Funchal Ecological Park

Peacocks wander loose across the grounds, and with luck one crosses the path in front of you. The air smells of flowers. Routes run out in several directions from the reception centre and each one ends at something worth the walk — a viewpoint over the ocean with the town spread out under the mountains, or a lower lookout such as Pico Alto. They stay quiet; other walkers pass, but whole stretches come with nobody on them at all. Cloud moves along the slope and through the valley below, and it can break open into a full rainbow while you stand there watching it.

• Toilets: none are mapped within 800 m of the park — sort that out before you set off.
• Café: a hut with a café stands by the reception centre, at the foot of the routes, and it is the obvious stop on the way up or on the way back.
• Cloud: the slopes spend time inside cloud and the viewpoints go white with it; a clear day here and a grey one are two different visits.
• The map: the routes are laid out on a map on the reception centre wall, and the staff there will talk you through it.
• Children: the park suits them, with peacocks and donkeys about the grounds and the café to fall back on.

Everything begins at the reception centre, and from there it is all on foot. Driving up is the straightforward option: a free car park sits about 25 m away, with a second about 250 m off. A taxi to the reception centre is no trouble either, and the bus stop Ribeira das Cales-Zona 22 is about 80 m away, served from central Funchal. Go into the centre before you start walking — the routes are set out on a map on the wall, and the staff will show you which ones go where. The café hut is at the bottom of the paths, so you pass it on the way up and again on the way down.

Best: a clear day, when the whole point of the park is in view — the ocean on one side and Funchal laid out under the mountains on the other.

Avoid: low cloud and rain, unless walking alone is enough for you.

Cloud drifts along these slopes and closes the viewpoints one after another, and the routes that pay off best are the ones that end at a view. The park keeps the same hours every day of the week, so no day is better than another for finding it open.