the boat, and for the majestic forms of pilot whales, sperm whales and other species that frequent these rich, deep waters, with a marine biologist often aboard to share their knowledge. In the afternoon you might explore the dramatic eastern tip of the island, walking the wild, barren Ponta de Sao Lourenco peninsula, with its red and ochre cliffs plunging to the sea. The wildlife, thrill and beauty are captivating. This evening, savour a final Madeiran dinner. Rest well, reflecting on the beauty of the island, ahead of your departure tomorrow.

After a final morning in beautiful Funchal, perhaps a last stroll along the seafront, a visit to a flower-filled garden, or some final shopping for Madeira wine, embroidery and honey cake, you are transferred to Funchal Airport for your onward departure. You leave having immersed yourself in the dramatic natural beauty of Madeira, the flower market and gardens of Funchal, the ancient laurel forest and levada walks, the breathtaking high mountains between Pico do Arieiro and Pico Ruivo, the dramatic north coast and volcanic sea pools of Porto Moniz, and the whales and dolphins of the Atlantic. The images stay vivid long after you land, the green ravines and cascading waterfalls, the jagged peaks above the clouds, the volcanic pools beside the crashing ocean, and the dolphins leaping in the blue. Madeira offers dramatic beauty, adventure and lush green wonder in abundance, and you depart already dreaming of a return to this beautiful Atlantic island.