West of Madeira | Full Day 4x4 Tour
Overview
Direct to Ponta do Sol, avoiding the crowds at Ribeira Brava, for the morning coffee stop and south coast views.
Old roads only the Land Rover can deal with, ascending through the rural areas of Ponta do Sol.
45 minute off-road track to Paul da Serra, the largest Plateau of the island, 1494m above sea level!
Descending towards the North side of the island to Ribeira da Janela with large landscape views of the protected UNESCO forest
Lunch at the Aqua Natura hotel in Porto Moniz, with a view over the volcanic rock pools
After a walk around the village of Porto Moniz, we head South through the village of Seixal (rock pools, swimming)
Through Sao Vicente and Serra de Agua (poncha)
And finally ending at the Cabo Girao glass bottom viewpoint
Old roads only the Land Rover can deal with, ascending through the rural areas of Ponta do Sol.
45 minute off-road track to Paul da Serra, the largest Plateau of the island, 1494m above sea level!
Descending towards the North side of the island to Ribeira da Janela with large landscape views of the protected UNESCO forest
Lunch at the Aqua Natura hotel in Porto Moniz, with a view over the volcanic rock pools
After a walk around the village of Porto Moniz, we head South through the village of Seixal (rock pools, swimming)
Through Sao Vicente and Serra de Agua (poncha)
And finally ending at the Cabo Girao glass bottom viewpoint
Inclusions
- Hotel Pick-up and drop off
- Small group (6 passengers max)
- Comfortable, closed top Land Rover Discovery perfect for all weather conditions
- Qualified fun, friendly and informative guide and driver
- Great introduction to the culture and history of the island
- Short 45 minute levada walk (optional)
- Relaxed, no "time schedule" attitude
What to expect
Mother nature at it's finest!
The west is full of cliffs and valleys, I find that on the west we see less people and more nature.
The morning is usually spent exploring the south western coastline, one or two villages, some history and some great photo stops.
According to the weather, we will at some point start climbing to one of the west tour's main attraction, the plateau, Paul Da Serra.
If the weather is good we will spend a fair amount of time up here taking in the unbelievable views, the volcanic valleys formed during the 3rd phase of eruptions that created Madeira, the small villages of the South West from up above, clouds formed below us, laurel forests, cows, and much more....
It's then time to descend to Porto Moniz, the second main event of our tour.
For lunch, we stop at the Aqua Natura Hotel which is simply, for us, the best place in Porto Moniz for lunch (optional extra, not included in price)
After all that we make our way back to Funchal, stoping at various attractions along the way including waterfalls, local bars, churches, volcanic caves (extra), volcanic sand beaches, lagoons for swimming in (weather permitting)
This trip is highly improvised, making it a real adventure every time!
Great for families, nature lovers and those who like being away from the crowds.
The west is full of cliffs and valleys, I find that on the west we see less people and more nature.
The morning is usually spent exploring the south western coastline, one or two villages, some history and some great photo stops.
According to the weather, we will at some point start climbing to one of the west tour's main attraction, the plateau, Paul Da Serra.
If the weather is good we will spend a fair amount of time up here taking in the unbelievable views, the volcanic valleys formed during the 3rd phase of eruptions that created Madeira, the small villages of the South West from up above, clouds formed below us, laurel forests, cows, and much more....
It's then time to descend to Porto Moniz, the second main event of our tour.
For lunch, we stop at the Aqua Natura Hotel which is simply, for us, the best place in Porto Moniz for lunch (optional extra, not included in price)
After all that we make our way back to Funchal, stoping at various attractions along the way including waterfalls, local bars, churches, volcanic caves (extra), volcanic sand beaches, lagoons for swimming in (weather permitting)
This trip is highly improvised, making it a real adventure every time!
Great for families, nature lovers and those who like being away from the crowds.
Additional information
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- Not wheelchair accessible
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Minimum age is 5 years
- Near public transportation
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
- This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 6 travelers
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Ticket delivery
You can present either a paper or an electronic voucher for this activity.
Cancellation
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start time of the experience.
nirany2020
November 2021
Hugo was an amazing tour guide. So laid back, very informative, and in general a happy man! He took us through the off beaten roads, and showed us things that you wouldn’t usually see! It was truly a fantastic tour! Credits to Hugo!
Hugo was an amazing tour guide. So laid back, very informative, and in general a happy man! He took us through the off beaten roads, and showed us things that you wouldn’t usually see! It was truly a fantastic tour! Credits to Hugo!863gtn
November 2021
First time to Madeira and first time with Hit The Road. I can easily say it was THE BEST part of the vacation and felt we should have paid extra for all the comedy our guide Hugo gave us - it was like a show right from the front seat. He was excellent as was the tour. Obrigado!!
