Things to do in Porto Santo

Porto Santo sits roughly 43 kilometres north-east of Madeira, reached by the Porto Santo Line ferry (around 2 hours 15 minutes, one or two sailings a day depending on season) or by a 15-minute flight from Funchal. The ferry is regularly cancelled in winter swell, so treat the flight as the fallback, not an afterthought.

What draws people over is nine kilometres of continuous golden sand along the south coast, the only natural sandy beach in the whole archipelago, unlike the imported sand at Madeira's own beaches. Vila Baleira, the island's small capital, has a walkable centre and the Casa Colombo among its sights.

Summer sea temperatures run around 22-24°C, with beach days realistically from May to October and a quieter, breezier island the rest of the year.