Levada dos Balcões: Madeira's Easiest Great View

The short walk everyone can actually finish

Madeira’s reputation for hiking is built on trails that ask a lot: hours on foot, unlit tunnels, sheer drops with no railing. The Levada dos Balcões is the exception, and it is exactly why so many first-time visitors are pointed towards it.

Starting from Ribeiro Frio, a small forestry village in the hills above the north coast, the path follows one of the island’s irrigation channels almost dead level for around 1.3 km, then opens onto a platform looking straight across a deep valley at Pico Ruivo, Pico das Torres and the ridge running towards Pico do Arieiro. No other viewpoint on Madeira delivers that much mountain for that little effort.

This guide covers what the walk is actually like, what it costs, who it suits, and what to combine it with — and, just as importantly, what it isn’t. Balcões is not a taste of Madeira’s serious mountain trails. It shares a start point and a category with longer, harder walks, but the comparison mostly ends there.

What “levada” actually means here

A levada is not a hiking trail in the way the word is usually used elsewhere — it is a water channel, cut from the 15th century onwards to carry rain from the wet north of the island to the drier, cultivated south. The path you walk is the maintenance track that runs alongside the water, which is why levada paths are typically narrow, close to a drop, and occasionally routed through tunnels. For the full background on how the network works and why it shapes every levada walk on the island, see our guide to how levada walks work.

Balcões inherits the levada’s defining trait — an almost flat gradient, since the water has to keep a constant, gentle fall — without most of its usual drawbacks. There’s no tunnel section here, and the exposure along the path is mild compared with routes further into the mountains.

Getting to the start at Ribeiro Frio

Ribeiro Frio sits on the ER103 road between Faial and the mountain road up to Pico do Arieiro, roughly 25 to 30 minutes’ drive from Funchal depending on traffic. There’s a small car park by the trout farm and the village’s well-known garden, and the Levada dos Balcões trailhead is signposted from there.

• Self-drive: the most flexible option, and Ribeiro Frio’s car park rarely fills up the way Rabaçal’s does. See our driving in Madeira and car rental guides before booking, especially if this is your first time on the island’s mountain roads.
• Bus: possible but slow, and timetables on this route are built around villages rather than trailheads — check our buses and public transport guide before relying on it for a specific arrival time.
• Guided tour: several operators build Ribeiro Frio and Balcões into a wider day out, which removes the driving question entirely. A full-day hike from Ribeiro Frio towards Portela covers this walk as part of a longer route for anyone who wants more distance on the same day.
• No car at all: read getting around without a car for the realistic options.

What the walk is actually like

From the car park, the path drops gently to meet the levada, then follows the water channel through laurel forest — moss-covered trunks, tree heath, and the kind of damp, green cover that makes this part of the island feel completely different from the sun-baked south coast a half-hour’s drive away. The surface underfoot is a mix of packed earth and stone, occasionally slick after rain, but there is no scrambling and no significant ascent or descent beyond the short stretch at the start.

Because the path runs along a hillside, one side does fall away for parts of the walk, and there’s no continuous barrier. It is nowhere near as exposed as the ridge walks around Pico do Arieiro and Pico Ruivo, but anyone genuinely uneasy with drops should keep to the middle of the path and take it slowly, particularly in the last few hundred metres before the viewpoint.

Allow around 25 to 40 minutes each way at an unhurried pace, plus time at the end — most people spend at least 15 to 20 minutes at the viewpoint simply looking at the view and taking photographs. A round trip of an hour to ninety minutes covers it comfortably for most visitors, children included.

The viewpoint: why “Balcões” earns its name

Balcões means “balconies”, and the name is literal rather than marketing. The path opens onto a rocky platform with essentially nothing in front of you but air and, across the valley, the exposed rock and heather-covered slopes of Madeira’s highest peaks. On a clear morning you can pick out the ridge connecting Pico do Arieiro to Pico Ruivo, the same skyline that hikers on the PR1 trail walk for hours to experience from closer up.

Cloud builds over the central mountains through the day more often than not, so mornings tend to give the clearest views — the same logic that makes early starts work for sunrise trips higher up the mountain, covered in our Pico do Arieiro sunrise guide. If a low layer of cloud does roll in while you’re there, it isn’t necessarily a wasted trip: watching mist move through a forested valley has its own appeal, just a different one from a clear-sky view.

There is no railing at the viewpoint itself. It’s safe for a careful adult and, with supervision, for children who can be trusted to stay back from the edge — but it is not a place to let a young child run ahead.

Fees, permits and practicalities

Since 1 August 2021, Madeira has charged for access to its official numbered PR trails — typically around 3 euros per person, per trail, per day, booked in advance through the government portal at simplifica.madeira.gov.pt and checked at the trailhead. This is one of the most commonly missed pieces of planning advice in older guides, and it changes the maths of a walking-heavy week on the island. For the full picture of which paths are covered, how booking works, and what happens if you turn up without a reservation, read our dedicated guide to hiking permits and trail fees.

Coverage of specific paths is reviewed periodically, so rather than stating a fee status here that may be out of date by the time you travel, check the current listing for Levada dos Balcões on the official portal before you go. Treat every levada walk on Madeira as potentially fee-based until you’ve confirmed otherwise for that specific trail and date.

Beyond the fee question, there is little else to plan for. There’s no water source, shop or toilet directly at the trailhead beyond what’s available in Ribeiro Frio itself, so come prepared as you would for any walk, however short.

