IFCN's two car parks at the summit, the official 2026 rates, and what they mean when your car stays there all day. We advise against driving up for sunrise.
The forest road from Eira do Serrado to Pico do Areeiro is still closed (IFCN). Drive up on the ER202 via Poiso.
We advise against it. The car park at the summit is small and is full very early, and you can't park at the Radar roundabout. The road is public but steep and narrow, can be icy in winter, and is best not driven at night; it takes about 30 minutes from Funchal.
Take a taxi (Funchal → Pico do Areeiro about €35 per car, indicative; Táxis Madeira +351 291 764 476) or a transfer instead, or leave your car at Achada do Teixeira, where PR1 ends, and take a taxi up from there (Táxis Santana +351 291 572 540). Every option is in the sunrise transport guide.
There are two IFCN car parks, both with meters. The upper car park by the viewpoint, café and shop costs €4 an hour, up to €20 a day. The lower car park, on the access road below the summit, costs €2 an hour, up to €5 a day. At both the first 30 minutes are free, and you can pay by the hour or for the whole day.
| Car park | Per hour | First 30 minutes | Daily maximum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper (Miradouro do Pico do Areeiro) | €4.00 | free | €20 |
| Lower (on the access road) | €2.00 | free | €5 |
The rates are set in Portaria 48/2026 (Annex II, point 6), which already fixes the next years: the upper car park goes to €4.25 an hour in 2027, €4.50 in 2028 and €5.00 in 2029; the lower one to €2.25, €2.35 and €2.50.
Yes. The residents' exemption in Portaria 48/2026 covers the trail fees and four IFCN visits (the Casa das Tradições Madeirenses, the Botanical Garden, the Quinta do Santo da Serra and the Ribeiro Frio fish farm), not the car parks. Parking is charged to visitors and Madeirans alike.
The lower one, or none at all. PR1 is one-way: you finish at Achada do Teixeira, far from your car, and fetch it hours later. A full day costs €20 in the upper car park and €5 in the lower one, so €15 less per car. The upper car park reaches its €20 cap after about five and a half hours, the lower one its €5 cap after about three.
Walk up the access road, or take Horários do Funchal's summit shuttle. Its Parque Pico do Areeiro stop is at the lower car park, and it runs to the roundabout by the radar at the top every 15 minutes, 06:40–12:15 and 14:10–18:00. It costs €1.20 a trip, paid on board, and only leaves with at least 4 passengers.
The first trip is at 06:40, which is too tight for sunrise in June and July. The sunrise transport guide has the times.
Yes: park where you finish. Leave the car at Achada do Teixeira, where PR1 ends (we found no official parking fee there), and take a taxi to Pico do Areeiro for your slot: Táxis Santana, +351 291 572 540, is the nearest rank. When you come down, your car is waiting. Without a car, the Horários do Funchal bus reaches the top at 06:45 and 14:15 for €3.
All the ways back from Achada are in getting back from PR1.
Both car parks fill before sunrise. Cars then park along the access road, and in past years tour buses and even emergency vehicles were blocked on the bends. Don't park on the yellow lines on the bends, where cars can be towed, or on the road to the radar station: in 2022 about 15 spaces there were reserved for tour buses, vans and taxis. If you drive anyway, arrive at least an hour before sunrise, or come mid-morning, after the sunrise crowd has gone.
Is the summit clear right now? Pico do Areeiro now: webcams and weather.
Portaria 48/2026 · Horários do Funchal · DN 28.10.2024 · DN 28.10.2024 (rent-a-car) · DN 29.09.2022 · DN 27.06.2024 · JM