- Porto da Cruz is a village on Madeira’s north-east coast, about 35–45 min by car from Funchal (about 33 km) and a quarter of an hour from the airport.
- Engenhos do Norte is a rum distillery from 1927 whose machines are still steam-powered. Visiting is free, and the machines run in spring, during the cane-crushing season.
- Penha d’Águia (about 590 m) closes off the bay to the west. A steep, unofficial path for experienced walkers leads to the top.
- Praia da Alagoa is one of the best surf spots on the island. Next to the beach, a complex with two seawater pools opens in summer.
- By bus you can get there from Funchal on SIGA lines 826 and 827 (formerly 53 and 208) and come back on lines 836 and 837. The ride takes about 1–1.5 h. On Sundays there’s effectively one bus from Funchal.
Porto da Cruz is one of those places in Madeira that are easy to drive past on the way to Santana. The small village lies on the north-east coast, at the foot of the Penha d’Águia rock. There’s a steam-powered rum distillery, a black beach for surfers, seawater pools and a few great walking trails. About 2100 people live here (2021 census), and life moves much more slowly than in Funchal.
I took the photos in this guide in November 2023. I checked opening hours, prices, timetables and trail conditions in October 2026.
A car from the airport: compare car hire prices at Madeira Airport (FNC) on DiscoverCars.
Where Porto da Cruz is and how to get there
Porto da Cruz belongs to the municipality of Machico and covers about 25 km² on the north-eastern tip of Madeira. The name means “Port of the Cross”: according to tradition, the first settlers marked the local landing place with a cross. When the island was being colonised, goods were unloaded here for the settlements in the north, including Santo António da Serra.
How to get to Porto da Cruz
By car
about 33 km and 35–40 min from Funchal on the VR1 and VE1 (map estimate). By the beach and the pools you park on the street.
From the airport
only about 14 km – a quarter of an hour by car.
By bus
SIGA 826 and 827 from Funchal (formerly 53 and 208), back on the 836 and 837. The ride takes about 1–1.5 h, ticket €2.65. On Sundays there’s effectively one bus from Funchal.
With a guide
guided walks on Madeira’s trails, including in the east of the island, many with hotel pick-up.
Data checked 16 October 2026: SIGA (new route numbers since 9 March 2026), OSRM route estimate.
By car
From Funchal it’s about 33 km and about 35–40 minutes’ drive: on the VR1 expressway towards Machico, then the VE1 towards Santana. From the airport it’s only about 14 km, a quarter of an hour (estimates from the OSRM map). The old road over the Portela pass is prettier but slower. In December 2025 a landslide closed the ER108 from Portela to Porto da Cruz, and in May 2026 the ER110 was impassable for two days (DNoticias, 8 May 2026). Before you set off, check the SIGA notices for diversions. By the beach and the pools you park on the street. No car? You can compare car hire prices at Madeira airport on DiscoverCarsaffiliate link.
By bus
SIGA lines 826 (via Portela) and 827 (via Maroços), formerly 53 and 208, run from Funchal to the village centre. On the way back to Funchal they run as the 836 and 837 (new SIGA numbering since 9 March 2026). In the SIGA timetable search these lines still appear under the old numbers 53 and 208. On weekdays several buses leave Funchal, roughly from 10:00 to 19:30. On Saturdays there are two buses from Funchal (10:00 and 13:15), and on Sundays effectively one (18:15). At weekends line 827 starts from Santa Cruz, not Funchal. The ride takes from about 1 h on the express to about 1.5 h on the regular service, and a ticket from the driver costs €2.65 (SIGA fares). The faster lines 850 and 875 to São Jorge and Arco de São Jorge stop by the tunnel above the village (the “P. Cruz (Túnel)” stop), not in the centre. Some of the PDF timetables are still 2024 versions, so check the times in the SIGA search (checked 16 October 2026).
Read nextCar hire in Madeira. 🚗 Steep roads without the stressHow much a car costs in Madeira, what airport pick-up looks like, deposit and insurance, and driving on mountain roads.
Engenhos do Norte – a rum distillery from 1927
This is Porto da Cruz’s best-known sight. Engenhos do Norte is one of three old sugar cane mills and distilleries still working in Madeira. According to the regional institute IVBAM, it’s the only distillery in Europe whose machines are still steam-powered (Rum da Madeira).
A bit of history
The distillery was founded in 1927 by merging around fifty small distilleries from all over the island, and some of the machinery dates back to the 19th century (Visit Madeira, Rumporter). Today three old mills are still working in Madeira. From a distance you can see the tall brick chimney, and inside there are steam-driven cane crushers and copper distillation columns made by the French firm Barbet. The distillery is run by the family company J. Faria & Filhos.
