Madeira’s Fantastic East and North

The walking here, in this quiet, less touristy area of Madeira, is quite superb with a great variation of stunning scenery in all directions. Our solos guided walking holiday will introduce you to the very best walking in this beautiful landscape.

The price shown here excludes flights – No single supplement

We specialise in offering guided walking holidays for singles and solos in stunning locations across the UK and Europe. Solos and Singles Guided Walking is our unique speciality – unlike other walking holiday companies. We also design bespoke holidays for special groups.

What you get on a Secret Hills Solos Guided Walking Madeiran Holiday

• Flights arranged by yourselves
• Transfer from airport to Hotel Dom Pedro  and return
• Bed and breakfast
• Guided walking by local walks leader
• Any transport needed on the walks 
• The services of a Secret Hills tour guide

• No sole occupancy supplement – the price shown on the website is the price you pay

• Individual attention
• Our administration and management service

What’s not included

• Entries to local attractions
• Evening meal
• Any drinks you have in the hotel and out on the walks

Additional days

We can arrange extra days at the end of your holiday/ coming out earlier.  

Madeira is an island paradise with fantastic walking on the mountains and coast.

• the sun in winter – always a bonus
• scenery that is unique some as a World Heritage site
• stay in a beautiful historic city – Madeira’s former capital
• flowers everywhere, lots of formal and informal gardens
• our relaxed social approach
• warm evenings that entrance you
• the Madeiran cuisine to delight you
• UK tour guide as well as local guides

We stay at the Dom Pedro Hotel in Machico, the historical former capital.

https://madeira.dompedro.com

Rooms at Dom Pedro  are bright and airy, thanks to large windows.

No sole occupancy supplement – the price shown on the website is the price you pay

Dom Pedro Madeira is a 4-star hotel on Madeira Island, with panoramic views over the sea and the Desertas Islands. Its privileged location on the east coast of the island, in Machico Bay, allows you to enjoy the best that Madeira has to offer: the mild climate, the landscapes, the beaches and the most beautiful levadas on the island. The hotel is located on the seafront and surrounded by subtropical gardens, making it without a doubt one of the best hotels for a holiday on Madeira Island, in Portugal.

Equipment includes free Wi-Fi access and a flat-screen TV broadcasting cable channels. Private bathrooms in all rooms..

A relaxing rooftop terrace with lounge chairs provides panoramic views of Madeira Island, from the Machico’s Mountains, all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. The international airport is a 5-minute drive from the hotel.

Breakfast

Breakfast is superb with a selection of fruit/cereals/yohurts/breads/ and hot food.

Dinner

We eat dinner together and there is a good variety of restaurants available to us, as well as the hotel restaurant.

On this holiday you pay for your own dinner- this gives you the opportunity to choose how many courses and sample the variety of food on offer.

Packed lunch

We provide a simple –  locally produced at the bakery opposite the hotel – a filled  roll and piece of fruit for packed lunch. You may need to supplement this with your own energy bars/chocolate etc. Because of the nature of our walks there is little opportunity to stop for lunch at a cafe or similar on the walks.

This holiday has five days of superb walking with one free day in the middle.

Walking days are normally 9.15am to 5.00pm.

We use a minibus to take us to our walk starts and from finishes.

We use a local Madeiran leader to organise and lead our walks -supported by a Secret Hills Walking tour guide.

Levada walking is the most popular form of exploring this island, and we take in two levada walks – though we do add to the levada walks by venturing off the main tracks to explore. They are a joy to walk along with the constant stream of water bubbling on one side, and ever changing views of deep valleys and hillsides usually to the sea, on the other,

Our mountain walks are both excellent routes – the first skirts the Nuns Valley at 1200 metres, from Boca da Corrida to Encumeada underneath Pico Grande – simply breath taking views.

The second is even higher at 1650 metres high, traversing two of Madeira’s highest peaks from Pico Arreirro to Pico Ruivo. The mountain walks are on good paths, with gradual climbing, and some sharp descents to test the knees. Levada walks are generally flat, some descent at the at the end of the walk.

We also walk along the coast around Machico and Porta do Cruz. The Boca do Risco walk along the coast is simply stunning. On wet weather days – you may get one – we walk along the Point St Laurenco – jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean – with super geological features.

Some of our walks – all chosen on the basis of the groups ability and the weather.

We choose the walks from the many that are close to Machico.

