Spots Away.
Madeira
When: 1st week of November
Team: Family. 3 kids 12yo, 9yo, 6yo.
Travel purpose: Surf & Walks. One class a day so that J. & the girls could do some surf classes.
Weather: First day, rainy. Then sometimes greyish but mostly sunny. We were wearing tee shirts during the day, but you need jackets/jumpers at night and also sometimes during the walks in the mountains.
Where to stay - Location: We chose to go to Porto da Cruz as it is a nice village with a spot for beginners and a surf school literally on the spot. I should mention that the school classes are more expensive than in Lisbon. 60€/80€ per kid for 2 hours.
More info on Madeira Calhau Surfschool
I’ve checked them all, they are all offering the same services and prices.
Where to sleep: We tried Jaca (but it was full). However, I recommend it as it looks very nice.
We went to the Hotel Costa Linda which is in front of the sea, a bit vintage, simple but does the job, especially with kids. The ocean view is perfect, the people here are really nice and you walk 2 minutes to go surfing. They also have a restaurant with a wonderful sea view, take your Madeira punch (with Macaruja seeds in it) at sunset, you will like it.
About surfing there:
The spot in Praia da Alagoa is beautiful, aesthetically speaking.
Dark sand, some rocks.
We had a big swell, so just my son and I could surf. We had fun even though the waves were closing a lot. In the end, we laughed so much because we had the most beautiful "boites" (wipeouts) ever.
Tip: You have a kind of lift near the right rocks where you can catch a big right.
When it is too big here, a spot de repli is Machico. But there, you will only find tiny waves. It is worth having a look in case your kids really want to surf.
When in Pedro da Cruz, you can also walk (10 min) to another spot in Praia da Maiata. It can be a really good option if Praia da Alagoa is too crowdy.
Oh, and if you have one, TAKE YOUR BOARD to Madeira, not that easy to rent a good one + too expensive.
Where to eat in Pedro da Cruz:
Pipa is a cool spot, after surf bar and good restaurant.
Piscinas Snack Bar: Perfect spot if you want to eat with a sea view.
Also you can buy this delicious punch in the North Mills distillery nearby. Definitely it is worth a visit!
Top 3 of the walks around:
I would recommend to rent a car as you will need it to do the walks.
#1 The most impressive : Du Pico do Arieiro au Pico Ruivo | Au sommet de l’île de Madère.
Be careful with crazy kids, it’s a bit stressful but you can’t miss this one, just keep a big eye on them.
#2 The greenest : Caldeirão Verde
Kids’favourite one. Subtropical mountain forest. amazing.
#3 The End of the World: Sao Lourenco
Beautiful and lunar views. This is the shortest one, 3h. But to be honest with our 6yo daughter we never went to the end of the walk and it wasn’t frustrating at all - ok, maybe because I wanted to go surfing!!!