What you’ll see in the distillery
Engenhos do Norte makes rum agricole – rum from fresh sugar cane juice rather than from molasses, like most rums in the world. It’s the largest rum producer in Madeira (Rumporter). It’s most interesting in spring, during the cane-crushing season: Visit Madeira gives March–May, other sources stretch it into June. That’s when the steam crushers are working, smoke pours from the chimney and the cane rides along on conveyor belts. Out of season you visit the distillery like a museum, at your own pace.
I went inside in 2023. The distillery made a big impression on me, but it was also full of tourists.
Engenhos do Norte
Rum brands from Porto da Cruz
The distillery’s rum lines include:
- 970 and 980 – cask-aged, top-shelf rums,
- Branca – white, unaged rums in several strengths,
- Tristão Vaz Teixeira (TVT) and Zarco – named after Madeira’s discoverers, unaged or briefly aged,
- North – another line of rum agricole from the same distillery.
Rum made from sugar cane juice, aguardente de cana, is also the base of poncha, Madeira’s best-known drink.
Read nextPoncha. 🍹 The secrets of Madeira’s favourite drinkWhat poncha is made of, where to try it and how to make it at home.
Penha d’Águia – Eagle Rock
The first thing you see on the way to Porto da Cruz is Penha d’Águia, Eagle Rock. The massive block of rock rises almost 600 m out of the ocean (sources give anything from 580 to 600 m). On the sea side its walls are vertical, and from every direction the mountain looks unclimbable. You can see it from many places on the island, including the Balcões viewpoint, the Levada do Furado and the Portela pass.
Can you climb to the top?
Despite appearances, a path does lead to the top: the Vereda da Penha d’Águia. This is how Paddy Dillon describes it in his guide to Madeira’s trails:
Vereda da Penha d’Águia
From the Moinhos side there are about 400 uneven steps, followed by steep concrete paths. At the top there’s a small clearing with a trig point, surrounded by pines, laurel and heather. From the summit itself you can’t see the sea, but you can see the mountains inland. The descent on the other side is steep, narrow and crumbling in places. Visit Madeira describes a shorter ascent from Caminho D. Sebastião: about 2.5 h on a steep dirt path, only for people in good shape.
Beaches, pools and the promenade
Praia da Alagoa
Porto da Cruz’s main beach is on the west side of the village, at the foot of Penha d’Águia. It’s a natural beach with volcanic sand, although depending on the season and the currents the sea also brings in pebbles. There are restaurants, a bar, changing rooms, toilets and a playground. Alagoa is one of the most popular surf spots in Madeira, and lessons here are run by Calhau Surf School and Madeira Surf Camp, among others. In 2026 the bathing season ran from 8 June to 27 September, but without guaranteed lifeguards (Portaria n.º 206/2026, JORAM).
Praia da Maiata
A longer, wild beach east of the village, with black sand and pebbles. There are no facilities and no lifeguards. From the centre it’s about 3 km by road (map estimate). Parking by the beach can be difficult, and local politicians have proposed a new access road (DNoticias, 1 September 2025).
Seawater pools
On the promenade there’s a complex with two seawater pools: a bigger one for adults and a smaller one for children. There are changing rooms, showers, toilets, a bar and sunloungers and parasols for hire. The complex opens in summer. The Machico municipality hasn’t published the season dates or prices for 2026, and the prices in guidebooks are several years old, so don’t take them too seriously.
The promenade around Rochão hill
The promenade runs from Alagoa beach around Rochão hill. In the cliffs you can see basalt columns and layers of lava, and when the waves are good, surfers below Penha d’Águia too.
The church of Nossa Senhora de Guadalupe
The parish of Porto da Cruz was founded on 26 September 1577. Its patron was supposed to be Our Lady of Sorrows (Nossa Senhora da Piedade), the deed donating the land for the church named Nossa Senhora da Glória, and in the end the church was dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Three patron saints for one church.
The first church dated from the late 16th century and was substantially renovated in the 17th century, including in 1637 and 1688. According to the Hello Guide Madeira, today’s white, modern building went up after the old one was demolished in 1961. Visit Madeira gives 1574 as the construction date and says the roof was last renovated in 2000.
Where do these rocks come from? Geology in a nutshell
Porto da Cruz is one of the more interesting places in Madeira geologically. In the cliffs you can see lava flows, basalt columns and layers of sediment, and even traces of old limestone reefs. Rocks from the oldest stage of the island’s formation (more than 5.6 million years old) and from the youngest (less than 0.7 million years old) lie side by side here (Geoheritage, 2025).
