Poças do Governador

Natural pools of Funchal, neat the sea path. It has a door (you have to pay attention to see it) and take care when you go down. You have 2 paths, pn the right (I put video at the end of the path) and at the right (the most common). You can see the Peatana Grand Hotel logo from here.

Loved swimming here! So so beautiful and worth the effort but please be careful! Also please take any rubbish with you, it’s a beautiful area that a lot of the locals love - don’t make them regret sharing it with us <3

I wanted to give some tips for how to get down the ocean pool on the right hand side since I spent 20 minutes trying to figure it out before managing to watch a local get down.

From the top of the trail there are some steps, to the right of the end of the steps there are some more stairs if you wish to avoid the landslide looking path. Follow the steps down and go to the left (there should be some large footprint sized holes going down to the next level) from there go left again you should end up at a flat ish area with a bush and lots of rounded cacti - from here go right, through a tiny barely visible path with cacti on both sides. You will have to go over a rock in the middle of this path, from here you should end up at the edge of the rocks from here you can go down between some rocks and you should be able to self-navigate the rest of the rocks from here to the water

To get in I used a slope like outcropping in the rock which allowed an easy and gentle entrance to the water - but it is a little difficult on the way out. Be aware of a current in the water from the waves, the waves can be very calm one minute and aggressive the next so be aware and careful! I tried to go at mid-low tide. I would say if you’re not a local don’t swim alone as it can be difficult to get out because of the waves and slippiness - I recommend having sandals (or staying in your trainers) to traverse the rocks on the way to the water and then taking off your shoes before you try to get in as the shoes make it slippier and more dangerous

Definitely wear trainers or a walking shoes to get down - it required a lot of holding onto rocks for me too but I managed it with a backpack so definitely ok for someone who doesn’t do loads of exercise but can comfortably walk up a hill and bend enough to help yourself up and down steep rocks

The best (and free) place for a dip. We stayed in a hotel nearby and went here a few times. There is a way down, but it requires some balance and steady feet.
Dont mind the lizards on the way down or the crabs while swimming. 😁

A place worth visiting, somewhat similar to Porto, but it is smaller and not famous. The road down is bumpy, but the swimming was very beautiful. There are not many people where you can enjoy swimming there.

One of the hidden gems of Funchal that can be easily missed. You can see the cliffs from above the promenade walk, but you can go through the small gate and follow the path down to the ocean. Spend a few minutes listening to the waves smashing into the cliffs.