Why go
Knowing the groups prevents a misleading “island-hopping” plan. Madeira holds Funchal, the mountain ridge and most settled valleys. Porto Santo is the clear choice for a long sandy shore. The Desertas and Selvagens are best understood as remote parts of the wider archipelago, not ordinary town stops.
The full story
The main island of Madeira rises steeply from the sea and carries the great majority of the archipelago’s settlement. Its centre forms a high ridge, with cliffs and ravines breaking up the coast. Porto Santo sits apart to the northeast and presents a striking change in scale and terrain. Small islets surround both inhabited islands, but their names on a map do not mean they are independent visitor bases. The Desertas group includes Deserta Grande, Bugio and Ilhéu Chão; the Selvagens lie much farther south. Both groups are uninhabited. Their value in understanding Madeira is geographic and ecological: they show that the region is a scattered Atlantic archipelago rather than one island with a few offshore rocks. For an ordinary trip, choose between Madeira’s towns and mountains and Porto Santo’s beach before treating the distant island groups as possible additions.
Useful to know
- Check current transport and access arrangements before planning any trip beyond Madeira and Porto Santo.