East Tour

Northeast & Southeast

This taxi tour starts at the parish of Monte, here you can visit the church of Our Lady of Monte where the tomb of emperor Charles of Austria is. Monte is also the home of the traditional & famous wicker toboggans. We then continue up the road through Terreiro da Luta, a Belvedere overlooking the city of Funchal. Pico do Areeiro is our next stop, which is the third highest peak of Madeira at 1818m (5964ft) of altitude. From here one can enjoy fantastic views over most of the island. Then take some time at Ribeiro Frio where there is a government run trout nursery and is also where the levada da Serra do Fail passes through. This levada crosses the road (left section of this levada is called Balcões) and carries water all the way to the city of Funchal. We then continue to Santana, known for their traditional triangular thatched houses. Continuing through the northeast coast road takes us to Porto da Cruz village just by the sea. Here one can visit the local rum destilery (partially run on steam and the last in Europe that still runs on steam). We then cross over to the south-east of the island and visit Ponta de São Lourenço passing through Caniçal fishing village. From here one can observe the entire east coast and on a clear day the island of Porto santo. Or final stop is at Garajau's Cristo Rei monument is and from here you can enjoy a magnificent view over the bay of Funchal.

• Miradouro do Juncal, which offers different perspectives, is worth a visit while at Pico do Areeiro
• The wonderful and colorful thatched houses in Santana make for great photo postcards
• The free rum tasting at Porto da Cruz's distillery