Portela Viewpoint

The view is the reason to stop. From the crossing the land falls away towards Porto da Cruz and the north coast, and the road you are about to drive is laid out below you. Most people come up from Machico on secondary roads and carry on down the other side.

The other thing you notice is the lizards. They are everywhere around the viewpoint and they are used to people — sit still and they come to you.

The stop also works as a trailhead. Waymarked routes including PR5 and GR1 run past here, and the parking is at the start of them, so the same lay-by serves a photo stop and the beginning of a walk.

• No toilets. There are none at the viewpoint and none in the surrounding area, so deal with that before you drive up.
• Drinking water. A free water point stands about 100 m from the viewpoint.
• Tour shuttles stop here. Tourist buses pull in, so a quiet viewpoint can fill up without warning.
• Information boards. Two boards stand at the viewpoint — read them before you take a trail.
• Make it a crossing. Come up from Machico on the secondary roads and go down to Porto da Cruz rather than turning back.

Most people drive. The ER108 climbs to Portela from Machico and continues down the far side to Porto da Cruz, so the viewpoint is a stop on a crossing rather than a dead end. There is no walk in: the car park sits about 80 m from the viewpoint, and the marked trails start from the same place. The bus stop named Portela is about 90 m away, on the road itself.

Better: clear weather, when the view carries all the way down to Porto da Cruz and the north coast.

Avoid: the moments when tour shuttles pull in, since the viewpoint is quiet the rest of the time.

Portela sits on the crossing between the two coasts, and cloud gathers on the north side. On a grey day there is nothing to see from here.