First time to Madeira and first time with Hit The Road. I can easily say it was THE BEST part of the vacation and felt we should have paid extra for all the comedy our guide Hugo gave us - it was like a show right from the front seat. He was excellent as was the tour. Obrigado!!807andrewb
November 2021
If you like off road then this is the adventure experience in Madeira. Our guide Hugo was a bundle of fun and an excellent driver - he needed to be as he drove us on some hair raising tracks in the trusty land rover. It was a day of beautiful views, good food, amiable company and lots of laughs....
If you like off road then this is the adventure experience in Madeira. Our guide Hugo was a bundle of fun and an excellent driver - he needed to be as he drove us on some hair raising tracks in the trusty land rover. It was a day of beautiful views, good food, amiable company and lots of laughs. I really liked the fact that we got into many nooks and crannies that most tourists would not get to see. Thoroughly recommended tour.terrypM8761HJ
March 2022
We booked our West Island jeep tour with ‘Hit the Road Madeira’ fully expecting a bright sunny day. What we got was torrential rain and hail stones. According to locals we spoke to, the worst March weather in 30 years. I was ready to cancel before we had even started as the forecast was so dire....
We booked our West Island jeep tour with ‘Hit the Road Madeira’ fully expecting a bright sunny day. What we got was torrential rain and hail stones. According to locals we spoke to, the worst March weather in 30 years. I was ready to cancel before we had even started as the forecast was so dire. I’m so glad we didn’t. Hugo, our driver and guide, has a relentlessly upbeat and optimistic personality and that mixed with the fact that Hit the Road have a flexible approach to their tours, meant that we had a day of laughter and dramatic views. Along with Hugo’s other clients for the day, John (Who is definitely from Ireland and not America… he made a point of telling us this) and his partner Nancy who was happy to metaphorically wave her Stars and Stripes. We spent the day dodging the crowds and the worst of the weather. Of course stopping off for a Poncha when the down pour got too much probably helped everyones outlook. None for Hugo of course, but I’m convinced his eternal good mood comes from being dipped in Poncha as a child, Madeira’s version of Astrix the Gaul. So, two days later, our next tour with Hit the Road. This time heading east. Weather was a lot better and our driver for the day was Jeff. We were joined by another couple Alan and Gillian from Preston. Their Hugo for President T shirts marked them out as Hit the Road veterans. The east of Madeira is a completely different landscape from the lush west and centre. The views at ‘Ponta do Rosto’ of the windswept east peninsula, was a good illustration of how the lack of high protective peaks at the east of the island created a unique environment. (Which is just to prove, I was listening to Jeff.) I did like Jeff’s guide style. It felt more like you were being shown around by a knowledgeable friend than a ‘by the numbers’ presenter. Next stop was a steam powered rum distillery and yes we did get to taste some. With an internal warm glow from the rum and a bag full of Bolo de Mel we headed off to Santana. Just before Miradouro de Nossa Senhora dos Bon’s Caminhos. We had a small traffic hold up as a tree was being cleared from the road. Jeff had jumped out to take a look at how progress was going when a loud pneumatic hiss was heard. I thought it was from the coach ahead of us. I was wrong. A few minutes later as we moved off Jeff told us the steering on the Jeep was heavy and we needed to find a safe place to pull over. The loud hiss was the signal that the power steering had gone and the jeep part of our tour was over. Jeff instantly arranged for a taxi driver he knew to come and collect us. He gave us the offer to cancel the tour and return to our hotels or to carry on in the taxi. We all chose to carry on and we were pleased we did. Our new driver Marta arrived within 20 mins. Marta was lovely and did a great job standing in for Jeff as the emergency guide. She joined us for lunch and gave us an insight into what it was like to live and work on Madeira. We did try to convince her to give up being a taxi driver and become a full time guide at Hit the Road, but apparently she loves her yellow taxi too much. It’s very easy to run any business when things all go well. The real test comes when the problems start. Vehicles occasionally breakdown. In this case all down to one small screw shearing off. We were impressed by how nothing that went wrong was allowed to impact on our day any more than it had to. Neither terrible weather or mechanical failure stopped us having a good time with Hit the Road. Testimony to their ability to combine an easy professionalism with typical Madeiran hospitality. Thank you Terry & TaraTravellove54
March 2022
We had a great day with Hugo on the West Tour, seeing amazing places like Ponta do Sol, Porto Moniz and Fanal. Fun with the offroad driving in the mountains and a good vibe all the way. It took some extra time picking up people in other cities, but positive that the experience was not shortened d...
We had a great day with Hugo on the West Tour, seeing amazing places like Ponta do Sol, Porto Moniz and Fanal. Fun with the offroad driving in the mountains and a good vibe all the way. It took some extra time picking up people in other cities, but positive that the experience was not shortened due to this. Would absolutely recommend this trip! Hugo for president ✌️JeminaP8
March 2022
Our guide Fernando was excellent! He took our group to all cool places: view points, off road, mountines, levadas, laurisilva forests, waterfalls, beaches... I especilly loved the small levada walk!
Our guide Fernando was excellent! He took our group to all cool places: view points, off road, mountines, levadas, laurisilva forests, waterfalls, beaches... I especilly loved the small levada walk!