Frequently Asked Questions - Levada and Mountain Walks
The levada and mountain walks are operated by our company, Lido Tours.
Yes. The portuguese legislation requires insurance for all activity providers so while doing any activity with us you are covered.
Levadas are water irrigation channels or aqueducts specific to the Madeira region.
They originated out of the necessity to bring water from the west and northwest of the island to the drier southeast, which is more conductive to habitation and agriculture.
Today, there are more than 2,170 kilometres (1,350 mi) of levadas that provide a remarkable network of walking paths. From these we have chosen the most scenic, popular and safest walks to show our customers the beauty of our island.
As the name indicates, levada walks will have you walk mostly along the water irrigation paths.
The mountain walks are done mostly at some of the highest peaks/cliffs in the island and don't necessarily follow any water channel, following instead through walking/hiking dirt paths.
We have walks in English, Portuguese, German, French and Spanish.
English and Portuguese are the most common and easier to accommodate as it is spoken by all our staff.
Other languages may not be available every day.
While we always try to make our tours in a single language, occasionally we may have to combine up to two languages on the same tour.
On checkout you'll be able to select your preference for the language and we'll do our best to accommodate your request or suggest any alternatives.
We can do hotel pickups on selected hotels in Funchal, Câmara de Lobos and Caniço areas.
Hotel pickup is dependent on the hotel in question having easy access for our minibuses to stop and/or park.
In case we can't do the pickup at your hotel, we'll send you an alternative pickup point as close to your hotel as possible.
This will usually be a bus stop or other landmark near your hotel or one of our pre-defined pickup locations in Funchal (see next question).
If you're arriving by cruise ship, we will pick you up at the cruise terminal when you disembark the ship.
We have the following preset pickup points in Funchal
- Our office in the Lido Area
Accommodations in or around the Lido area. - Bus stop by the Cable Car Station in downtown Funchal
Accommodations in or around the city center and Old Town - Bus stop by the Funchal Courthouse in downtown Funchal
Accommodations in the center/upper-east part of the city. - By the Cristiano Ronaldo Museum in downtown Funchal
Accommodations in the center/western part of the city. - At the cruise ship terminal
Arriving by cruise ship.
See our Pickup location map page for more details and directions
Pickup time is dependent on your location and selected tour.
The correct pickup time will be sent by our staff to you by email, phone or WhatsApp.
Please note that traffic in the morning rush hour can be very chaotic, especially in Funchal city center, so please be prepared for the occasional delay on the prearranged pickup time.
Yes. It is very important to wear appropriate clothing for hiking on unregular terrain and across multiple weather conditions.
Hiking Boots (or similarly good shoes/trainers with good support and grip) are essential. Sandals, heels, slippers, flip-flops, crocs or similar footwear are absolutely not advisable.
Wind and rain protecting gear is highly recommended, particularly on the winter/low season.
A cap/hat and sunscreen is highly recommended, particularly on the summer/high season.
Note that you may experience multiple weather patterns throuought the day and throughout the walk.
Madeira is very mountainous and can have many micro-climates across the island so even in the summer you may still experience cold or rain and even in the winter you can experience hot weather. Be prepared.
No, none of our levada or mountain walks require any form of climbing or climbing gear.
The most you'll be going through will be stairs/steps and/or irregular dirt/hiking paths.
Yes, on all our levada and mountain walks you will be accompanied by a fully qualified mountain guide which will be responsible for the group as well as provide any needed explanations and support.
We don't have any strict restrictions regarding children or babies on our walks.
That being said, particularly on the full day moderate and hard walks, we do not recommend taking small children or babies. Baby strollers are not allowed.
Please note that you will be fully responsible for the safety of your children and are expected to keep an eye on them and prevent them from disturbing the group.
We don't have any strict restrictions regarding pregnant women.
That being said, we do not recommend doing our full day moderate and hard walks if you are pregnant.
We operate multiple minibuses from different brands and models and with several capacities.
Usually, most full day walks go out on a 16 seater vehicle and the half day walks on an 8 seater.
Please note that this may vary, although we rarely have groups larger than 16 people.
Due to last minute bookings, we're unable to accurately let you know how many people are going on your walk until the day before or day of the tour.
No, meals are not included in our walks.
For the full day walks, you will have to take your own meal. We recommend a packed lunch, snacks/fruit/energy bars/etc, and plenty of water to last you the full day.
For the half day walks, you don't really need to take anything but we also recommend some snacks/fruit/energy bars/etc and water.
Yes, the vehicles that will drive you to the beginning of the walks have air conditioner.
Yes. To book a private walk, please contact us by e-mail with your request or use the contact form on our website. (bottom right of the page)
Unfortunately, we cannot accept animals on our walks unless they're service animals.
No, during most walks you will not encounter any regular bathrooms or WCs, although some walks have toilet facilities in the beginning or end of the path.
During the transfer drive to and from the walk, we may do a stop at a coffee shop/bar/establishment so that customers can have a bathroom break and/or something to eat or drink if they so choose.
If you absolutely must use the toilet during the walks, then you will have to be comfortable going "behind the bushes". 😉
You can cancel your walk without any charges up to 24h before the tour departs.
Last minute cancellations unfortunately cannot be refunded since we do not have the time/opportunity to resell the seats.
No-shows will be charged in full since we do not have the time/opportunity to resell the seats.
Yes, we usually need a minimum of 4 people on each walk, otherwise the walk may be cancelled or postponed.
While we always strive to run all scheduled walks, occasionally (although rarely) there may be a day where we may have to cancel if we do not reach the minimum.
On these cases where we cancel, we'll either offer to re-schedule or refund your payment in full.
You can consult the weather forecast for Madeira at the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere website
The short answer is no.
The longer answer is it depends. Read on:
Since most walks are operated in areas that are outside Funchal city and therefore can have a completely different weather, we always try to go to the location where the walk begins and analyse the weather conditions once we get there.
If once we reach the walk location, the weather doesn't permit doing the walk safely, then our guide may suggest an alternate walk (if another simillar walk is available on a location with better weather conditions). Customers may then decide if they agree with the alternate walk and continue with our group, or in case you do not agree with the alternate walk (or have already done it, etc) then we will either re-schedule your original walk or refund your payment.