Machico is the second biggest city in Madeira Island.Here you can find pedestrian tracks throughout the mountains, lovely beaches, and good restaurants. Every year in the first week of August take place a big food festival. There you can taste various traditional dishes from Madeira. Also some music shows are offered and after closing you can always go to one of the clubs opened all night long.
Understand
Machico has 67.73 km² and 22,000 inhabitants (2011), divided into 5 districts. The municipality is bordered to the south by the municipality of Santa Cruz, on the west by Santana, and by the Atlantic Ocean on the north and east.
- Tourist Information, Largo Dr. José Antonio de Almada. ☏ 351 291 969 990. In the Forte de Nossa Senhora do Amparo at the end of the promenade.
Get in
- 1 Cristiano Ronaldo Madeira International Airport (FNC IATA formerly known as Santa Catarina Airport/Funchal Airport) (about 30 minutes from Funchal, in Santa Cruz municipality), ☏ 35 1 291 52 07 00. The following airlines fly regularly to Madeira International Airport: TAP Portugal, Portugália, SATA, British Airways, Norwegian Airlines, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Air France, easyJet, Finnair, First Choice Airways, Thomson, LTU, Condor, SAS, Sterling, Transavia, My Travel, Binter Canarias and Jet2.com.
Get around
See
- Capela dos Milagres — It is one of the oldest chapels in Madeira, and it was here that the first mass in the history of the island of Madeira was held.
- 1 São João Baptista da Madeira Fort, Cais de Machico — Banda de Além. It is an ancient fort (1708), circular in shape and made of basalt and lime, rising from the top of a cliff.
- 2 Igreja Matriz do Machico, Largo de Nossa Senhora da Conceição. A symbol of Machico, and its most famous monument. It is a Manueline style church, dating from 1425.
- 3 Fort of Nossa Senhora do Amparo. A triangular fort, and the tourist office in Machico.
- 4 Capela de São Roque. An 18th-century chapel on the west end of Machico.
- Pico do Facho Viewpoint — You have a view over the entire Machico valley, from the peaks of the interior of the island, to Ponta de São Lourenço.
- Portela viewpoint — One of the most beautiful viewpoints in Madeira, with views of the sea and the interior of the island.
Do
Hiking
- to Pico de Facho (323 m) and on to Caniçal, or from there along the slopes in the north of the city to Maroços
- from the Caniçal tunnel to the coast and to Porto da Cruz
Beaches
- Praia da Banda Além bay east of the town, with sand imported from Morocco in 2009 (approx. 200 m) (next to Calheta, the only sandy beach on the island so far)
- Praia de São Roque, a stony bay
Sports
- Parque Desportivo Água de Pena (sports center under the airport runway)
- Play golf in Santo da Serra Golf (Golf club), Casais Proximos Santo Antonio da Serra. ☏ 351 291550100
- Diving with the Anthia Diving Center (Diving school), Estrada de Sao Roque n5( in the Hotel Dom Pedro Baia ). ☏ 351 291 969 500. Open: Tu-Su 09:00-13:00, 14:30-18:30
Buy
Eat
The traditional dishes that are offered in good restaurants include, for example, the sopa de trigo, a wheat soup, the carne de vinho e alhos, pieces of meat marinated in wine and garlic and the bolo de caco , a flatbread baked on a hot stone (caco), which is often served warm as a starter with a garlic butter spread. The traditional Machico dishes are very tasty.
- Restaurante O Xadrez, Sítio do Caramanchão, ☏ 351 291 965 889. The specialties are wheat soup and pork knuckle.
- Restaurante Bar Amarelo, Cais do Caniçal, ☏ 351 291 961 798. The specialties are fish and seafood.
- Restaurante O Casco, Rua do Ribeirinho, ☏ 351 291 962 150.
Drink
- Bar Vertigem, Sítio do Caramanchão
Sleep
- 1 PortoBay Serra Golf, Sítio dos Casais Próximos, Santo da Serra, ☏ 351 291 550 500, ✉[email protected]. The charming hotel with 22 rooms is in Santo da Serra next to the golf course. The main house is dated 1920 and is classified as a regional heritage.
- 2 Dom Pedro Madeira (D. Pedro Baía Club Hotel), Estrada de São Roque, ☏ 351 291 969 500, ✉[email protected].
Connect
Go next
- Porto da Cruz — rural beach village, known for surfing
- Ponta de São Lourenço - A nature reserve, with fantastic views over the Atlantic. Here you will find many rare plants, such as Chorão das Praias, paper flowers, wild artichoke, among others. At the bottom of the cliff is a beach very popular with locals, Prainha, excellent for swimming.