Madeira, all green!
Madeira should rhyme with nature and be more present on our traveling radar.
This Portuguese island is reached* with the adventurous spirit from the moment of landing, when your eyes only see the ocean and the runway protrudes, shy, over the water.
Europe's most experienced pilots display their know-how to touch down on an island with almost no beaches , a rare bird that points to the nature tourism to continue to prosper, without forgetting to respect its essence.
Here you come with the spirit ready for adventure
**STROLL THROUGH THE GARDEN AT BELMOND REID’S PALACE **
Yes, we are asking you to travel to Funchal for you to walk through the garden of a hotel, but not just any hotel.
With more than 500 varieties of plants, the del Belmond Reid's Palace It is a garden that can boast of housing species that are not even found in the island's Botanical Garden. The reason? Have the sea at your feet (literally) and the microclimate that it generates.
More than 500 varieties of plants coexist here
Esterlicias, cacti, palm trees, aloe vera… make up a list of plants, both native and imported, whose changes throughout the year make the garden presents a different appearance in each season.
Biweekly, Wednesday and Sunday at 3:30 p.m. the hotel organizes guided tours by a horticulturist and among its future projects is to identify all species with informative signs and create a map so that everyone can make the route freely.
EAT AT THE FOOT OF A CLIFF
You descend to Fajã dos Padres forgetting the vertigo at the edge of the precipice and daring to observe the void that separates the ground from your cable car cabin.
In total, 2 minutes and 48 seconds of impressive descent to reach one of the most exclusive corners of the island. It is because of its location: practically isolated in the south of Madeira, occupying the small plot of land that was left when the missing part of the cliff fell off.
Fajã dos Padres descends without vertigo
Inhabited for 150 years by Jesuits, the place today preserves nine of the 10 houses where the friars used to live, their meeting room that serves as restaurant and orchard with which they introduced the malvasia grape on the island.
Bananas, persimmons, grapes, passion fruit, mangoes, custard apples, avocados... ecologically produced to supply a restaurant that prepares delicacies such as limpets, the caco bolo, the essential swordfish with fried banana and a final climax starring the mango cheesecake. By the way, it is provided with strike out , the typical drink of the island.
THE SPECTACLE OF THE NATURAL SWIMMING POOLS OF PORTO MONIZ
Whether it's the ocean, brave and defiant, roaring in each attack against the rocks on stormy days; or that of the hot days when travelers and residents of the island make a pilgrimage to these volcanic lava pools located in the north of Madeira to bathe in its crystal clear waters. Yes, you were right, they come from the Atlantic and they 'sneak' into the enclosure naturally.
Natural saltwater pools
LEVADAS, MAKING THE WAY SINCE THE 16TH CENTURY
With an area of 740 square kilometres, Madeira stakes its tourist potential on green of its laurel forest.
Declared ** Natural Patrimony of Humanity in 1999**, it occupies almost a third of the island and can be explored on foot, following those levadas that have made it so famous among lovers of hiking.
More of 3,000 kilometers of roads run parallel to these canals that began to be built in the century XVI to transport water from the north to the south of the island and which are still used today for the same purpose.
Tour to the roof of Madeira, Pico Ruivo
Lovers of accumulating steps on their legs can choose to crown the roof of Madeira, **climbing to Pico Ruivo (1,862 m) **, or enter the deep Valley of the Ribeira de São Jorge Following the Levada do Caldeirão Verde: six kilometers and about five hours of travel between steep mountains, tunnels carved into the rock and magnificent views.
TRAVEL IN 4X4 OLD ROADS
Specifically the section that leads from Poiso to Ribeiro Frio , which is part of that network of royal roads that 400 years ago already served to communicate the different enclaves of Madeira and that, at present, is being recovered.
It is true that we are more than put on our boots and use our legs to travel the world, especially if it is a question of entering nature, among forests that have nothing to envy the very Black Forest of Tolkien's imaginary.
A different way to immerse yourself in nature
However, the experience of doing it on wheels, in a 4x4, adds an undeniable plus of adrenaline that comes through potholes and impossible curves, while you concentrate on ducking your head to avoid the branches and get it out again through the roof of the car, following the driver's instructions. The landscape, if you manage to contemplate it, is incredible.
The companies, such as Mountain Expedition, that offer these services in Madeira distribute the island by zones and by days, so it is recommended consult their web pages when planning the trip.
SLEEP BETWEEN BANANAS
More than 4,000 square meters of banana plantations make up part of the farm that Quinta da Casa Branca occupies.
This 18th century agricultural, wine and banana farm opened its doors as boutique hotel in 1998.
Nevertheless, the manor house continued to be occupied by the Leacock family, owners of the estate, until November 2015.
Separated from the hotel, its thick stone walls date from 1947 and house inside five large suites and details that range from the stately, such as its marble bathtubs , even the 'enjoyment', like those terraces that offer views of a sea of banana trees. The less picturesque.
Stately home of the Quinta da Casa Branca
GET TO THE END OF THE WORLD
In Madeira, the world ends in Ponta de Sao Lourenco , the easternmost tip of the island.
Here, the end of the known world is shaped like a peninsula and its thinness allows contemplate the north and south coast at the same time.
In the distance, during the drive to reach her, You will see her appear in the mist, like an apocalyptic promise.
The north winds are responsible for an almost Martian landscape, of reddish sands devoid of the exuberant vegetation so characteristic of other parts of the island, and of the profiles of those cliffs that penetrate abruptly into tremendously blue waters.
And no, we cannot think of a more generous farewell from Madeira than to delight ourselves with the image of its imposing lava columns, those that remind us, once again, that we walk on volcanic soil.
The end of the world in Madeira looks like this
*TAP is the leading airline in Portugal, recommended to fly to MADEIRA. (Star Alliance since 2005) . Also, the Portugal Stopover Program allows TAP passengers who wish to visit Lisbon on the same trip, one way or the other, being able to stay between 1 and 5 days, at no additional cost to the ticket. **More information at flytap.com**