Madeira hiking tours from Funchal

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Walkers arriving in Funchal without a car soon find the problem is not the trail but the trailhead: most of the classic walks start between 30 and 76 minutes up in the mountains, and some have no bus. Madeira hiking tours solve that in one of two ways. A hiking transfer drives you to the start, and often collects you at the end, and you walk on your own. A guided walk adds a guide who walks with you.

Eighty-nine hiking tours leave from Funchal. The most reviewed is the sunrise transfer to Pico do Areeiro, and 19 tours go to the Areeiro, 10 to the Ponta de São Lourenço and 7 to Rabaçal. Sixty-six include pickup from a hotel, and every one can be cancelled free of charge.

The trail fees, €4.50 for each classified trail and €10.50 for PR1 in full, are rarely included.

Transfer or guided walk

The common mistake is to book a transfer and expect a guide. Read the listing: many of the best-reviewed trips are transport only.

A hiking tour Madeira operators sell as a transfer is exactly that: a driver takes you to the trailhead and, on the linear walks, waits for you at the other end. That matters most on PR1, which runs one way only, from Pico do Areeiro to Pico Ruivo, and ends far from its start; the transfers that include both ends solve the problem. Thirteen of the tours are transfers by name, and they are among the most reviewed: the sunrise transfer to the Areeiro has 4,687 reviews at 4.82, and the Areeiro to Ruivo transfer 2,114 at 4.81.

Madeira hike tours with a guide usually cost more than the transfers, and suit walkers new to the island, or anyone who wants the plants, the levadas and the history explained on the way. About 70 of the 89 name a guide.

Either way, you still need the trail booking: the classified trails are booked on the SIMplifica portal for a date and a time slot.

Guided tours cost more than transfers but provide explanations of the local flora and history.

The guided walks

Visitors often assume a guided walk is a hard trek. Most follow the levadas, long but nearly level.

The Madeira walking tours with a guide go mainly to the levadas of the laurel forest: the Rabaçal valley, for the Risco waterfall and the 25 Fontes; Queimadas, for the Caldeirão Verde; and Ribeiro Frio. The guided levada walk in the Rabaçal valley, 8 hours from Funchal, has 2,534 reviews at 4.76, and the small-group walk to the 25 Fontes, 4 hours, 867 at 4.78.

A hiking guided tour in Madeira often mixes walking with a drive: the east tours with a laurel-forest walk, 7 hours, combine Pico do Areeiro or Santana with a short walk, and suit mixed groups where not everyone wants to walk all day.

Guides lead mostly in English, on 86 of the tours, and Portuguese, 76; Spanish is offered on 50, French on 41 and German on 34.

Sunrise, the peaks and the longer walks

People often book PR1 for the middle of the day. The sunrise trips go up in the dark.

Nine of the tours are sunrise trips to Pico do Areeiro, at 1,818 m, some with an optional breakfast; the shortest, 5 hours, returns after the sunrise, and the longest, up to 10 hours, adds the walk to Pico Ruivo. Book the PR1 slot for the same morning, and check the IFCN's notices, since the trail closes on some days for works.

For Madeira trekking tours of a full day, the choice is PR9 from Queimadas, 8.7 km each way to the Caldeirão Verde, with transfers and guided versions of 7 to 8 hours, and PR13 to Fanal, with a transfer, 8 hours.

A Madeira Nuns Valley walking tour is on offer too: a day trip that pairs the Botanical Garden with a walk in the valley and lunch, 8 hours. The Eira do Serrado viewpoint, at 1,095 m, looks down on the valley.

Fees, pickup and group size

The mistake is to assume the tour price covers the trail. Usually it does not.

The classified trails cost €4.50 each for visitors over 12, and PR1 in full €10.50, booked in advance on SIMplifica; two or more trails in 7 days cost €52.50 together, and €22.50 in 3 days. Visitors of 12 and under are exempt. Check whether the tour includes the fee: only 8 of the 89 say they do, 13 say they do not, and the rest do not state it.

Of the 89 tours, 66 include pickup from a hotel in Funchal. Four offer a private option and six a small group; thirteen are private by name, for a family or a group that wants its own pace.

Every tour can be cancelled free of charge within its window, which matters in the mountains: if the peaks are in cloud, move the day. The IFCN's fee page explains the rates and exemptions.

Choosing a guide

People often choose a tour by its photograph. The listing's details are the better guide.

A good Madeira hiking guide is one whose tour names the trail, the length and the time on foot, and says who it suits. Look for the trail's PR number, whether the tour is guided or a transfer, and whether it is linear: PR1 is one way only, and PR9, PR6 and PR8 are walked out and back.

Check the reviews count as well as the score: the most-reviewed walks have thousands of reviews at 4.8. And check the weather before you go. The north is far wetter than Funchal: the Queimadas station, at the start of PR9, averaged about 2,300 mm of rain a year over 1941-1970.

The IFCN's trail notices list closures, and the hiking guide covers every trail.

Common questions

What is a hiking transfer in Madeira?

Transport to the trailhead and, on linear walks such as PR1, from the far end; you walk without a guide.

Do hiking tours include the trail fee?

Rarely: only 8 of the 89 tours say they include it. Classified trails cost €4.50 each for visitors over 12, and PR1 in full €10.50, booked on SIMplifica.

Which hiking tour is most popular?

The sunrise transfer to Pico do Areeiro, with 4,687 reviews at 4.82.

Can I cancel if the weather is bad?

Yes: every hiking tour from Funchal can be cancelled free of charge within its stated window.