Ponta de Sao Lourenco Walk or Vereda da Ponta de Sao Lourenco (PR8) is also known as a beautiful hike in Madeira. Not too hard and with absolutely stunning views, this walk is a must for everyone that is visiting Madeira. Join us on our hike when we did the hike with already sore bodies.

Ponta de Sao Lourenco Walk – how to get there

We did our walk with Madeira Experience Tours so we really didn’t have to think about anything. We were picked up at our hotel in Funchal and then they took us to Ponta de Sao Lourenco. The walk is located on the most eastern part of the island and it is amazing, dramatic, and just wonderful. If you don’t want to take a guided tour, you can go here by car. It takes about half an hour to get here from Funchal and it’s a good road all the way to the tip.

There is a big parking space where you can leave your car (if you rented one). There are a lot of people doing the walk so you will not be doing this all by yourself. Even if you come here in the evening, you will still do the walk amongst other visitors.

How long and difficult is the Ponta de Sao Lourenco Walk?

The walk is about nine kilometers back and forth so, 4,5 kilometers each way. When we did the walk, we had done the hard and strenuous walk “Peak to Peak” the previous day. That means that our bodies were sore and hurt like crazy! No, that’s an understatement. When we woke up, we could barely move at all. With that said, we struggled during the walk. It was harder for us since we had hiked the day before.

The walk is considered to be moderate and I think that it’s a fair estimate. It is not that steep but you still need a pair of sturdy hiking boots. I wanted to walk in sandals and boy am I glad that I listened to our tour guide. He advised me to change into a closed-toed shoe and that is necessary to have while hiking this nice walk.

The best time to do the Ponta de Sao Lourenco Walk

You can do this walk at any time of the day. The view is amazing and it’s so dramatic with all the cliffs and the water. It is said that the nicest time to do the walk is during the sunrise or the sunset. However, we came here during the day and that was also spectacular. There are a lot of natural photo stops that you pass by through the walk.

After you have walked halfway, there’s a café that serves coffee and sandwiches. We had our lunch brought to us so we only bought the coffee. However, if you don’t want to carry your stuff, you can buy food and coffee here. The cafe is open every day from 10.30 – 17.00

Different ways of doing the Ponta de Sao Lourenco Walk

We did the walk as most people do – walked all the way there and back. Sure, the scenery is the same on your way back but it doesn’t matter. The sun is changing position and it looks awesome both ways. If you want to do the walk but don’t feel like walking both ways – there’s an option for you. Several times a day, there’s a boat that can take you from the cafe back to the car.

Keep in mind that the boat will not take you straight to the parking. You will have to walk for about 20 minutes to get back to the car. But the road that you walk is a lot easier than the hike is. A boat is an option but we think that you can make the walk there and back without any problem. Just take your time!

Our experience of the walk

The Ponta de Sao Lourenco walk was a really nice experience for us. Sore and with bodies that hurt from our previous walk, we still ended up enjoying ourselves. It took us about three hours to complete but we weren’t in any hurry and Mini was stopping, photographing all the time. At one point, he even had the drone up!

We both love Portugal and we have spent a lot of time there. We ended up staying in the Algarve for about two months and when we arrived at the Ponta de Sao Lourenco walk – it felt like we were back in the Algarve. The dramatic and wonderful scenes were like soup for our souls. We can recommend the walk to everyone that wants to have a nice hike in an amazing environment.

Other nice hikes and walks in Madeira

We have made a separate post on what nice walks and hikes there are in Madeira. Even if the island is not that big, there are lots of hikes that you can do all around Madeira. By the end of our trip to Madeira, we ended up walking three different trails and we liked all of them. However, this one is one of the highest-ranked on the island.

We can recommend this hike to everyone who is visiting Madeira. The beautiful walk will stay with you for a long time and we are sure you will enjoy it! Just make sure to wear comfortable shoes and take your time and you’ll be fine.