Beach in Porto Santo
Porto Santo beach
About 9 km of golden sand and calm water on Porto Santo's south coast. Fontinha, Cabeço da Ponta and Ribeiro Salgado have Blue Flags and designated lifeguarded seasons through 31 October 2026.
- Address
- South coast, Porto Santo (Fontinha, Cabeço da Ponta, Ribeiro Salgado and other stretches)
Great with kids
Long sandy beach the tourist board describes as calm; still open sea, so use the lifeguarded stretches; lifeguarded stretches have the longest season in the archipelago (Visit Madeira; JORAM 2026). Ferry or flight from Madeira.
The notes
What the sources say (research)
- About 9 km of golden sand with “calm, crystalline waters”; the tourist board splits it into named stretches from Fontinha by the old pier in Vila Baleira to Calheta at the western end; Salemas and Cotrim, on the same tourist-board page, are separate coves elsewhere on the island. [visitmadeira.com, 10 Oct 2026]
- Blue Flag 2026 at Fontinha, Cabeço da Ponta and Ribeiro Salgado. [ABAE 2026]
- Lifeguarded bathing seasons in 2026: Cabeço da Ponta and Fontinha 15 May to 31 October, Ribeiro Salgado 1 May to 31 October. The other named stretches are official bathing waters from 1 June to 30 September but are not designated as lifeguarded beaches. [JORAM Portaria 206/2026]
- Getting there: ferry or flight from Madeira; see Madeira to Porto Santo and the Porto Santo page.
How it compares with Madeira’s few sandy beaches: best beaches in Madeira.