Detail	Levada dos Balcões
Start point	Ribeiro Frio car park
Distance	About 1.3 km each way (roughly 2.5–3 km return)
Walking time	25–40 minutes each way
Ascent/descent	Minimal, gentle throughout
Tunnels	None
Surface	Packed earth and stone, can be damp
Barrier at viewpoint	None
Fee status	Check current listing at simplifica.madeira.gov.pt before travel

How it compares to Madeira’s longer levada walks

It’s worth being direct about this, because guides that blur the distinction do new visitors no favours. Balcões is not a smaller version of the island’s flagship walks — it’s a genuinely different kind of outing, and treating it as a warm-up for something on the scale of the Levada do Caldeirão Verde or the 25 Fontes walk would set the wrong expectations in both directions.

Walk	Return distance	Tunnels	Typical time	Best suited to
Levada dos Balcões	~2.5–3 km	None	1–1.5 hours	First-timers, families, anyone short on time
Levada do Caldeirão Verde	~13 km	Four	4–5 hours	Fitter, prepared walkers with a head torch
Levada das 25 Fontes	Longer, shuttle access	Some sections	Half-day	Walkers wanting a longer forest and waterfall route

If Balcões leaves you wanting more, the next step up in scale and commitment is covered properly in our guide to Madeira’s best levada walks, which sets out the difficulty gap honestly rather than assuming one walk prepares you for the next.

Who this walk suits

Balcões is aimed squarely at people who want Madeira’s mountain scenery without Madeira’s mountain effort: families with children old enough to walk but not to tackle a multi-hour route, visitors on a short stopover, anyone recovering from a longer walk the day before, or first-timers testing whether levada walking suits them before committing to something bigger. If you’re planning a trip with children more broadly, our Madeira with kids guide and family-friendly walks page both build around walks at this level.

It is a poor match, on the other hand, for anyone specifically chasing the tunnel sections, the waterfalls, or the sense of remoteness that draws people to the island’s longer trails — for that, the levada safety, tunnels and vertigo guide is a better starting point before choosing a route.

What to wear and bring

Ribeiro Frio sits considerably higher and cooler than Funchal, and the surrounding laurel forest holds moisture even on days that are dry and sunny on the coast. A light waterproof or fleece layer is worth carrying even in summer, and shoes with real grip matter more than the short distance might suggest, since the path can be slick after rain. For a broader sense of how weather varies by altitude across the island, see mountain weather and what to wear — the short version is that conditions at Ribeiro Frio can differ sharply from whatever you left behind on the coast that morning.

Bring water and a camera; there’s no need for the trekking poles, head torch or trail snacks that longer levada walks call for.

Making a day of it

Because Balcões takes so little time, most visitors pair it with something else rather than driving to Ribeiro Frio and back for an hour’s walk alone. A guided early-morning walk to the Levada dos Balcões viewpoint is one option if you’d rather not navigate the mountain roads yourself, and it also improves the odds of catching the view before cloud builds up later in the day.

For a bigger day built around the same part of the island, an east-coast guided tour taking in Pico do Arieiro and Santana uses Ribeiro Frio’s area as one stop among several rather than the whole outing, which suits visitors who don’t want to plan the logistics themselves.

Those specifically drawn to the high peaks visible from the Balcões viewpoint, rather than the short walk itself, should look at a guided sunrise hike on the PR1 trail from Pico do Arieiro — a genuinely different level of walk, covered fully in our Pico do Arieiro sunrise guide.

If your one-day plan needs a shape, our one day in Madeira itinerary and Madeira with kids itinerary both show where a short stop at Ribeiro Frio and Balcões fits naturally alongside other things to do nearby, and the wider levada walks category page lists the full spread of options by length and difficulty if Balcões turns out to be just the start of your levada walking on the island.

Frequently asked questions about the Levada dos Balcões

How long is the Levada dos Balcões walk?

About 1.3 km each way from the Ribeiro Frio car park, so roughly 2.5 to 3 km there and back. Walking time is around 25 to 40 minutes each way at a gentle pace, plus however long you linger at the viewpoint.

Is the Levada dos Balcões suitable for children?

Yes, it’s one of the most family-friendly walks on the island: the gradient is minimal and the path is well used. Watch children closely near the final viewpoint, where the ground drops away without a barrier, and see our family walks guide for more level options.

Do I need to pay to walk the Levada dos Balcões?

Madeira introduced paid access on its official numbered PR trails from August 2021, at around 3 euros per person per trail per day, booked through simplifica.madeira.gov.pt. Fee coverage is updated from time to time, so check the current status for this specific path before you set off — never assume a levada walk is free.

Are there tunnels on the Levada dos Balcões?

No. This is one of its main advantages over longer levadas such as the Levada do Caldeirão Verde or the Levada das 25 Fontes, both of which involve unlit tunnels. Balcões stays in the open the whole way.

What should I wear for the Levada dos Balcões?

Sturdy shoes with grip, since the path can be damp and slightly uneven in places, plus a light waterproof layer. Ribeiro Frio sits well above Funchal and is noticeably cooler and cloudier, even when the coast is warm and sunny.

Can I combine Levada dos Balcões with other walks near Ribeiro Frio?

Ribeiro Frio is also the starting point for the longer Levada do Furado, and it’s a stop on some full-day guided hikes toward Portela. Balcões itself is best kept as a short, standalone outing rather than tacked onto a longer trail on the same visit.

Is the Levada dos Balcões safe for anyone with a fear of heights?

It’s far gentler than Madeira’s high-mountain trails, but the path still runs along a hillside with a drop on one side and the final viewpoint has no railing. Anyone uneasy with edges should stay on the main path and take the last few metres carefully.

When is the best time of day to walk to Balcões?

Morning is usually the clearest, before cloud tends to build over the central peaks later in the day. Because the walk is so short, it also works well as an add-on before or after a longer plan elsewhere on the island.