The Fanal forest is one of Madeira's most precious spots. This is where you find the endemic tree, Laurisilva, which used to cover the entire island. It was actually because of this tree that Madeira is named Madeira. Because Madeira means "wood".

Most people come to Fanal for a short walk, but you have a number of hikes that start here where the best one is Levada dos Cedros.

We don't come here to hike though. We come to picnic and relax, so we bring a rug, snacks and a tree to sit under. We've even set up camp here although we later found out it's illegal to stay overnight here. If you intend on doing this, you should find a more secluded spot than the one we had. You can see the video here and also get an idea of how wonderful this place is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JqVOC1HNE4