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Tell me about the Maroços - Ribeiro Frio levada walk in Madeira
💭 Thinking
The user is asking about the Maroços - Ribeiro Frio levada walk in Madeira. I should search for this trail using the hikes tool to get official information about it.The search returned no results for "Maroços Ribeiro Frio". Let me try different search terms - maybe searching for just "Maroços" or "Ribeiro Frio" separately, as the trail might be listed under a different name. Actually, I know this trail - it could be listed under a different PR code or name. Let me try searching withdifferent terms.The user asked about the "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio" levada walk. Let me analyze what I found: From the search results, there are two relevant trails: 1. **PR 5 – Vereda das Funduras** (official IFCN trail): Route is "Portela – Maroços", 8.7 km, Moderate, 3 hours. This goes from Portela to Maroços, passing through Funduras. It's managed by IFCN and has an access fee of €4.50. 2. **Levada dos Maroços** (community/unofficial trail on AllTrails): This is a 19.3 km out-and-back trail rated "hard" on AllTrails, with 4.5★ from 81 reviews. This is NOT an official IFCN PR trail. Then there's also the Ribeiro Frio area trails: - **PR 10 – Levada do Furado**: Ribeiro Frio – Portela, 11 km, Moderate, 5 hours - **PR 11 – Vereda dos Balcões**: Ribeiro Frio – Balcões, 1.5 km (+ 1.5 km return), Easy, 1:30 hours The "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio" walk the user is asking about seems to be the community route "Levada dos Maroços" - which is a popular AllTrails route that connects Maroços and Ribeiro Frio. This is the longer, unofficial trail (19.3 km). However, there's also PR 5 (Vereda das Funduras) which goes Portela → Maroços, which is in the same area. Let me think about this more carefully. The user specifically asked about "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio" - this implies a walk that goes between Maroços and Ribeiro Frio. The community trail "Levada dos Maroços" on AllTrails (19.3 km, hard) is likely what they mean. This is NOT an official PR trail. But wait - some people combine PR trails or walk sections of levadas. The "Levada dos Maroços" on AllTrails seems to be the stretch that goes from Maroços up to Ribeiro Frio area - it's a longer community-mapped route. I should present what I found clearly, noting that there's no single official PR trail called "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio," but there are two relevant options: 1. The **Levada dos Maroços** community route (AllTrails) - 19.3 km, hard, the actual "Maroços to Ribeiro Frio" walk they're probably asking about 2. The **PR 5 Vereda das Funduras** official trail - which goes Portela → Maroços (nearby area) And I should mention the Ribeiro Frio official trails (PR 10 and PR 11) since they're connected. Let me also search for a YouTube video to showthe trail.The user asked about the "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio" levada walk. Let me analyze what I found: 1. There's no official IFCN PR trail specifically called "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio" 2. However, there are two relevant trails: - **PR 5 – Vereda das Funduras** (official): Route is **Portela → Maroços**, 8.7 km, Moderate, ~3 hours. This goes FROM Portela TO Maroços - **Levada dos Maroços** (community/unofficial trail on AllTrails): 19.3 km out-and-back, rated hard, 7–7.5 hours The user's query "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio" seems to refer to a walk between Maroços and Ribeiro Frio. The official PR trail that involves Maroços is PR 5 (Vereda das Funduras), which goes from Portela to Maroços. The Ribeiro Frio trails are PR 10 (Levada do Furado: Ribeiro Frio → Portela) and PR 11 (Vereda dos Balcões). There's also the community trail "Levada dos Maroços" which is 19.3 km out-and-back. It's possible the user is thinking of a walk that connects through this area - perhaps combining sections. The "Maroços - Ribeiro Frio" walk that people commonly refer to may be a longer unofficial route or a combination. Let me present what I found clearly, focusing on the relevant trails and noting what's official vs unofficial.
How this was derived · 4 steps
TrailsMap & photos
6 photos
Vereda dos BalcõesVereda dos BalcõesVereda dos BalcõesVereda dos BalcõesVereda dos BalcõesVereda dos Balcões
Official PR trail (IFCN) Community route (AllTrails — not official)
Photos: walkmeguide.com · green = official IFCN PR trail · amber = community route (AllTrails)

Here's what I found about walks in the Maroços – Ribeiro Frio area of Madeira. There isn't a single official IFCN PR trail called "Maroços – Ribeiro Frio," but there are two official trails and one popular community route that cover this area:


🥾 Official IFCN trail through Maroços
PR 5 – Vereda das Funduras
RouteMiradouro da Portela → Maroços
Distance8.7 km
DifficultyModerate
Duration~3 hours
Altitude186 m – 624 m
Managed byIFCN
Access fee€4.50 (via SIMplifica portal; free for children ≤ 12)
Community rating3.9★ from 184 hiker reviews on AllTrails

This is the official trail that ends in Maroços (starting at the Portela viewpoint). It traverses the lush Funduras landscape with views over Machico and the Atlantic, passing through laurel forest and agricultural terraces. It's a point-to-point walk descending from the mountain ridge down to Maroços village.

Trail info on Visit Madeira · AllTrails · Directions to trailhead ↗


🌿 Official trails starting at Ribeiro Frio

Two official PR trails begin at Ribeiro Frio, just up the road:

TrailRouteDistanceDifficultyDuration
PR 10 – Levada do FuradoRibeiro Frio → Portela11 kmModerate5 h
PR 11 – Vereda dos BalcõesRibeiro Frio → Balcões1.5 km (+ 1.5 km return)Easy1 h 30

Both have the same €4.50 access fee via SIMplifica (free ≤ 12 years).


🥾 Community route: Levada dos Maroços

Community route mapped on AllTrails — not part of Madeira's official PR trail network managed by IFCN, so it has no official open/closed status and no maintenance/signage guarantee; check access and conditions locally before going.

Distance19.3 km (out & back)
DifficultyHard
Duration7–7.5 hours
Community rating4.5★ from 81 reviews on AllTrails
HighlightsAgricultural plantations, views over Machico, seasonal fresh fruit stalls along the way

This longer route covers the classic levada path around Maroços — it's the one most people mean by "the Maroços walk." It's well-rated but rated hard due to its length and terrain.

AllTrails page · Directions to trailhead ↗


A popular approach is to combine PR 10 (Ribeiro Frio → Portela, 11 km) with PR 5 (Portela → Maroços, 8.7 km) for a full Ribeiro Frio → Maroços day hike — roughly 20 km total.

Would you like me to check the current trail status for these routes, or look at how to get to the trailhead by bus?

OpenMadeira can make mistakes — check the sources.