Where to stay in São Vicente
Stay in the valley for green quiet: vineyard guesthouses, the north-coast surf villages, and a base equidistant from Porto Moniz and Santana. Nights are dark and silent in the best way.
Getting there and around
The Encumeada or the tunnel from Ribeira Brava brings you over from the south in half an hour. A car is essential; the joy here is stopping at every mirador on the ER101.
Common questions about São Vicente
What are the São Vicente caves?
Lava tubes from a 900,000-year-old eruption, walkable for several hundred metres with a volcanism centre attached. Check opening status before driving out, as the site has closed for works in recent years.
Is the north of Madeira worth visiting?
It is the wilder, greener half: laurel forest to the road edge, waterfalls, vineyards on terraces, and a coast that takes the full Atlantic. If the south is about sun, the north is about drama.
Can you swim in São Vicente?
There are small pebble coves and a sheltered lido by the village mouth, but the north sea is rougher; Ponta Delgada pool complex nearby is the reliable option.