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👨‍👩‍👧 Family5 days

A family week on the island

Beaches · Columbus · cannons · north coast · parrots · dolphins · sunsets

At a glance

Five days without repeats: arrive via Penedo, discover the town and its supervised beach, climb to the Castelo cannons and the windmills, loop the north coast and its low-tide pools, then finish on the water with dolphins and Calheta at sundown.

Difficulty
Easy · for ages 3–15 · no physical demands
Best season
Bathing season 1 May – 31 October; water around 18 °C in March, 24–25 °C in high summer.

🎒 Packing list

  • Hats and sunscreen for everyone
  • Armbands and beach toys
  • Closed shoes for the rocks
  • Water bottles
  • Picnic for Pico do Castelo

Day by day

Day 1 · Arrival: Penedo and the seafront7

📍 Harbour → Penedo → Cais Velho → Vila Baleira · ⏰ 09:00

  1. 11:00 → 12:30Break

    Penedo beach, flat sand and calm

    The south-eastern tip of the great beach, by the harbour: fine flat sand, parking inside the harbour, toilets and a first-aid post — the quiet family swim a short walk from the centre. Surveillance not guaranteed: check the flags.

    📍 Praia do Penedo
  2. 13:00 → 14:30Mealon foot · 15 min

    Bolo do caco & espetada — O Forno

    The town-centre bolo do caco specialist: Porto Santo's version, taller and wider and without sweet potato, baked on basalt stone and served with an espetada.

  3. 14:30 → 15:00Breakon foot · 3 min

    Lambecas ice cream

    More than fifty years of history and the archipelago's most iconic ice cream: passion fruit, banana, mango — the afternoon ritual, in the shade, at the hours when you avoid the sun.

    📍 Lambecas
  4. 17:00 → 17:15Visiton foot · 5 min

    Columbus bust and Padrão

    Ricardo Veloza's bust (1989) in the Avenida Infante D. Henrique garden recalls Columbus's marriage to Filipa Moniz (1479 or 1480) and his return in 1498; beside it, the 1960 Padrão dos Descobrimentos opens the seafront promenade.

    📍 Statue de Christophe Colomb
  5. 17:15 → 17:45Photoon foot · 5 min

    Cais Velho promenade

    The historic 1929 pier (102 m) marks the start of the seafront and of Fontinha beach; in the evening you stroll towards the 1960 Padrão dos Descobrimentos, the "Pau de Sabão", with low light over the bay.

    📍 Cais Velho
  6. 17:45 → 19:00Breakon foot · 1 min

    Late afternoon at Fontinha

    Back on the town beach as the sun drops: showers, lockers and a first-aid post at hand, guaranteed surveillance in season. Everything is on foot from the centre.

    📍 Praia da Fontinha
  7. 19:30Mealon foot · 10 min

    Grandmother's cooking — Casa d'Avó

    Recipes handed down through the generations: açorda, seafood rice, passion-fruit flan. Simple and sincere, a step from the beach — dinner from 6.30 pm.

🌧️ Rainy-day alternative — Quinta das Palmeiras (parrots under the trees), Casa Colombo, then cinema at the Centro Cultural.

🎒 What to bring — Hats and sunscreen for everyone, water, armbands, beach toys, closed shoes for the children on the rocks.

  • Porto Santo Line ferry: book the round trip ahead in July–August (often full); the day's sailings are on the company's site.
  • With children: supervised beaches (Fontinha 15 May–31 Oct, Ribeiro Salgado 1 May–31 Oct), hats and sunscreen from the morning, shade break between 11 am and 4 pm.
  • Swimming: lifeguards are guaranteed only at Fontinha, Ribeiro Salgado and Cabeço da Ponta in season; elsewhere follow the flags, and never go into the water to rescue someone — call 112.
Day 2 · Columbus, the church and the supervised beach8

📍 Fontinha → Vila Baleira → Pedras Pretas · ⏰ 08:30

  1. 09:00 → 11:00Break

    First swim at Fontinha

    The town beach, Blue Flag since 1989 with lifeguards guaranteed from 15 May to 31 October: 720 m of turquoise water from the Cais Velho — go early, before the 11 am sun.

