Laurisilva of Madeira

My friend and I visited the Laurisilva of Madeira during a 10-day stay on the island in May 2025. Thanks to our rental car, we were able to visit several areas of the core zone listed as WHS.
The forest is located mainly on the northern slopes of the island, the southern slopes having been deforested after the island's discovery by the first settlers. Without our car, I think we would have had great difficulty accessing some areas located in the west or center of the island.

The eastern part, the most accessible from Funchal, is also the most fragmented and most visited by tourists, especially the area around Ribeiro Frio ("Balcoes promenade"). If possible, it is better to come (very) early in the morning or late in the afternoon. This area gives a glimpse of the laurisilva but I strongly advise not to limit yourself to this sector because it does not allow you to feel totally immersed in this magnificent primary forest.

The northeast section is easily visited, particularly along the levada do Caldeirao Verde or levada do Rei. I recommend visiting the latter, as it's (slightly) less crowded. After crossing an area populated by eucalyptus trees, you quickly find yourself in the heart of the laurel forest (Laurus azorica and Persea indica). As a bonus, this also allows you to explore a levada that could be listed soon, if Portugal maintains it in its new nomination for the levadas of Madeira.

The central part is located around Sao Vicente Valley: at the entrance to this small town, signs with WHS logo announce: "city of the laurel forest"... Yet the forest only covers the surrounding hills and mountains. We hiked the Levada da Faja do Rodrigues, famous for its numerous tunnels. In this area, all the slopes are covered with laurel, but it seems very difficult to access.

The western part of the laurel forest seemed by far the most interesting and homogeneous.
- To get a good overview, we first hiked a new levada (!): the Ribeira da Janela. Much less frequented than the previous ones, the beginning of the route is located just above Porto Moniz. The landscapes along this levada seemed the most authentic. We quickly found ourselves totally immersed in the laurel forest. We spotted a trocaz pigeon, a species endemic to Madeira, which feeds on the laurel seeds and helps them spread. However, there are traces of a recent fire at the beginning of the trail (fortunately, the affected area is very limited).
- Finally, the highlight of our visit was the Fanal Forest. Located north of the Paul da Serra plateau, at an altitude of 1,100 m, this area is populated by a different species of laurel, Ocotea foetens (stinky laurel). Massive and covered by moss, ferns and lichen, these trees are particularly aesthetic, as if they had escaped from a heroic fantasy tale! We followed a route from the "Rother" guide on Madeira (by the way, highly recommended as we used it for most of our hikes). From Fanal, the view is magnificent on the north coast of the island, near Seixal, located barely 2km away (what a difference in altitude!). From there, we discover all the slopes covered by the primary forest.
The downside is that we weren't the only ones to find these trees magnificent: the Fanal forest is increasingly becoming one of the island's must-see attractions (many tours from Funchal), and many Instagrammers come to take photos among the century-old laurels...

In short, the laurisilva of Madeira is the jewel of this island, which, however, is not lacking in other attractions (volcanic landscapes, levadas, etc...). Fire risks and tourist management are the most important issues in maintaining the quality of this forest. To help maintain and protect nature, a €3 fee has been mandatory since the end of 2024 for foreign visitors on certain hiking trails.
(photo: Fanal forest)

I explored and enjoyed the primeval forests of Madeira very intensively during my visit in January 2012. I spent almost one week in the forested area of Madeira staying overnight in tent and sleeping bag.

The Laurisilva used to cover the entire area of the island (maybe with exception of Sao Lourenco peninsula). Now, it can be found in 4 clusters, and I had opportunity to visit all of them: (1) the large valley of Ribeira Da Janela river. The touristy part of this cluster is Levada das 25 fontes area around Rabacal; (2) Area between Paul da Serra plateau and Sao Vicente; (3) Area between Pico Ruivo and Santana; and (4) quite small cluster around Ribeiro Frio, which is one of the top tourist destination in Madeira. The parts 1-3 are linked together, while the cluster 4 is separated. There are also large areas in the central parts of the island around Pico Ruivo and Pico Grande that were strongly affected by fire, what I could see in 2012.

The Laurisilva is very dense forest, but due to a rocky character of Madeira and a presence of levadas one can enjoy wonderfull views there. I like all of the mentioned clusters, but I have maybe the best memories on the cluster No 2, which was the most remote and wildest (see photo).

Madeira was my first stop on a December 2016 tour of Portugal and Spain. One experiences this WHS by hiking the ‘levada trails’, which are walking routes that follow man-made irrigation channels known as levadas. The levadas generally flow horizontally along the contours of the hills, with occasional descents down the slopes.

The most striking things about driving up from our hotel by the coast up to the laurisilva forests in Madeira’s uplands were the changes in weather and vegetation. The temperature dropped by about 10 degrees and the types of plants we saw changed as we ascended. It was as if it was still summer down at sea level but further up – as the temperature fell – the leaves had turned brown and autumn was well and truly underway.

I had only one full day on the island so was only able to hike two trails: Levada 25 Fontes and Levada do Risco - both shrouded in fog. If we had wanted to go walking in cold, foggy conditions we could have stayed in England!

