Prainha do Caniçal

Tucked away in Caniçal like a treasure you only share with your coolest friends, Prainha is a volcanic-sand beach that breaks all the Madeira beach stereotypes (we're looking at you, rocky shores).

Located near the dramatic Ponta de São Lourenço, this copper-toned sandy gem serves serious desert-island energy. While the rest of Madeira is lush and green, Prainha flips the script with warm yellows and browns straight out of a spaghetti western. Yeehaw, beach edition!

Add in the Dunas da Piedade—fossil-rich limestone dunes that sound like a geology class but look like Insta gold—and you’ve got a spot that’s as brainy as it is beachy.

And nope, it’s not just wild beauty: you get showers, loos, food, loungers, umbrellas, and even parking. Basically, nature did the hard part and humans just sprinkled in the convenience.

Pro tip? After your swim, stroll over to Ponta de São Lourenço. It's a nature reserve that stretches 9 km like Madeira’s runway model in the wind.

In short? Prainha is copper, cozy, and completely crush-worthy. Don’t sleep on it.