    📍 Praia da Fontinha
  2. 11:15 → 12:15Visiton foot · 5 min

    Casa Colombo — museum

    The house where, by oral tradition, Columbus lived after marrying Filipa Moniz: early-16th-century Gothic windows, a museum opened in 1989 and redesigned in 2004, treasure from the Slot ter Hooge wrecked in 1724. Open weekday mornings and afternoons, closed Mondays.

    📍 Casa Museu Cristóvão Colombo
  3. 12:15 → 12:30Visiton foot · 2 min

    Largo do Pelourinho

    The triangular square at the heart of the town: palms, bougainvillea and dragon trees whose resin, "dragon's blood", was used in dyes and remedies; the 16th-century old town hall, the Mannerist Misericórdia chapel a step away and the Columbus Festival stages in September.

    📍 Largo do Pelourinho
  4. 12:30 → 12:45Visiton foot · 1 min

    Nossa Senhora da Piedade church

    The mother church, on the site of the island's first chapel: built between 1430 and 1446, pillaged by French corsairs in 1566, rebuilt in 1667; the Gothic Morgada chapel, a rocaille ceiling and paintings by Conrado and Römer. Its patron is celebrated on the last weekend of August.

    📍 Igreja Nossa Senhora da Piedade
  5. 13:00 → 14:30Mealon foot · 15 min

    Lunch with your feet in the sand — Pé na Água

    A terrace on the beach facing the Atlantic: grilled fish of the day, garlic-butter lapas and homemade bolo do caco — the hour to leave the sand, as the Maritime Authority advises.

    💡 Insider tip — Booking recommended in July–August.

  6. 15:00 → 15:30Breakon foot · 15 min

    Lambecas ice cream

    More than fifty years of history and the archipelago's most iconic ice cream: passion fruit, banana, mango — the afternoon ritual, in the shade, at the hours when you avoid the sun.

    📍 Lambecas
  7. 16:30 → 18:00Breakon foot · 15 min

    Pedras Pretas, the locals' beach

    Fontinha's westward continuation, 200 m past the Hotel Torre Praia: straw umbrellas, showers beside the terrace bar, a neighbourhood mood — a quiet afternoon away from the crowds of the centre.

    📍 Praia das Pedras Pretas
  8. 19:00Mealby car · 5 min

    Dinner with feet in the sand — Pé na Água

    A beach restaurant whose terrace sits on the sand, facing the Atlantic: grilled fish of the day, limpets with garlic, caldeirada and homemade bolo do caco. Booking recommended in July and August.

🌧️ Rainy-day alternative — Quinta das Palmeiras (parrots under the trees), Casa Colombo, then cinema at the Centro Cultural.

🎒 What to bring — Hats and sunscreen for everyone, water, armbands, beach toys, closed shoes for the children on the rocks.

  • With children: supervised beaches (Fontinha 15 May–31 Oct, Ribeiro Salgado 1 May–31 Oct), hats and sunscreen from the morning, shade break between 11 am and 4 pm.
  • Casa Colombo: open weekdays 10–12.30 and 2–5.30 pm, Sunday 10 am–1 pm, closed Mondays and holidays — check before you go.
  • Swimming: lifeguards are guaranteed only at Fontinha, Ribeiro Salgado and Cabeço da Ponta in season; elsewhere follow the flags, and never go into the water to rescue someone — call 112.
Day 3 · Cannons, windmills and chapel7

📍 Pico do Castelo → Portela → Casinhas · ⏰ 08:30 · 🚗 ~30 min

  1. 09:30 → 10:30Photoby car · 15 min

    Pico do Castelo by car

    A road climbs almost to the summit (437 m): lookout, cannons of the 16th-century fort, the bust of Schiappa de Azevedo who reforested the peak in the 1920s, and one of the island's widest views — no walking required.

    📍 Pico do Castelo
  2. 11:00 → 11:30Photoby car · 15 min

    Miradouro da Portela

    The island's classic, accessible lookout at the eastern tip: Vila Baleira in the middle of the south coast, the beach and turquoise sea, the harbour and marina, Pico de Baixo and Ilhéu de Cima — the windmills and the Graça chapel staircase are minutes away.

    📍 Miradouro da Portela
  3. 11:30 → 12:00Photoon foot · 5 min

    The three Portela windmills

    Emblems of the island, restored and inaugurated on 14 October 2023 on their original site; Porto Santo's first windmill is said to date from 1794. With the basalt-paved lanes, fountains, wells and waterwheels, they tell of an island that made the most of the wind and of every drop of water.

