Beach€
Porto Moniz natural pools
Lava-rock seawater pools on the north-west tip, lifeguarded all year, with a children's pool and playground; €3, age 3 and under free (council tariff 2021; council page 9 Oct 2026; confirm).
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Town · Madeira, Portugal, Europe
Porto Moniz, Madeira
Village on Madeira's north-west tip, known for its lava-rock natural pools, with a small aquarium, a laurel-forest exhibition, free pools and Seixal's black-sand beach nearby. About an hour's drive from Funchal, or a long direct bus ride. Mostly a day trip. Research draft.
- Time zone
- Madeira time
When to go
Porto Moniz through the year
- January: high 20 °C, low 14.3 °C, 6.2 rainy days, 5.6 hours of sun a day, sea 18.9 °C
- February: high 19.9 °C, low 13.9 °C, 5.5 rainy days, 6.2 hours of sun a day, sea 18.2 °C
- March: high 20.6 °C, low 14.3 °C, 5.8 rainy days, 6.8 hours of sun a day, sea 18 °C
- April: high 21 °C, low 14.9 °C, 4.7 rainy days, 6.9 hours of sun a day, sea 18.5 °C
- May: high 22 °C, low 16.2 °C, 3.3 rainy days, 7.1 hours of sun a day, sea 19.4 °C
- June: high 23.7 °C, low 18.2 °C, 1 rainy days, 6.4 hours of sun a day, sea 21 °C
- July: high 25.4 °C, low 19.7 °C, 0.3 rainy days, 7.5 hours of sun a day, sea 22.4 °C
- August: high 26.8 °C, low 20.7 °C, 0.4 rainy days, 8.2 hours of sun a day, sea 23.5 °C
- September: high 26.6 °C, low 20.4 °C, 3.1 rainy days, 6.9 hours of sun a day, sea 23.8 °C
- October: high 25.2 °C, low 19.2 °C, 7 rainy days, 6.4 hours of sun a day, sea 23 °C
- November: high 22.8 °C, low 17 °C, 7.3 rainy days, 5.8 hours of sun a day, sea 21.5 °C
- December: high 21 °C, low 15.5 °C, 8.6 rainy days, 5.1 hours of sun a day, sea 19.9 °C
Long-term averages, not a forecast. Source: IPMA: Normal Climatológica 1991–2020, Funchal/Observatório (station 522, 58 m), PDF v1.0 2024, read . Full month-by-month guide →
For families
Porto Moniz with kids
Opening hours, prices and age limits for each day out, with the date we read them. Beaches have their own access notes further down.
Natural pools
children's pool, playground, lifeguards all year; €3 over age 3, 3 and under free (council tariff 2021; the council page listed €3 on 9 Oct 2026, confirm on arrival).
Aquário da Madeira
native Atlantic species in 12 tanks, daily 10:00–18:00; junior 5–14 €4 (council page).
Laurel-forest exhibition (former Centro Ciência Viva, now Espaço Multiusos)
daily 10:00–18:00 except 25 Dec; under 5 free, 5–14 €2.50 (council page).
Places
Places in Porto Moniz
Beaches, viewpoints and days out, each with the date it was last checked.
More places 4
Beach
Seixal beach (Praia do Porto do Seixal)
Small black-sand beach by Seixal's harbour on the north coast, under green cliffs: showers, a bar, kayak hire, lifeguards 1 June to 30 September 2026. No Blue Flag in 2026.
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Sight€
Madeira Aquarium (Aquário da Madeira), Porto Moniz
Small aquarium of native Atlantic species in a replica fort by the Porto Moniz pools; daily 10:00–18:00, children 5–14 €4. A rainy-day stop on the north coast.
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Sight€
Centro Ciência Viva do Porto Moniz
Hands-on science centre at the Porto Moniz roundabout with a permanent exhibition on the laurel forest; daily 10:00–18:00, children 5–14 €2.50.
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In detail
The notes behind this page
Porto Moniz is the village at Madeira’s north-west tip, best known for the natural pools, seawater basins in the black lava rock, lifeguarded all year with a children’s pool [1]. Around them are a small aquarium, a laurel-forest exhibition and a free second set of pools; a few kilometres east, Seixal has a black-sand beach [1][3][4][12]. It is about an hour’s drive from Funchal on a routing model [16], or a long bus ride [10][11], so it works best as a day trip.
