Madeira is a small island with slow roads and fast expressways, which makes drive time a poor guide to distance. From Calheta the trips split three ways: north over the plateau, east along the coast, and up into the peaks.
North, over the plateau
Porto Moniz, ≈30 km, 40 minutes. Volcanic rock pools that the Atlantic refills over the lip; the exact opposite of Calheta's imported sand. The best single day trip from this coast.
Fanal, ≈30 km, 35 minutes. Ancient laurel trees on open grassland at around 1,150 m. Go in fog; a clear day here is a nice meadow.
Seixal, ≈40 km, 50 minutes. Black volcanic sand, natural pools, waterfalls off the cliff after rain. Pairs with Porto Moniz.
The plateau crossing is part of the trip. In bad weather up top, use the coast route through São Vicente instead.
East, along the coast
Cabo Girão, ≈35 km, 30 minutes. A glass-floored platform on a sea cliff around 580 m high. A twenty-minute stop.
Câmara de Lobos, ≈40 km, 30–40 minutes. The fishing harbour Churchill painted in 1950, and the town most associated with poncha.
Funchal, ≈50 km, 35–50 minutes. The market, the cable car to Monte, the wine lodges. A full day, and the antidote to three days of levadas.
Ponta do Sol, ≈15 km, 15 minutes. Barely a day trip; a good evening.
Up
Pico do Arieiro, ≈70 km, 1 h 15 to 1 h 30. Madeira's third-highest peak at 1,818 m, and the only one you can drive to. Sunrise above the cloud is the reason to go, which from Calheta means leaving in the dark. Check the road and trail status first; both close in bad weather.
Inside the municipality
Do not overlook what is already local: Rabaçal and the levadas, Ponta do Pargo and its lighthouse, and the cliff villages of Jardim do Mar and Paul do Mar. All are inside Calheta, and all are less than 40 minutes away.
How much of this you can realistically fit depends on your pace. Our guide to how many days Calheta needs sets these trips against a two-day, five-day and week-long plan. Driving Madeira's west coast covers the roads themselves, and the old coastal route in particular is slower than any map suggests. If you do only one thing on the plateau, make it the 25 Fontes levada.
FAQ
What is the best day trip from Calheta? Porto Moniz, for the volcanic natural pools, about 40 minutes across the plateau.
Can you do Funchal in a day from Calheta? Comfortably. It is 35–50 minutes each way on the expressway.
Is Pico do Arieiro worth it from this coast? Once, for sunrise. It is a long, early drive, and the summit road closes in bad weather.
Do I need a car for day trips? Effectively yes. The Rodoeste buses along this coast are too infrequent to build a day around.
