Day hike in Madeira to the summit of Pico Ruivo

The certified guides from Explore Nature will lead you on this striking and impressive day hike in Madeira to the summit of Pico Ruivo, the highest point on the island, and along the way we will pass some epic landscapes and be exposed to gorgeous and exquisite views back out over Madeira and the ocean.

Group

1 Day

All year

High

Intermediate

Highlights

Hike between Madeira's 2 highest points - Pico do Arieiro and Pico Ruivo!
Admire the stunning and unique landscape, scenery and terrain of the island
Take in the breath-taking views from the summit of Pico Ruivo out to the ocean

Description

Hiking to the summit of Pico Ruivo, Madeira’s highest point, from its second-highest point, Pico do Arieiro, is a stunning and beautiful way to spend a day on this glorious island, and I will lead you on this route as we hike past incredibly vast and enchanting scenery, the mountainous terrain over-looking lush green valleys and the Atlantic Ocean in the distance.

Madeira is an autonomous region of Portugal located in the Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of Africa, and consists of 4 main islands. It is known for its warm climate all-year-round, and has become somewhat of an outdoor activity mecca, with hiking and trail running proving particularly popular.

Our day hike begins when we meet in the morning at a designated pick-up spot, before going to the summit of Pico do Arieiro, which is easily accessible by car.

We then set off in earnest, with the rocky terrain and steep inclines taking some time to get used to.

One of the highlights for many is the section of the hike that takes us through the awe-inspiring and magnificent central massif of the island, an otherworldly and astonishing place that gives us great views out over the mountains.

Along the way there will also be sections entailing tunnels, belvederes and tricky rocky ridges, so you will have to keep your concentration for long stretches.

The pay-off for all these exertions is evident once we reach the summit of Pico Ruivo, as the sweeping panoramic views out over the entire island take the breath away, the raw natural beauty and sumptuous scenery making it all worthwhile.

Our adventure ends when we drop you back off at the meeting point, thrilled and satisfied at having conquered the highest point on the island and seen the best this special place has to offer.

This is one of the most scenic and interesting ways to spend a day on Madeira – book now and you won’t regret it!

For those who want to see a different part of the island, check out our Day hike from Bica da Cana to Encumeada in Madeira, here!

Price includes

Guiding fee
Personal insurance
Transportation start and back

Price details

Price is per person in a group.

Itinerary

Day 1: Meet, hike, finish

Pick-up between Santana, Machico, Santa Cruz and Funchal, head to summit of Pico do Arieiro, hike for approximately 5 hours to summit of Pico Ruivo, head back to pick-up point, finish.

Equipment you will need to bring

Water bottle

Backpack

About the guide

Explore

Hiking Guide

Languages

Portuguese

Request more information

What people are saying about Explore-Share

Man

Climbing with guide Guillaume was absolutely a highlight of my 2-week Europe vacation. Originally, we were planning on climbing in the Calanques, but the park was closed due to wind and fire danger. Guillaume chose another amazing location (Pic de Bretagne) based on my climbing abilities and preferences and kindly offered train station pick-up and hotel drop off, which I appreciated very much. The multi-pitch route we did was not only fun but also the right amount of challenge, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The communication from the team (Gauthier) was prompt and clear—highly recommend!

Maxine

Luis Silva was a great climbing guide and belayer! He taught me how to do moves that were difficult and encouraged me to try routes that were challenging for me! Because of his encouragement, I managed to complete these routes! I really enjoyed the climbs and completed 8 routes in the Sesimbra/Azoia area. The weather was perfect, no direct sun and cool enough to enjoy the climbs. Explore-Share made booking an outdoor climbing experience in Lisbon extremely easy. Luis, our guide, was fantastic, and the platform’s organization was flawless.

Valeriya

You’re simply the best!!! :))) Explore-Share made everything easy and stress-free. Will definitely use again.

Joshua

We had Léo as a guide for our day climb in Fonty. We were blessed with a knowledgeable, warm, and instructive guide. Communication with Léo and Ivan was smooth and swift. Explore-Share was excellent in arranging everything for our day climb. The communication was quick, and the platform was easy to use, making our adventure stress-free.

Cami

Patrick was a great guide. He took us on an intermediate Via Ferrata at Passo Sella. Renato was quick to respond with any outreach on the Explore-Share platform. The booking process was straightforward, and once Patrick was confirmed, all went well. It was a wonderful experience, and I’d highly recommend the platform.

4.8