Situated within the European space, Madeira’s natural heritage has been internationally recognised for its extraordinary wealth, diversity and state of conservation. In December 1999, it was classified by UNESCO as world natural heritage, a unique award in Portugal, and declared to be the biocultural heritage of all humanity.

Don’t miss the chance to appreciate and enjoy this forest, which dates back to the Earth’s Tertiary Era and survived after the last glacial period only in the geographical area of Macaronesia, in other words the archipelagos of Madeira, the Azores, the Canaries and Cape Verde. Madeira has the largest forest of this type, covering an area of roughly 22 thousand hectares and also possessing the greatest variety of fauna and flora, with some rare specimens, as is the case with the Madeiran Orchid, Dactylorhiza foliosa, which is unique in the world.

Marvel at the large trees from the Lauraceae family - the til, the laurel tree or the vinhático - and discover shrubs, ferns, mosses, lichens and other smaller plants that are characteristic of the Laurissilva forest.

At the level of fauna, attention is drawn to the wood pigeon - the emblematic bird of the Laurissilva forest and the symbol of the Madeira Natural Park.

You’ll certainly not want to miss the opportunity of discovering and getting to know a real living relict, a genuine laboratory for botany lovers and scholars!