    📍 Moinhos de Vento da Portela
  4. 12:00 → 12:30Visiton foot · 10 min

    Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Graça

    Alone on the slope of Pico do Castelo, reached by a staircase from Casinhas: founded in 1533, destroyed in 1812 and rebuilt by the islanders in the 20th century with materials from Serra de Fora, it holds a 16th-century Flemish Virgin and served as a refuge during pirate raids.

    📍 Capela de Nossa Senhora da Graça

    💡 Insider tip — Feast on 14–16 August: mass on the 15th, then an arraial.

  5. 13:00 → 14:00Mealby car · 15 min

    Picnic at Pico do Castelo

    Picnic area and lookout at 437 m under the conifers planted in the 1920s: the bay, Vila Baleira, Ilhéu da Cal and Ilhéu de Cima below — welcome shade in the hot hours.

    📍 Pico do Castelo
  6. 16:30 → 18:00Breakby car · 15 min

    Swim at Ribeiro Cochino

    Calm sea almost without waves in front of the Hotel Porto Santo, one of the island's oldest; lifeguards, toilets and straw umbrellas. Also the start of the cycle path to Calheta.

    📍 Praia do Porto Santo
  7. 19:00Mealby car · 15 min

    Wood-fire espetada — Teodorico

    An institution of the island's interior: marinated beef skewers grilled over bay branches, generous portions — the dinner that rewards a day on the peaks.

🌧️ Rainy-day alternative — Quinta das Palmeiras (parrots under the trees), Casa Colombo, then cinema at the Centro Cultural.

🎒 What to bring — Hats and sunscreen for everyone, water, armbands, beach toys, closed shoes for the children on the rocks.

  • With children: supervised beaches (Fontinha 15 May–31 Oct, Ribeiro Salgado 1 May–31 Oct), hats and sunscreen from the morning, shade break between 11 am and 4 pm.
  • Water: at least 1.5 L per person — there are no fountains on the trails, and the IFCN asks you to carry spare water and food.
Day 4 · The north coast and its pools8

📍 Serra de Dentro → Fonte da Areia → Salemas → Linhares · ⏰ 08:30 · 🚗 ~1 h

  1. 09:30 → 10:00Visitby car · 15 min

    Serra de Dentro, the green clays

    In the north-east, a landscape of gullies in shades of green: "salão", clays formed by the alteration of undersea volcanic rocks and crossed by dark basaltic dykes — unique in Portugal, they once roofed the casas de salão. Geosite beside the road.

    📍 Serra de Dentro — argiles « salão »
  2. 10:15 → 10:45Visitby car · 10 min

    Casa de Salão

    An ex-libris of the island's heritage: a low house roofed with salão, the sandy clay of Serra de Dentro, which cracks in summer to let air through and swells in winter to become watertight; reed partitions, an oven and a stone chimney.

    📍 Casa de Salão
  3. 11:00 → 11:45Visitby car · 10 min

    Fonte da Areia, the spring and the sandstones

    The island's historic spring (18th-century fountain) among pale sandstone cliffs carved by the wind: dune sandstones about 31,000 years old, four units separated by palaeosols, root casts and fossil snails. 25 m from the road; view over Ilhéu da Fonte da Areia and the north coast.

    📍 Fonte da Areia
  4. 12:05 → 12:45Mealon foot · 20 min

    Picnic at Porto das Salemas

    Straw shelters, tables and fireplaces above the natural pools of the north coast — lunch happens here; there is nothing else on site.

    📍 Porto das Salemas
  5. 12:45 → 14:15Visit

    Natural pools of Porto das Salemas

    At low tide the sea pulls back to reveal a multitude of turquoise pools, some sandy-bottomed, in a cove on the north coast. Access on foot only from Fonte da Areia: a track, then a steep path with loose stones.

    📍 Porto das Salemas
  6. 15:30 → 16:30Visitby car · 25 min

    Quinta das Palmeiras, parrots and palms

    An unexpected oasis west of the airport at Linhares: on more than 5,000 m², a mini-zoo and botanical garden where palms, roses, candelabra aloes and hibiscus shelter parrots, macaws, ducks and swans — the children's shady afternoon.

