I had an inkling of what I might see upon my initial arrival in Madeira. On the Internet, the great cliffs and the beautiful valleys attracted and held my attention. But I had no idea that the island’s grandeur would turn everything I thought about it upside down.
It began with a small convenience store in the Rua de Santa Maria in Funchal, the island’s capital. After buying a bottle of Madeira’s sugarcane rum, the counter attendant asked whether I had sampled the drink, poncha. Minutes later, after a brief conversation small glasses began arriving, filled with a surprisingly smooth lemony drink that seemed stronger than it needed to be. As we exited the shop, each of us fortified with eight shots of poncha, it quickly became apparent that negotiating the sloping sidewalks of Funchal would be an adventure. The initial lesson that I acquired that day was that Madeira allows each individual to be the person he wishes to be.
More than a Mediterranean Getaway
Located 600 miles off the Moroccan coast, Madeira has a distinctive personality. During the Spring of 2025 almost 221,000 tourists visited the island in a single month and this year tourism should rise. Direct flights from Newark, New Jersey have dramatically improved American access to the island and increased passenger flights from Germany, the UK and Poland make it easier for Europeans to visit.
Madeira is often compared to Hawaii, a remote chain of volcanic Pacific islands where beach towns full of fancy restaurants and nightclubs long ago pushed pineapple plantations beyond the horizon. But in Madeira palm-lined beaches given place to mountains nearly 1,900 meters high above the Atlantic, waterfalls descending down to green depths, and medieval irrigation canals.
Where Water Carves Stone
In my case, the concept of Madeira was strongly colored by the stone levadas, which had been built during the fifteenth century to provide the dry parts of the island in the south with water. These paths were cut by prison inmates into the basalt cliffs. It was dangerous, exhausting work and some of them died in the process. In the contemporary world, there are more than 2,000 kilometers of hiking paths that crisscross the island, making it one of the best places in Europe to go hiking.
I decided to go to the less frequented levada in Santana that links to the Cascata Agua d’Alto. The narrow stone path runs past a waterfall 150 meters on the other side of thick woods and then down a beautiful ravine. The sun came out and dazzled in the sprinkling of rainbows. When I was standing there, I realized that the 600-year old levadas are not dead remnants of the past but beautiful pathways through the present that can speak to those who spend time strolling through the mountain ravines.
The ascent to 25 Fontes, a ride that boasts a very famous and equally spectacular waterfall, is located on mossy heights and is better known than Rabaçal.
Into the Fog Forest
The levada is frequently replaced by Fanal Forest, a Tertiary-era Laurissilva habitat, which is also under UNESCO protection. In prehistoric times walking was the only way to navigate the island. And today when the fog rolls in and light dims the silence of the forest seems to acquire a personality of its own.
I stood beneath the so-called tree of the witch. A puff was heard that broke the deep silence. Imagine Madeira as it was so many years ago – undisturbed by any human being since 1419, undisturbed by tracks cut out of precipices, by no busy foot-tracks or press of crowds coming far across oceans.
The Landscape Traveling Through
Madeira can be touched and felt as well as seen. Canyoneering in the Ribeiro Frio area allows sliding down the sides of the rocks, that are smoothed from the flow of water over thousands of years. Here it’s possible to slide down waterfalls, then climb back up using ropes tied to the rock. Here nature is an all enveloping presence, a living entity with which you coexist and never dream to conquer.
The experience requires sacrificing to water and gravity, but having the capability to swim in a primitive manner is exhilarating. The point of view that could not be taken with a camera was that of the canyon descent.
Above the Clouds
A path climbs past Pico do Aireiro – elevation 1,818 meters – then pushes on toward Pico Ruivo at 1,862. This trail bears the name Vereda do Aireiro. Reaching it means catching one of those rare views stretching far beyond rock and sky. The mountains floating in the air and the clouds of the white ocean on the top of Pico Ruivo were realistic and dramatic. The pure geological origin of the island is observed in the red volcanic precipices of the island in the Vereda de Ponta de São Lourenco on the eastern peninsula when falling down into the blue sea.
An Island of Contrasts
The trip to the north and the south was accomplished by passing through microclimates, and shortly, the rain was replaced by the sunshine. Driving roads and gaps in between hills gave sight of ascending walls of banana groves. The stone houses were shelved on steep sides like shelves that are nailed into place. The seashore was very broad and beyond reach unless one crawled along at a snail’s pace, the majority of the time being in low gear.
Mounds of sparkling fish were piled up, each of them crowded with shaggy fruit under the petals that were more like a painted stain. Formerly intended to cheer revolutions, it happens today that the Madeira wine remains largely local, as it is consumed in Funchal.
A Discovery Still Intact
Madeira has also maintained its uniqueness through a steady and controlled development. It remains isolated in falls, along mountain ridges, and upon red volcanic cliffs over the Atlantic as compared to congested towns in Europe.
Madeira is genuine rather than frivolous within the context of East West News Service and myopic international travel literature. Its more refined hospitality areas are not free. But the joy of experiencing Madeira comes from a relaxed walk, a hike along a steep mountainside, wandering through winding streets and lanes, or merely having a glass of poncha in the hands of some swanky native.
For a deeper exploration of this journey, read the full article.