These two routes, which start off as one but then fork off individually, led to waterfalls and give a good flavour of the sprawling forests of Madeira. We spent several hours walking along the trials before heading back via road on the north coast to our hotel in Funchal.

The levada trails are very pleasant and it is quite unique to experience the placid irrigation channels alongside the path interspersed with roaring waterfalls from the natural rivers.

I visited this WHS in November 2015. I will surely remember this WHS as I 'completed' the WHS in Portugal by visiting it. Though I'm fond of this WHS not only for this reason. It has been one of the best European birdwatching destinations together with the Azores. In the inscribed area I managed to see around 7 long-toed pigeons or Trocaz pigeons in flight (from the Balcoes viewpoint) and took photos of another one perched on a laurisilva tree while hiking on the Levada 25 Fontes. I also so several Madeiran firecrests and Madeiran chaffinches there. The easiest way to visit this site is to catch a bus to the troutery or park your rental car nearby in Ribeiro Frio and walk the very easy (yet sometimes muddy) trail to the Balcoes panoramic viewpoint. You can continue the levada trail to Portela but still the best part is only visible from the Balcoes viewpoint. The core is out of bounds for tourists and there are several 500 year old laurisilva trees there. The trail is extremely crowded in the morning, less so in the late afternoon. The highlight here in my opinion is the panoramic viewpoint of the Madeiran peaks, rather than the endemic species and laurisilva forests which are quite far away to be able to appreciate the unique OUV. To be able to appreciate the OUV I suggest hiking the Levada 25 Fontes (picture) and the Cabo do Risco trails. Their difficulty is marked as easy to medium and are not suggested for people who suffer from vertigo. Personally I think this is quite an exageration, and I would be more concerned if you suffer from claustrophobia or hate narrow spaces as there are quite a few of them along the trail. I visited early in the morning after 3 days of rainfall. The waterfalls, streams and moisture were at their best and I could truly appreciate the foggy/cloud forest ecosystem at its best. During this trail you're completely surrounded by laurisilva trees, ferns, fungi and mosses. The levada varies from deep to shallow to dug in rock at places. The waterfall at Cabo do Risco is less crowded at all times while I would suggest the 25 Fontes at lunchtime. Apart from the distance marked at the beginning of the trail, you will have to walk another 2km downhill if you want to get a headstart and beat the crowds, most of who catch the shuttle that runs from 09:30 till 17:30. The return trip costs 5 euros while the uphill return trip which I caught after the hike costs 3 euros but is definitely worth it. Another interesting and worthwhile levada trail starts close to Porto Moniz but away from the touristy natural pools. It's called Levada do Janela and is ranked as medium to difficult. I spent 6 days in Madeira but for those who don't have as much time, definitely go for the Levada da 25 Fontes by rental car before 9am if possible and if you're lucky you'll beat the crowds and have a better chance of spotting the rarer endemic birdlife.

Madeira is a beautiful island and very popular holiday destination. Though it doesn't offer a whole lot of historic sights, it features a wide range of diverse landscapes and habitats, the most unique of which is the laurel forest. This type of forest disappeared on the European continent during the last Ice Age, but survived on some Atlantic islands such as the Canaries and Madeira. To tick it off, I took a local bus from Funchal to the trout hatchery at Ribeiro Frio, which seems to be crowded with tourists at all times. From there I took the pleasant trail (about 1.5 km one way) through an impressively dense forest to the beautiful Balcoes viewpoint. I also started on the longer trail to Portela, but turned back after a while when it started to rain. Ribeiro Frio is certainly the easiest way to visit this WHS, but for more serious (and fit) hikers than I am, Rabacal and the trail to the 25 Fontes seems to be the best way to experience the laurel forest. It should be noted that although the Madeira Nature Reserve easily covers three quarters of the island, this is not the same as the World Heritage Site, which only covers the remaining pockets of laurisilva, most of which are in the northern part of the island. I found it rather difficult to find a map showing the exact extent of the WHS (even though there is an endless variety of hiking maps available), but the small one I could eventually find definitely included both Ribeiro Frio and Rabacal. On one of my bus trips across the island, I also crossed the forest reserve of Chao dos Louros, also within the WHS, but I couldn't get off there.

Madeira is definitely a great island, you can find there plenty of points for leasure, great food and madeira wine. And as well nature.

The best how to see the Site is to rent a car (3 days are enough to see the whole island in detail) and drive to Rabacal or Ribeira Frio.

In both locations are very nice Levada tours - which are not difficult for walk and are going through the forests.

Highly recommended island for holiday with a WHS as a bonus ;)

Pic: forest in fog :)

I have visitd these forests many times. As a young Funchalense, my parents would take me on picnics to Santo da Serra, Poiso, and Ribeiro Frio (very impressive trout hatchery located there), where we would enjoy hiking through these woodlands. These forests are breathtakingly gorgeous. You truly feel like you are in a scene from "Lord of the Rings". The trees are so gnarled and thick, and the air is so fresh and cool. The Madeiran government has done a superlative job preserving these forests and I hope they remain protected for posterity. My only fear is that the extensive and invasive forests of Maritime Pine, Douglas Fir, Chestnut and Eucalyptus found throughout the island don't encroach too closely and compromise these primordial Laurisilva forests.