    📍 Quinta das Palmeiras

    💡 Insider tip — Hours and admission on site.

  7. 17:00 → 17:30Breakby car · 10 min

    Lambecas ice cream

    More than fifty years of history and the archipelago's most iconic ice cream: passion fruit, banana, mango — the afternoon ritual, in the shade, at the hours when you avoid the sun.

    📍 Lambecas
  8. 19:00Mealby car · 10 min

    Polvo à lagareira — Vila Alencastre

    A Campo de Baixo terrace favoured by residents: octopus with olive oil and garlic, local catch — the evening table closest to the western beaches.

🌧️ Rainy-day alternative — Quinta das Palmeiras (parrots under the trees), Casa Colombo, then cinema at the Centro Cultural.

🎒 What to bring — Hats and sunscreen for everyone, water, armbands, beach toys, closed shoes for the children on the rocks.

  • By car the ring road loops the island in about an hour; the Portela, Flores and Ponta da Canavieira viewpoints are easy to reach.
  • Porto das Salemas: the natural pools only show at low tide — check the tide time before you go (link below). No lifeguards; keep away from the foot of the cliffs.
  • Closed shoes are a must for Zimbralinho and Porto das Salemas: steep paths with loose stones and no services on site.
  • With children: supervised beaches (Fontinha 15 May–31 Oct, Ribeiro Salgado 1 May–31 Oct), hats and sunscreen from the morning, shade break between 11 am and 4 pm.
Day 5 · Dolphins in the morning, Calheta in the evening5

📍 Harbour → islets → Flores → Calheta · ⏰ 08:00 · 🚗 ~30 min

  1. 09:00 → 12:00Visiton foot · 10 min

    Dolphins and seabirds by boat

    Dolphins, whales, turtles and seabirds can be seen all year on quiet trips that call at near-untouched spots such as Ilhéu da Cal or Ilhéu de Ferro; Ilhéu de Cima carries the lighthouse lit in 1901.

    📍 Ilhéu de Cima
  2. 13:00 → 14:30Mealby car · 15 min

    Grilled lapas at Calheta

    The restaurant on Praia da Calheta is known for grilled lapas served with garlic-butter bolo do caco, facing Ilhéu da Cal and its lime galleries.

    📍 Praia da Calheta (Porto Santo)

    💡 Insider tip — Lapas outside the closed season (1 Dec – 31 Mar).

  3. 16:00 → 17:30Breakon foot · 2 min

    Calheta, rocks and Ilhéu da Cal

    The end of the 9 km, quieter than the centre: sand and rocks, and across the water the lime galleries cut into Ilhéu da Cal. Changing rooms and toilets on site; no guaranteed lifeguards, so swim with care.

    📍 Praia da Calheta (Porto Santo)
  4. 17:45 → 18:15Photoby car · 10 min

    Miradouro das Flores, the 9 km at a glance

    South-west coast, past the Centro Hípico: the whole beach, Ilhéu de Baixo, Ilhéu de Ferro and Ilhéu de Cima and, weather permitting, the Desertas and Madeira; the contrast of golden sand and turquoise is strongest in the late afternoon. Bust of the painter Francisco Maya.

    📍 Miradouro das Flores
  5. 18:45 → 19:30Photoby car · 10 min

    Sunset at Calheta

    For the tourist board, THE Porto Santo photo: the sun drops behind Ilhéu da Cal (179 m) and, on clear days, Madeira's outline shows on the horizon. Terminus of the SIGA "Centro – Calheta" bus.

    📍 Praia da Calheta (Porto Santo)

🌧️ Rainy-day alternative — Quinta das Palmeiras (parrots under the trees), Casa Colombo, then cinema at the Centro Cultural.

🎒 What to bring — Hats and sunscreen for everyone, water, armbands, beach toys, closed shoes for the children on the rocks.

  • Boat trips: the water is calm almost all year; in a swell the operator's programme prevails.
  • Islets: no-entry zones (Natura 2000, marine reserve) — no landing without IFCN authorisation; admire them from the sea or the shore.
  • For the tourist board, the one photo to bring home is the Calheta sunset: arrive half an hour early, with Ilhéu da Cal in silhouette across the water.
  • SIGA bus "Centro – Calheta" (running since July 2024): timetables change with the season — check the operator's page below.

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