These include-

• Machico to Canical via Viewing point of Pico Facho- a walk along the east coast and into the bustling heart of the port of Canical. This walk normally is combined with the Point Sao Lourenco.
• Boca do Risco and Porta da Cruz.- Along the Levada Canical, ascend Boca do Risco, walk along a high coast path to Larano. The descend to the coast and into Porta do Cruz and its rum museum.
• Levada Riberio Frio to Prazares – a magnificent levada walk – hanging on the side of a valley and through deep forest before descending to Prazares, its cafes and viewing point
• Santana and  the Coast path to Sao Jorge- from the winery -along the coast with superb views to the north and down to the valley before ascending to Sao Jorge for refreshments and transport back to the hotel.
• Levada do Santa Serra and Camacha- a levada with open views and to the municipality of Camacha set high above the coast.

  

• Levada do Marocos- the Mimosa valley- flowers abound on a winding walk along levada do Maracos with the mimosa trees – amongst others – a spring delight.
• The Point of St Lourenco- fantastic geology, a walk not to be missed on this coastal area. The walk ascends and descends to a lovely cafe by the sea. It returns the same way but the views are completely  different.
• Pico Ruivo and Arreirro- the signature walk – only possible in good weather – a fantastic path through high mountains and peaks to Pico Ruivo. Descend to Achada de Texiera – and down into Santana for refreshments. What a walk!
• On each Madeira holiday we have two grades of walking.- moderate and easy.

• On the moderate walks – 8/9miles – we ascend and descend at least once per day – up to 300 metres but generally over an hour and a half. Pace is critical – we don’t rush, there’s too much to see, but we do stride out where it is possible. Underfoot conditions in Madeira are generally good – it is volcanic soil and there can be some rocky sections – and we take care on these sections. Footpaths are well marked and accessible.
• On the easy walks – which may also include some sightseeing of villages. towns, gardens and things of interest generally – we won’t walk as fast, have plenty of stops and probably cover 5/6 miles. This will be done over the whole of the day. There will be hills to ascend/descend but we will take these very steadily – we do not rush our clients. As with the walking grade – underfoot conditions in Madeira can be stony – it is – and we take care on those sections. The pace is slower, not snail pace but enough to give you a good stroll, and to allow you to enjoy the wonderful Madeiran countryside..
• Each day you have the choice of either walking or strolling.

Exclusions

Although our leaders are well trained and experienced in dealing with different capabilities of our walking clients, if they have any concerns about any clients ability or suitability to undertake safely any walking activity we plan or they feel that participation of an individual may affect the groups safety and cohesion, then they have full permission to exclude that client from an activity.

They will try at all times to provide an alternative suggested activity, though this may involve the client in additional local cost.

We rarely have to enforce this above recommendation, but it is a sensible and necessary protection for the individual client, the group and the leaders.

Nestling at the heart of a wide bay on the eastern edge of Madeira, just a short drive from the island’s international airport, Machico is a pretty fishing town with plenty of tourist appeal and some of the most spectacular ocean views in Madeira.

Set in a fertile valley at the mouth of the river of the same name, the town is conveniently divided into two parts – the historic centre to the west and the old fishing quarter to the east – just 26km from the island’s cosmopolitan capital Funchal

Accessible via Madeira’s steep eastern flank, Machico is a lovely seaside town of broad avenues and pleasant squares shaded by plane trees. It’s also the spot where the two intrepid explorers, João Gonçalves Zarco and Tristão Vaz Teixeira, made their first landfall on the 1st of July 1419, thereby officially claiming the island for the Portuguese crown..

But a local legend suggests that they weren’t the first Europeans to set foot on Madeira Island.

In fact, the town is named after an Englishman called Machim who found himself washed ashore at the very same spot after being shipwrecked with his petrified bride in 1344.

It was Zarco and Teixeira themselves who later gave credence to the story by recounting how they found a crude wooden cross with a Latin inscription, which they translated as ‘Here came Machim, an Englishman, driven by the tempest, and here lies buried Anne d’Arfet, a woman who was with him’.

Located on the north side of the town’s main square, the church of Nossa Senhora da Conceição (Our Lady of the Conception) is one of the most impressive churches of any Atlantic island. Built in 1499 when Machico was Madeira’s capital, it is notable for its fine arched portal donated by King Manuel I, who also donated the statue of the Virgin in the church’s lovely baroque interior.

The east and northern parts of Madeira boasts some fine walks.

This part of Madeira is less touristy and relaxing- but walk round its centre and promenade on a balmy evening- it has all you need to enjoy both the fine walking from here – and the relaxing ambience provided by its rambling streets and lovely squares.