What’s here
- The natural pools. €3 for anyone over 3, under-4s free, open all year [1][2]. The full guide, with tickets, hours and how to plan the day: Porto Moniz natural pools.
- Aquário da Madeira. More than 90 native species in 12 tanks, daily 10:00–18:00; normal ticket €7, junior (5–14) and senior €4 [3].
- The laurel-forest exhibition. The former Centro Ciência Viva, now Espaço Multiusos, with a permanent exhibition on the UNESCO-listed Laurisilva; daily 10:00–18:00 except 25 December, €3.50, ages 5–14 €2.50, under 5 free [4].
- Free swimming. The Cachalote pools next to the main ones are free access [1]. In Seixal, the black-sand beach by the harbour is free, with showers, a bar and kayak hire, and the Clube Naval pools are free 10:00–19:00 [1][12].
- Viewpoints and forest. The council lists the Ribeira da Janela and Véu da Noiva viewpoints among others [6]. Inland, Fanal’s centuries-old til trees are on the PR13 and PR14 trails [5][13]; we found no official information on road access or parking there.
Keep reading: 3 more sections
Getting there
- By car: about 50 km and an hour from Funchal on a free-flow routing model; real times are longer [16]. See Madeira car hire.
- By bus: two direct options are line 80 via Calheta (380/381) and line 139 via São Vicente (340/341) [10][11]. Line 80 leaves Funchal at 10:00 and arrives at about 13:05 Monday–Friday excluding public holidays, or 12:45 on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays; it returns at 16:00 [10]. Line 139 leaves Funchal at 09:00 and arrives at about 12:30; it returns at 17:00 Monday–Friday excluding public holidays, or 17:30 on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays [11]. The outbound journeys take about 2 h 45–3 h 30. Coming back on the same line gives 2 h 55 (line 80, Monday–Friday excluding public holidays) to 5 h (line 139, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays) in Porto Moniz. Neither runs on 25 December. For line 80 on 26 December and 1 January, confirm with SIGA: the 2023 Ponta do Sol locality PDF excludes those dates, while the April 2026 line PDF lists only 25 December. These are selected services, not a complete departure list; check SIGA before travel. PDFs checked 12 October 2026 [10][11][18]. More in Madeira without a car.
- As part of a trip: Porto Moniz is a day out in the 5- and 7-day plans in Madeira itinerary; the pools against the island’s beaches: best beaches in Madeira.
Weather
The station named Porto Moniz averaged about 590 mm of rain a year over 2014–2025, close to Funchal, with a daily mean of 17.8 °C in January and 23.5 °C in August [14][15]. The hills behind it are far wetter. Month by month: Madeira weather by month.
Open questions
Guides
Porto Moniz guides
Practical · 5 min read
Porto Moniz natural pools
tickets, hours, the free pools and a north-west day trip
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Porto Moniz: quick answers
How do you get to Porto Moniz from Funchal?
By car, about 50 km and an hour on a free-flow routing model. Two direct options in the SIGA PDFs checked on 12 October 2026 are line 80 via Calheta (Funchal 10:00, arriving 13:05 Monday–Friday excluding public holidays, or 12:45 on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays; return 16:00) and line 139 via São Vicente (Funchal 09:00, arriving 12:30; return 17:00 Monday–Friday excluding public holidays, or 17:30 on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays). Neither runs on 25 December. For line 80 on 26 December and 1 January, confirm with SIGA: the 2023 Ponta do Sol locality PDF excludes those dates, while the April 2026 line PDF lists only 25 December. These are selected services, not a complete departure list; passage times are approximate.
How much are the Porto Moniz natural pools?
€3 per entry for anyone over 3, free for children 3 and under, €1.50 with a student or over-65 card. That is the council's 2021 tariff; its page listed €3 when checked on 9 October 2026, so confirm on arrival. Open all year, 9:00–17:00 in winter and 9:00–19:00 in summer.
Is Porto Moniz worth visiting?
As a day trip, on what the sources describe: the pools are lifeguarded all year with a children's pool, the aquarium and the laurel-forest exhibition cover a rainy hour, and Seixal's black-sand beach is a short drive east. The north-west coast road is part of the trip. We have no first-hand verdict.
Is it cold or rainy in Porto Moniz?
Less than its reputation. The station named Porto Moniz averaged about 590 mm of rain a year in 2014–2025, close to Funchal's 520 mm, and a daily mean of 17.8 °C in January. The hills behind it and the rest of the north side are much wetter.