The quick version
- Yes, if you like big drops and easy viewpoints. The skywalk is a short stop, and the cliff is 580 metres high, so the view is the payoff.[1]
- Entry costs €2, with residents and children up to 12 years old exempt, and the site is open daily from 08:00 to 20:00.[1]
- The skywalk is a quick stop rather than a morning out, so it works best as one part of a west coast day that also takes in Câmara de Lobos, Seixal, Porto Moniz and Fanal.
- Madeira has a subtropical Mediterranean climate with even temperatures all year round and an average annual temperature of 20°C (67°F).[2] Go early if you can.
- The Skywalk, Porto Moniz, Seixal and Fanal 4WD Tour runs 8 hours from US$79 and is rated 4.87 from 9,297 reviews.[3]
- Top choice Skywalk and Fanal 4WD from US$79 Duration8 hours[3]Traveller ratingRated 4.87 from 9,297 reviews[3]Group sizePrivate or small groups available[3]PickupPickup included, details at booking[3]CancellationFree cancellation, 24 hours ahead[3] Check availability
- Enchanted Terraces 4WD from US$80 Duration8 hours[4]Traveller ratingRated 4.78 from 5,647 reviews[4]Group sizePrivate or small groups available[4]PickupPickup included, details at booking[4]CancellationFree cancellation, 24 hours ahead[4] See this tour
- West Madeira Waterfalls from US$40 Duration8 hours[5]Traveller ratingRated 4.70 from 3,827 reviews[5]Group sizePrivate or small groups available[5]PickupPickup included, details at booking[5]CancellationFree cancellation, 24 hours ahead[5] See this tour
The Fajã do Cabo Girão beach is known for the impressive fertility of its agricultural land. This narrow, lush piece of land can be accessed by cable car.
Is Cabo Girão worth it?
Before you set off
On the day
Where Cabo Girão Is and What You See
Cabo Girão stands on Madeira's south coast, about 15 kilometres west of Funchal.[7] It is an easy first or last stop on a day that loops round to the north. The cliff drops in a single sheer face to the sea, and the glass platform juts out over that drop. From the edge you look down on narrow terraces of cultivated land, then the water, then the long curve of the coastline running back east towards the capital. It is the sort of view that makes people go quiet for a moment.
Below the platform, the Fajã do Cabo Girão is known for the impressive fertility of its agricultural land, and this narrow, lush piece of land can be accessed by cable car.[8] Seen from above it looks like a green shelf pressed against the rock, with the surf on one side and the cliff face on the other. That small detail lifts Cabo Girão above a simple roadside viewpoint, and it is the reason the stop rewards a few minutes of looking rather than one quick photograph.
The Skywalk: Height, Glass and Nerves
The headline numbers are simple. Cabo Girão is 580 metres high, and the skywalk that hangs off it was completed in October 2012.[1][9] The platform has a transparent floor, so the drop sits directly under your feet and the sea below looks a very long way down. The first step onto the glass is the moment everyone remembers. If you are not keen on heights, walk the outer edge first and let your eyes settle before you look straight down.
Nothing about the stop is strenuous. You step from the car park to the platform and the view is immediate, which makes it a good fit for mixed groups, for anyone travelling with children or grandparents, and for days when the weather higher up the island is closed in. There is a short walk, an entrance fee, and then you are standing over the Atlantic.
One thing worth knowing: the platform is exposed, so a jacket helps even on a warm afternoon, and the light changes quickly as cloud moves along the coast. Photographers tend to prefer the softer hours, while anyone who simply wants the view will be happy at almost any time the site is open.
Cloud drifting through the laurel forest on Madeira's north west coast.
What It Costs and When to Go
Entry costs €2, with residents and children up to 12 years old exempt.[1] The viewpoint is open daily from 08:00 to 20:00.[1] For a site this dramatic, that is a modest outlay, and it means you can treat the stop as a flexible one rather than the anchor of your day.
Madeira has a subtropical Mediterranean climate with even temperatures all year round, and an average annual temperature of 20°C (67°F).[2] In practice the south coast viewpoint is rarely a cold stop, though the platform is exposed and wind can make it feel cooler than the thermometer suggests. A light layer and shoes you can walk in are the sensible default.
Timing matters more than season here. The cliff faces south and catches the sun through the day, and sea haze can soften the view later on. If you are combining the skywalk with Porto Moniz and Fanal, an early start gives you room to enjoy the north coast without watching the clock.
How Long You Need at the Skywalk
The skywalk is a short stop rather than a half day: you walk the platform, take your photographs, look at the terraces and the fajã below, and move on. Treating it as one stop on a wider circuit is the way to get the best out of it, and it is why the cliff works so well as part of a west coast itinerary.
