Trail of Balcoes is located in the central part of Madeira island and features an extremely scenic viewpoint at the endpoint of this hike. I guess Balcoes means like a balcony because the viewpoint does look like a big balcony with an insane view.
The trail is pretty short, totaling 3 kilometers to the point and back, and doesn't have any altitude changes which makes it easy and accessible to pretty much anyone to complete. Just a couple of stairs at the start of the trail.
The trail is inside a lush green forest and that looks quite gorgeous.
You also walk through the cliff. It looks like the path is carved through a huge rock. At least I think it is, the straight cut doesn't look natural but is cool!
When you soon reach the opening from the forest, you have arrived at the Balcoes. The views that appear are absolutely amazing.
Keep in mind that this place can often be inside the clouds and when this is the case then you have 0 views of the place. If you want to visit it then make sure that the weather is clear or the cloud are a higher layer cloud at least.
There is a boulder that is climbable to get a bit higher. There you can also have an overview of the Balcoes.
Since the trail is easy and accessible for anyone. Expect people.
Having spent there about 20 or so minutes, it was time to start heading back. Here are a couple more photos of the trail.
This trail is well worth doing for its great views and the short time it requires to complete. Highly recommended by me! If you love birdwatching then you are in luck too because there are many different species roaming around in this location.
