PR 1.2 Vereda do Pico Ruivo

We get to a high point by car, a nice restaurant available. Parking as well. The trail was about 3km long, going up to Pico Ruivo, amazing views, totally worth it. The trail is not that hard, however there are lots of stairs. :))

Amazing hike. Was able to do this as a complete novice, its hard in the end but definitely doable with enough perseverance. Especially nice during sunrise. Only negative thing is how busy it is

I came here in the afternoon and walked the trail. There was plenty of parking spaces. A lot of taxi drivers also just sitting around and waiting for people. This is a walk up and walk back down. It is not a circle loop.
On my way up, it was raining very cloudy and dark. When I got up there, the sun was shining!! I had beautiful views.
When you return back to the parking lot you can go to the restaurant. The restaurant is a little bit pricey, but that is because you are in a location like this!
Don’t be scared to the hike !

I didn’t have time to do the Pico to Pico hike so this one was perfect. It’s only a “hike” at the end, the last 1KM or so. The majority of it is along a waking path, there’s some elevation but it’s easy. The views are incredible at the summit, especially for the ease of the trail. I highly recommend this if you’re in Madeira and either don’t have time for Pico to Pico or want an easier way up.

Absolutely stunning. Wear decent footwear as it can be slippery as there is ice and frost on the stones. Wish I had found my walking poles when packing! Head torch as well for the caves, though a phone does the trick. We did the sunrise walk which I highly recommend.

If you come from pico de arieiro, parking will be full after 06:45.

We parked twice at 6:20 with no problem.

Otherwise, you'll have to hike a little longer.

Check the webcam!! You can also see time-lapse from the days before, just to see how the weather works.

Really amazing hike. Definitely worth it. If you could do only one hike. I would definitely recommend this.
Requires a bit of stamina. And definitely bring a wind breaker jacket. Can get so windy at the top. Good shoes are required. And bring water and some energy bars to get that extra push. Will definitely come in handy.
If you can try to make it for the sunrise. The view is spectacular.

Great hike. The parking is easy to get to but I imagine it fills up quickly in summer. It took us around 3.5 hours (there and back), and was relatively easy except for a lot of steps at the end. It was a beautiful sunny day in December but quite windy at different points.

Easy hike to get to the viewpoint. Weather can be quite unpredictable so you might have to try a few times to get clear weather and views. Unfortunately it was cloudy and rainy when we went. It’s also extremely busy near the top of the trail.

Coffee shop and washrooms at the parking lot.

Definitely appropriate footwear is required, it gets warmer when you start walking but still even with the sun it is chilly so make sure you do have appropriate clothes with you too. It can be challenging in places as it gets very steep, tunnels can be wet and have no lights but if you have the phone flashlight, it should be ok. Take 50cents for the toilets 🤭 the views are just amazing

Great trail, breath-taking landscapes if you're up for a challenge. Can be done in 3 hours one way with few breaks. The elevation gain on this trail makes it challenging. Very safe trail thanks to all the hard work the locals have put in with steps and handrails

It's a moderate hike, easier than Vereda do Pico do Areeiro, yet I recommend going with hiking boots, the view at the top is astounding 😍

Breathtaking views! Hike above the clouds ⛅. Challenging at times. It is helpful to have hiking poles.

Arrived at 7 in the morning on the parking spot. Then it was a 45 min walk to the top, just in time to see the sunrise! It was beautiful 😍. Make sure you bring warm clothes.

The hike itself isn’t that hard. The last 1,1 km is the part that is steep. The views the hike provides are outstanding. We do recommend to do the hike on a bright day, otherwise you aren’t able to see the wonderful glowing landscape

After driving 40 minutes we srtive to the oarking lot around 1 pm, lucky we found one spot, is one of the easy hiking that takes around 1.30 hr one way, is narrow and sometimes you need to wait, there are some climbing and need to be in good shape,some parts are very Icy you need to watch your steps, there are some stations were you can rest, from begining to the end if thete is clear sky you get some amazing views, in some places you above the clouds, way back get quickly cloudy and hard to see, we made to the top,recomended go early after 2 or 3 you may not able to see much

Parked near the hotel at start point of PR1.2. Nice beer and toilet break after 3hr trip back.
Great scene and clouds around.

Arrive early to secure a car parking space in the car park. Beautiful hike. The clouds roll in in the afternoon but it's very clear in the mornings. Not too strenuous and well marked trail.

Parking lot is at the beginning of the track, then the path is around 3km to the peak of the Pico Ruivo. We have been there afternoon which had big advantage that only several groups have been there. We had great sunny weather above the clouds, so we could walk mostly just in shirts.

The trail is not very difficult, bu the difficulty was high stairs, and a lot of them. So if someone has a problem with knees, it may hurt, the route from Ruivo to Areiro was hard because of having to Climb all those stairs again. The trail is well prepared, like a stoje route.
If anybody is affraid of hights or spaces, it will be a problem as well, because the route is quite narrow, many times you are standing over the edge.