From Skywalk Fears to Honey Cake Cheers

We finally set off for our last holiday destination, driving from Funchal to Porto Moniz along the absolutely breathtaking coastline. Our first stop was the Cabo Girão Skywalk. I’m not a fan of heights, but honestly, it wasn’t too bad—it was actually kind of nice.

Next, we headed to Porto Moniz, a really charming little town that’s way too underrated. Most tourists only come here to see the Anjos waterfall. It’s in a closed-off area, and people are warned not to go because of landslides and falling rocks. Personally, I don’t think it’s worth breaking any rules just for a photo—especially since we’re visitors. Much better to just enjoy the town and sit by the sea.

From there we drove on to Arco da Calheta and stumbled upon a small craft and farmers’ market right by the ocean. They had everything from earrings and soaps to dried fruit. And of course, we grabbed some Bolo do Caco, a garlicky flatbread—delicious! One is more than enough for two, way too heavy for just me.

Right next to the market we checked out a sugarcane factory. Admission was free, so we had a quick look around. In the tasting room we picked up some aguardente de cana—perfect for making or mixing Poncha—and the famous Bolo de Mel de Cana, a honey cake with chocolate and almonds.

After that, we finally made our way to the Farol do Porto Moniz lighthouse. What a beautiful spot! The wind was starting to pick up, making the whole place feel a bit wilder, but it was perfect for a few photos.

Then we drove to one of Europe’s priciest cable cars, the Teleférico das Achadas da Cruz. It has a crazy 89% gradient! Honestly, I was relieved it was closed for maintenance until the end of September—otherwise we would have had to go down and back up. Talk about luck!

While we were parked, we decided to clean our rental car. Fun fact: it was handed over to us without any windshield washer fluid. So there I was, standing in the doorway, pouring plain water on the windshield, while my friend sat inside trying to switch on the wipers. And of course, the car automatically wiped it all… super strong, because I had poured quite a lot of water. I, the passenger door, and some poor guy on the other side all got soaked. The man just stepped aside, and I jumped in as fast as possible. Oh my gosh, so embarrassing—two blondes in a car!

Finally, we drove on from the Teleférico towards Porto Moniz, stopped at a lovely viewpoint up on the road to look down over the town, and then, at last, arrived at our hotel in Porto Moniz to call it a day.Read more