Part of our complete guide: Car hire and getting there
The crossing
The operator is Porto Santo Line with the Lobo Marinho. It runs from Funchal and takes around two and a half hours for the roughly 70 kilometres, about 38 nautical miles. The route crosses open Atlantic; in wind the crossing is noticeable. If you are prone to seasickness, plan for it — the return leg on the same day is rarely better.
A car is not needed. Porto Santo is eleven kilometres long, and the beach lies along one stretch of it.
Day trip or overnight
As a day trip the standard timetable — out at 08:00, back at 18:00 — leaves around seven hours on the island. The timetable changes with the season and is worth checking before booking. That covers the beach and Vila Baleira, and not much more. To see the island itself — the viewpoint hills in the north, the Ilhéu offshore — stay overnight.
Why it looks different
Porto Santo is geologically older and far flatter than Madeira. There is no laurel forest, little water and no levadas. What there is, is one continuous pale sand beach along the entire south side — nothing on Madeira itself compares, where the beaches are shingle or built up artificially.
Anyone travelling to Madeira expecting a sandy beach either meant Porto Santo or has booked a disappointment.
