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Vereda do Areeiro vs Vereda do Pico Ruivo

Two of Madeira's hiking trails side by side: distance, difficulty, ascent, duration and booking. Live 0 to 100 scores for each are in the app.

Quick take: Vereda do Pico Ruivo is the shorter walk; Vereda do Pico Ruivo has less climbing.

Which one is harder?

Both are graded hard, so the grade alone will not separate them. Vereda do Areeiro climbs 131 m more, 587 m against 456 m. Vereda do Areeiro is the longer walk too, 6.1 km against 5.6 km.

How long does each take?

Allow about 3h 30m for Vereda do Areeiro and about 1h 30m for Vereda do Pico Ruivo, one way and at a walking pace. That is roughly 2 hours more for Vereda do Areeiro, before any stops. Vereda do Pico Ruivo is an out-and-back, so the return doubles the time on the ground; the other is not.

Do you need to book?

Both are regulated IFCN trails, so both need a ticket, EUR 10.50 and EUR 4.50, bought through the SIMplifica portal.

Which one should you pick?

Vereda do Areeiro

Choose Vereda do Areeiro if you are here for Tunnel, High ridge, Viewpoint.

Vereda do Pico Ruivo

Choose Vereda do Pico Ruivo if you are here for Out and back, Viewpoint, Summit, or if you want the shorter day, or if you would rather not climb.

Which of the two is better on a given morning is a different question, and the numbers above cannot answer it: cloud, wind and closures change hourly and they change differently on the north and south coasts. Levadas scores both live and tells you which to drive to today.

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