Walking in Madeira: Ilha to Santana / Where is Madeira?

Madeira Walks

1. Walk – Ilha to Santana / Where is Madeira?
2. Walk – Pico Ruivo and Pico Arieiro / Cristiano Ronaldo
3. Walk – Monte to Camatcha / Wicker Sledge Riding
4. Walk – Camatcha to Santo da Serra / Madeira, the Flower Island
5. Walk – Santo da Serra to Portela / Levadas
6. Walk – Marocos to Caniçal / Public Transport on Madeira
7. Walk – Baia d’Abra / Tourism
8. Walk – Canical to Machico / Summary Walking Holiday

Ilha to Santana via Vale da Lapa and Queimadas

Distance: 15.5km (8.6 miles)
Up: 590m
Down: 705m
Navigation: Cicerone Walking in Madeira Walk 24/26/25, Madeira Tour & Trail Map (1:40000)
Stef’s review: 5 of 5 stars

Ilha is about 8km from Santana where we stayed, so we got the bus from Santana to Ilha where we started our walk. Luckily, we met a group of French tourists and their travel guide showed us the access point to our walk. Then it was just climbing, climbing, climbing for about 1 hour until we reached the Levada do Caldeirão in about 850m altitude.
My very first levada and probably the one I was most excited about. A fresh water canal shaded by high trees. And lots of tourists. Because levadas are levelled with no elevation at all it’s a comfy walk for everyone. It’s very green, mostly broad paths, and has a beautiful waterfall towards Queimadas.
Before the Queimadas car park is a very cute picnic area with the charismatic Queimadas guest house in the back. (A huge traditional Madeiranese house with a straw roof that, according to a German tour guide I overheard, can be rented for 35€/day.) Here, we had packed lunch before we descended down to Santana.

Where is Madeira?

Have you heard about Madeira before? It’s often talked about among hikers as a walking paradise. I had to look up where it is. Being part of Portugal, Madeira is situated in the Atlantic Ocean, about 560km (350 miles) off the coast of Morocco and about 900km (500 miles) away from Portugal. The closest civilisation is on the Canary Islands (Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, etc) about 500km (310 miles) away.

More about walking in Madeira:

– More photos of Ilha to Santana
– Itinerary Madeira Walking Holidays
– Packing List Madeira Holidays