Strolling and Exploring the Magnificent Island of Madeira

You purchase your own flights for this holiday.

The price you pay to Secret Hills Walking Holidays is a land only price.

When you reserve your flight, our policy is to enable you to fly from your local airport, wherever possible.

This means that clients will arrive at the destination airport at different times and we will arrange the onward transfers to the hotel, and return you to the airport at the end of the holidays.

On this holiday, the strolling and exploring option works as follows.

We walk at a steady, strolling pace for a couple of miles, then take a break with a coffee. Dependent on the activity for the day- visiting sites of interest/gardens/ villages – we sometimes add another couple of miles in the afternoon. Lunch is either packed or at a local cafe. Each day’s activities will be discussed during the evening before.

Underfoot conditions are generally excellent with well maintained and waymarked footpaths. Distances covered vary according to the terrain and are between 3 and 4 miles.

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
  • flowers everywhere, lots of formal and informal gardens
  • walking on the famous levadas, the beautiful coast
  • walking the famous Pico’s walk between Arreiro and Ruivo
  • The magnificent Ponta de Sao Laurenco peninsula
  • The villages of Porta do Cruz, Jardim do Mar, Paul do Mar, Prazares and Camacha
  • two walks to choose from daily
  • our relaxed social approach
  • warm evenings that entrance you
  • the Madeiran cuisine to delight you
  • UK tour guide as well as local guide

 The walking on this tour is easy and taken at a strolling pace. There may be some slight ascents and descents.

Underfoot conditions are good but using walking boots or walking shoes is highly recommended.

It’s all about meeting new friends. Each holiday is designed to be a friendly, relaxed and stress-free occasion. Talking is as important as walking on Secret Hills Walking Holidays. We don’t go in for discos, we may use an event that is taking place in the area we are in to boost the weekend’s activities – but it’s good, old fashioned chat that makes our short breaks successful.

“Make new friends that turn into old friends” – that’s our motto.

You might be surprised by what fun you’ll have with people who are older or younger than you during a holiday with us, and that’s exactly the sort of atmosphere we encourage; people find it very rewarding. It doesn’t matter what your reasons for travelling with us are, we’ve had people who are single, divorced or widowed, people who have partners that are unable to travel, and people who can’t holiday with their friends anymore as they’ve all got married themselves. There are people who want to make friends, see sights, and experience something completely new. Whatever your reason, we’ll welcome you with open arms and our friendly hosts will help you to get the most out of your holiday.

Don’t worry if this is the first time you have ventured to join a group holiday – its always a bit daunting – but we will look after you and ensure that you get used to being amongst friends again. Trust us to to get you back into the swing of things.

Oh – by the way – it’s not a dating agency – over the years we have had people meet and fall in love – but that’s just chance. Our aim is that you make like-minded friends – just relax and enjoy.

Just arrive and enjoy.

There are other walking holiday companies that cover Europe but we believe we offer the best value for many reasons….

• We specialise in organising guided walking holidays for single and solos travellers
• We are a small friendly company
• We have a loyal customer base who return again and again (so we must be doing something right) – read our testimonials page on the website
• We offer a lot of flexibility – you can stay extra nights which we are happy to organise for you. We are also very flexible on the walks we provide, adapting to suit walkers and weather conditions
• Our walk leading is second to none. Unlike some other large Walking Companies, we use LOCAL leaders who live in the area and who love their surroundings. They have expert knowledge of everything you need to know to make an area come alive.
• You are safe in our hands – our guides are experts, fully qualified in first aid. Also, because of their local knowledge of the hills, they can respond to any situation that might for example demand cutting short a route. They don’t need to consult maps – they know the hills intimately.
• Our leaders are all easy-going, genuinely sociable people who want to ensure that you have the best time you can with the rest of the group. They make the weekend fun by engaging with all members of a group, and ensuring that everyone feels part of the group experience.
• We give great value for money. Because we recognise that lots of walkers holiday on their own, we have negotiated no single supplement deals with all our hotels to ensure the best possible deal.
• We always use good hotels, selected and constantly reviewed.
• We have smaller groups than some of the larger walking companies because we believe the social experience is much better in a smaller group. People can talk to everyone, especially at dinner where you can all sit at one table in a small group. Our numbers vary from holiday to holiday but an average group size would be 8-12.

You may book online.

Payment is in two parts – you pay a deposit of 25%, payable when reserving your holiday place. You will receive an invoice for the holiday showing the deposit paid, and full amount to pay for the holiday. This acts as your confirmation.

The balance is due 8 weeks prior to the holiday start date. You will be sent a reminder.

About three weeks prior to departure, we will send you holiday joining details, and details of the transfer from the airport to the appointed hotel we have arranged for you.

Once you arrive at your holiday destination

Secret Hills Walking Holidays organise all aspects of your holiday– including guiding, transport to walks start and provide you with an experienced tour guide. You make your own arrangements to get to the airport in the UK, we meet you at the airport you are flying to, and help you with your transfer to the appointed hotel.

It is important to read Secret Hills Walking Holidays Terms and Conditions – click on the tab on our web site – before you complete the booking form.

Insurance – you need to be fully covered

It is a condition of joining any of our holidays that you must be fully insured against travel, medical and personal accident risks (to include repatriation costs and air ambulance or helicopter rescue services where appropriate).

We will ask you to provide us with the details of your insurance prior to the holidays start date and it is a condition of reserving a place.

If you are a UK citizen and travelling in Europe you should obtain the UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) which is available only online from the UK Government website. This gives you medical care at a reduced cost, and some cases for free, in many European countries, but should not be considered a substitute for adequate travel insurance.