If you want to stretch your legs near the cliff, this is levada country. One Levada do Norte walk runs from Estreito de Câmara de Lobos to Cabo Girão.[10] Câmara de Lobos itself, back towards Funchal, is worth a wander: its bay was immortalised by Winston Churchill, who painted it in January 1950 from the Espírito Santo Viewpoint.[11] A coffee by the water makes a gentle counterpoint to the drop.
580 metres
The height of Cabo Girão, the cliff the glass skywalk is built on, with terraces and the Atlantic far below it.[1]
Getting There: Tour, Car or Cable Car
If you are driving, the viewpoint sits beside the south coast road and is a straightforward stop between Funchal and the west of the island.[7] A return trip on the Teleférico do Rancho cable car costs 10 euros.[6] The narrow fajã beach below the cliff is reached by cable car too, and it is a completely different kind of outing from the skywalk above it.[8]
Group tours take the logistics out of it. The Skywalk, Porto Moniz, Seixal and Fanal 4WD Tour covers the skywalk and the west coast in 8 hours, starts from US$79, and offers free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance.[3] It runs with a live guide in Portuguese, Spanish, English or French, and there are 11 pickup options to choose from.[3]
Smaller vehicles help on the island's narrower lanes, and the listing is clear about the format: private or small groups available, pickup included with details confirmed when you check availability, and reserve now with payment later.[3]
Beyond the Cliff: Porto Moniz, Seixal and Fanal
West of the skywalk the island turns greener and wetter, and the road runs along cliffs, through tunnels and past waterfalls. Porto Moniz is usually the centrepiece. Its natural swimming pools have a swimming area of 3,800 m2 that is 2 metres deep, and they hold around 7,600 m3 of seawater, with a lounging area of about 3,217 m2.[12] Swimming in rock pools filled by the Atlantic, with spray coming over the wall, is a very different experience from standing on a glass platform.
Inland, Fanal is the place people remember afterwards. Madeira's tourism board presents Fanal as a mystical, century-old forest that visitors are invited to discover.[13] The wider Laurissilva forest around it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1999.[13] On a misty day the trees appear and disappear in the cloud and cattle graze between them; on a clear day the same ground looks like open parkland.
Seixal, on the north coast road, brings dark sand, a cluster of natural pools and a waterfall that drops close to the shore. On a guided day these stops come as part of the route rather than as detours, which is the simple argument for letting someone else drive the mountain roads.
Who Should Go and Who Might Skip It
Go if you like big views, easy access and a stop that delivers quickly. The skywalk suits travellers who are heading west anyway, and it pairs naturally with the pools at Porto Moniz and the forest at Fanal.[12] Think twice about making it the whole point of a day out, especially if you dislike glass floors or exposed edges.
There are other high places if you are touring the island. The Guindaste Viewpoint in Santana sits on one of the slopes of the Foz da Ribeira do Faial and offers a view over Madeira's north coast.[14] Cabo Girão is the easier one to fold into a Funchal-based day, and the one that fits a west coast route.
The honest summary is that Cabo Girão is worth it as part of something bigger. Give it your time, take the photographs, then keep going: the north coast pools, the laurel forest and the little coastal towns are what turn a viewpoint into a day.
Traveller ratings for west Madeira 4WD tours
Ratings as listed: the 4WD Tour & Skywalk to Seixal, Porto Moniz & Fanal[15], the Skywalk, Porto Moniz, Seixal and Fanal 4WD Tour[3], the West Tour With Guide Fanal Forest[16], the Enchanted Terraces, Porto do Moniz & Fanal 4WD Tour[4], and the West Madeira Waterfalls and Fanal Forest Tour[5].
From-prices per person for west Madeira days
From-prices per person as listed on GetYourGuide for these four tours.[3][4][5][17]
When to go, and when to book
Plan your Cabo Girão visit
Check the hours
Cabo Girão is open daily from 08:00 to 20:00, and entry costs €2.[1]
Sort your transport
A Teleférico do Rancho return trip costs 10 euros, and one Levada do Norte walk finishes at Cabo Girão.[6][10]
Build a west coast day
Pair the skywalk with Porto Moniz, where the natural pools have a swimming area of 3,800 m2 that is 2 metres deep.[12]
Pack for wind
Take a light jacket for the platform; Madeira's average annual temperature is 20°C (67°F) rather than hot.[2]
Book the 4WD day
The Skywalk, Porto Moniz, Seixal and Fanal 4WD Tour lasts 8 hours and starts from US$79.[3]
Ride the west coast in a 4WD with the skywalk on the route
from US$80Reserve now & pay later
