Porto Santo
About
Discover the history of Porto Santo
Porto Santo, a small island in the Madeira archipelago, stands out for its 9 km beach of fine sand framed by calm Atlantic waters. The mild, snorkeling, and sailing, while hiking trails traverse volcanic hills inland, offering coastal views and prized sunset viewpoints. Vila Baleira, the main village, retains a fishing atmosphere and houses a museum dedicated to Christopher Columbus as well as historic fortifications. Restaurants specialize in seafood and traditional Portuguese cuisine. The island's modest size makes it easy to explore by bike or car, away from tourist crowds.
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Discover the best attractions in Porto Santo and its surroundings
Ponta de São Lourenço
A bare volcanic peninsula at Madeira's eastern tip, where the PR8 trail runs about four kilometres among ochre and rust-coloured rock to a last viewpoint facing the islets. The path starts at the Baía d'Abra car park, with no shade and no water point along the way.
Cabo Girão
A glass-floored platform juts out 580 metres above the sea at Cabo Girão, one of the highest sea cliffs in Europe, looking straight down on the cultivated plots of the fajãs below. It stands above Câmara de Lobos; a small entrance fee applies, and buses climb from Funchal.
Fanal Forest
A high pasture scattered with centuries-old til trees, their trunks twisted low, a remnant of the laurisilva forest listed by UNESCO. The site sits on the Paul da Serra plateau; a road leads there, with a car park beside the trees, and access is free.
PR6 Levada das 25 Fontes
A walk along a levada, one of the irrigation channels cut across Madeira, from the Rabaçal car park down through laurel forest to a lagoon where springs seep out of the rock wall, the twenty-five fountains of the name. A paid shuttle spares the road stretch from the car park.
Pico Ruivo
At 1,861 m, Pico Ruivo is the highest point on Madeira, reached on foot from Achada do Teixeira or along the ridge walk from Pico do Arieiro. It stands on the neighbouring island, a 2h15 ferry crossing from Porto Santo.
Praia da Calheta beach
Calheta closes the south-western tip of Porto Santo's nine-kilometre golden beach, looking across to the Ilhéu de Baixo islet. Parking, changing rooms and a few restaurants sit at the end of the road, some ten kilometres from Vila Baleira.
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