In February 2010 a violent flood in Madeira also changed Porto da Cruz. The water destroyed the road from the east and the cemetery, and on the seaward side of Rochão hill part of the cliff collapsed, together with a distinctive lava pillar. The slope above the road then had to be secured with concrete (according to the supplement to Burton and MacDonald’s geological guide to Madeira). The rock layers are best seen on a walk along the promenade around the hill.
Prefer to hike with a guide? Guided levada and mountain walks on Madeira, many with hotel pickup. Compare routes, reviews and prices on GetYourGuide.
Walking trails around Porto da Cruz
The village sits where the mountains meet the ocean, so the trails here run both along the cliffs and through the laurel forest.
Vereda do Larano: from Porto da Cruz to Boca do Risco
This is one of Madeira’s most spectacular cliff trails. It starts by the church in Porto da Cruz: first steeply uphill through Larano, then along a levada, and further on the path comes out onto the cliffs above the ocean. From here you can see sheer rock walls, Penha d’Águia behind you and Madeira’s highest peaks in the distance. You can walk the trail in either direction.
Vereda do Larano
PR5 is a different route (Vereda das Funduras), so don’t mix them up in apps. In September 2025 a falling rock injured a hiker on the Vereda do Larano (DNoticias, 23 September 2025), so don’t go after heavy rain or in strong wind.
Caminho Velho from the Poiso pass
The old road from the mountains to the north coast. It starts at the Poiso pass (about 1400 m above sea level) and descends through the laurel forest, then through villages and terraced fields all the way to Porto da Cruz. It’s about 13 km and about 4 h on foot, almost entirely downhill: about 1500 m of descent, which your knees will definitely feel (according to Paddy Dillon’s guide).
Levada do Furado (PR10)
A popular levada from Ribeiro Frio to the Portela pass, about 11 km through the laurel forest, with a few short tunnels. It doesn’t start in Porto da Cruz, but it ends a few minutes’ drive from the village. After a landslide in December 2025 the trail was closed; since mid-July 2026 it has been open again (DNoticias, 14 July 2026). Like other IFCN trails, it requires booking on SIMplifica and a €4.50 fee (IFCN, 2 October 2026).
Read nextLevada walks in Madeira. 💧 The most beautiful routes and what a levada isThe most beautiful levadas with a table of routes, and the history of Madeira’s roughly 3100 km of channels.
Miradouro da Portela
Even if you’re not walking, it’s worth driving up to the Portela pass (670 m above sea level according to Visit Madeira) on the old road from Machico to Porto da Cruz. From the viewpoint you can see Penha d’Águia, the village below and the whole valley. There are restaurants at the pass.
Who Porto da Cruz is for and how much time to allow
Surfers and walkers will get the most out of Porto da Cruz. Alagoa beach has regular waves and surf schools all year round, and the Vereda do Larano, Penha d’Águia and the old mountain paths start or end in the village. It’s also a good, quiet base in the north-east, away from the Funchal crowds, and for fans of history and rum, Engenhos do Norte is a working industrial museum.
For a short trip, half a day is enough: the distillery, a walk along the promenade and a coffee with a view. On the promenade and in the centre there are a few bars and restaurants serving fish and seafood. If you want to add the Vereda do Larano or the climb up Penha d’Águia, plan a whole day. For surfing or several trails nearby, it’s worth staying the night.
Where to stay in Porto da Cruz
Porto da Cruz is a good base if you’re coming to surf or to walk the trails of the north-east. For a first stay in Madeira it’s more convenient to stay in Funchal and come here for the day. You’ll find a comparison of areas in my guide where to stay in Madeira.
Where to stay in Porto da Cruz: compare guesthouses, apartments and hotels by the beach in a search box with current Booking.com prices.
See places to stay in Madeira on Booking.comaffiliate link
Frequently asked questions about Porto da Cruz
How do I get to Porto da Cruz without a car?
From Funchal on SIGA buses 826 and 827 (formerly 53 and 208), returning on the 836 and 837. The ride takes about 1–1.5 h, and on Sundays there’s effectively one bus from Funchal.
Do you have to pay to visit the Engenhos do Norte distillery?
According to portugal.com, visiting is free. The tasting at the Casa do Rum next to the distillery is paid, according to visitors’ reports.
When is the best time to visit the rum distillery?
In spring, during the cane-crushing season (roughly March–June), when the steam machinery is running. Out of season you visit it like a museum.
Can you climb Penha d’Águia?
Yes, a steep, unofficial path leads up there. It’s about 2.5–3 h on foot, only for people in good shape and in dry weather.
Can you swim in Porto da Cruz?
Yes. In summer a complex with two seawater pools is open, and Alagoa beach has volcanic sand. There are no guaranteed lifeguards on the beaches, and the waves can be big.
Have you been to Porto da Cruz? Let me know in the comments whether you climbed Penha d’Águia and which rum from Engenhos do Norte you liked best.
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