Madeira’s levada walks: how to book a time slot and choose your route

What changed on 1 January 2026

€4.50. That is now the price of a half-hour slot to set foot on one of Madeira’s official trails. Since 1 January 2026, access to the autonomous region’s classified trails has followed new rules: €4.50 for the general public, €3 for visitors accompanied by a tour company bound by an agreement, known as a protocol, to the Institute of Forests and Nature Conservation (IFCN), and compulsory booking on the SIMplifica portal [1].

Working with the University of Madeira, the IFCN has set the carrying capacity of every classified trail, in other words how many people it can take. That capacity is now divided into 30-minute slots, from sunrise to sunset, to spread visitors across the day. Above all, every visitor must now register in advance, whatever their age or status [2]. Residents of the region pay nothing, but they too have to book [2] [3].

And the checks are anything but theoretical. Entering a classified trail without a booking is an infraction: you may be asked to leave the trail to put things right, and the regulations provide for a fine [3].

Booking your slot on SIMplifica

Booking is online only, on SIMplifica, the Regional Government of Madeira’s digital services portal [3]. There you choose your trail, your day and your entry time from the half-hour slots still available, and the general public pays at the time of booking [1] [2]. The tourism board, Visit Madeira, publishes a step-by-step tutorial, and each trail’s page states its fee [1].

Before paying, read the rescheduling terms. The IFCN only refunds or reschedules access when restrictions affect the site, by its own decision; in bad weather, it may handle booking transfers itself [2]. A walk cancelled because you have changed your mind is therefore not refunded.

Seven official walks to start with

For a first outing, the Vereda dos Balcões is the gentlest: 1.5 km from regional road ER 103 at Ribeiro Frio, along a levada, to the Balcões viewpoint; on a clear day, the view reaches the island’s central massif, with Pico do Areeiro, Pico das Torres and Pico Ruivo [5].

The Levada das 25 Fontes, the ‘levada of the 25 springs’, sets off from Rabaçal, on regional road ER 105, between 964 and 1,288 m above sea level: 4.3 km out, about 3 hours, through surroundings that the official page promises will be exuberant [6]. The Vereda da Ponta de São Lourenço is a change of scene: 4 km along a peninsula, from Baía d’Abra to Casa do Sardinha, between 23 and 126 m above sea level [7].

From the same starting point at Rabaçal, the Levada do Risco, rated easy, shares the first stretch of the 25 Fontes trail before branching off: 1.5 km out, about 2 hours there and back, at around 1,000 m [8]. To reach the roof of the island without the big crossing, take the Vereda do Pico Ruivo from Achada do Teixeira, home to a rock formation called Homem em Pé, the ‘Standing Man’: in 2.8 km, it reaches Pico Ruivo, at 1,862 m the highest point in the archipelago [9]. To adapt these times to your own pace, see our method for estimating walking time.

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The other two ask more of you. The Levada do Caldeirão Verde runs for 8.7 km from Queimadas Forest Park to Caldeirão do Inferno, passing the Caldeirão Verde lake, formed by the water of a stream that falls vertically into it: the page says to allow 6 h 30 min [10]. The Vereda do Areeiro links the Pico do Areeiro viewpoint to Pico Ruivo in 6.1 km and about 3 hours, at the heart of a massif that belongs to the Natura 2000 network [4].

Weather, closures and caution

Rain, strong wind or fog can close a trail temporarily for safety reasons; Visit Madeira considers it essential to check the weather forecast before setting off [3]. The status of each classified trail, open, partly restricted or inaccessible, can be checked on the map on Visit Madeira’s website and through the IFCN’s channels [3] [1].

Getting to the start and parking

From Funchal, you reach the start of each trail by hire car, by taxi or on an organised excursion; each official page gives the start and finish points, worth checking before you choose your slot. Think about getting back: several trails, such as the Vereda do Areeiro, are one way.

Parking on the island follows a colour code: white lines are free, though some are reserved for residents; blue lines are paid; yellow lines mean no parking. Charges generally apply from Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm, and on Saturdays, 8am to 2pm; Sundays and public holidays are free. You pay at the ticket machine or through the iPark Driver app. Expressways and main roads are toll-free [3].

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Once your slot is booked, all that remains is to get up early, follow the murmur of water along its stone channel, and let the laurel forest do the rest.

Gallery: Madeira’s trails in five landscapes

Five real photos taken on the official trails listed above or where they start, published under free licences on Wikimedia Commons by their authors, who are credited under each image. Tap or click a photo to enlarge it.

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Worth watching

The official walkthrough from Madeira’s regional innovation agency, which runs SIMplifica: buying a classified-trail ticket online, with no portal account needed for tourists and non-residents.

The video is hosted by YouTube (Google): nothing loads until you play it, and Google may then set cookies.

Nolwenn Bastide

Trail running, snow, water, nature and destinations

Nolwenn covers trail running, snow, water, nature and destinations for Outfarer. Curious about everything, from meteor showers to night-train timetables, she has a knack for unearthing the one detail that changes everything, and putting it in a single sentence.

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