About the Yacht - Gavião

The “Desertas” islands (115º SE), are said to be the ancestral lair of dangerous pirates and is currently a nature reserve as the habitat for Monk Seals and a seabirds sanctuary. These islands have recently been officially acknowledged by the European Union as a Biodiversity Reserve of special scientific interest.

During the sailing cruise, you will have plenty of time to pause and appreciate the magnificent scenery as well as be surprised by some dolphins, whales and/or turtles.

We will go ashore to explore the “Deserta Grande” Island where you will be able to hike through a short path and enjoy a guided tour through the Nature Reserve base and a visit to the Nature wards dwelling. If weather conditions allow a swim on this Nature Reserve’s crystalline sea water may also be a nice way of resting from the sea trip. Lunch is on board.

The journey back to Madeira is after lunch and so a good and relaxing siesta (nap) can be taken or if you wish to keep awake you can ask the crew to provide you with some navigation hints or any other information you wish to know about Madeira archipelago. You can also try some whale or dolphin watching!

Seawatching from Madeira to Desertas may include several species like:

• Dolphins - Common dolphin, Bridled dolphin, Striped dolphin, Bottlenose Dolphin, Risso's Dolphin and Rough-toothed Dolphin

• Whales - Short-finned Pilot Whale, Sperm whale, Fin whale, Sei whale, Bryde's whale, Killer whale, False killer whale...
• Seabirds - Cory's Shearwater, Manx Shearwaters, Fea's Petrel, Bulwer's Petrel, Little Shearwater, Madeiran Storm Petrel, Zino's Petrel, Roseate Tern, Common Tern and Yellow-legged Gulls
• Logger-head Turtles
• Monk Seal

Schedule
Days of operation : Mondays & Thurdays
Summer (May to September) 09.30 am – 06.00 pm
Winter 09.30 am – 05.30 pm
Minimum of persons to sail the trip: 6 if booked in advance

Price: €80 per adult, includes lunch, drinks and a €2 tax for Madeira’s Natural Park. If you need a birdwatching guide it will be €50 more, per group.
Children between 4 & 12 years old 50% discount

Note: No transport is provided from your hotel to the marina. The boat is at Funchal marina, next to the main (cement) pier.

Friendly advice:
Take appropriate footwear for the boat – warm jumper – sun protector - hat - shorts and sandals as disembark on Deserta Grande can wet you until your knees

• Book Now!

• Terms and conditions!

Departs from Funchal's Marina in search for turtles, whales and dolphins, 3 miles from the coastal perimeter of Funchal and Câmara de Lobos. On the way back to the coastline, we will pause briefly to soak up the magnificence of the Cabo Girão, the second highest cliff in the World and the highest in Europe at 1,903 feet above sea level.
We will then continue our return journey towards Funchal. As the yacht weaves its way along the southern coastline you will be able to appreciate the awesome island and city views of Funchal.

Seawatching from Funchal to Cabo Girão may include several species like:

• Dolphins - Common dolphin, Bridled dolphin, Striped dolphin, Bottlenose Dolphin...

• Whales - Short-finned Pilot Whale, Sperm whale, Fin whale...
• Seabirds - Cory's Shearwater, Manx Shearwaters, Bulwers's Petrel, Roseate Tern, Common Tern and Yellow-legged Gulls
• Turtles

Schedule
Days of operation : Tue - Wed - Fri – Sat - Sun
Summer (May to September) 10.30am – 01.30pm
03.00pm – 06.00pm
Winter 10.30am – 01.00pm
03.00pm – 05.30pm
Minimum of persons to sail the trip: 2, if booked in advance

Price: €29 per adult. If you need a birdwatching guide, it will be 30€ more, per group.
Children between 4 & 12 years old 50% discount

Note: No transport is provided from your hotel to the marina. The boat is at Funchal marina, next to the main pier.

Friendly advice:
Take appropriate footwear – warm jumper – sun protector - hat

• Book Now!

• Terms and conditions!

Enjoy magical sunsets at sea. This evening excursion departs from the marina and follows the old route of the “Carreireiros” old passenger and cargo vessels. In the begging of the 20th century these boats regularly transported visitors to the south cost of the island. Join us at the end of the trip to toast memories of those bygone times.

Seawatching at sunset near Funchal's coast may include several species like:

• Dolphins - Common dolphin, Bridled dolphin, Striped dolphin...

• Whales - Short-finned Pilot Whale, Sperm whale, Fin whale...
• Seabirds - Cory's Shearwater, Manx Shearwaters, Bulwer's Petrel, Roseate Tern, Common Tern and Yellow-legged Gulls
• Turtles

Schedule
Days of operation : Tue - Fri
Summer 6.15pm – 7.45pm
Winter 05.45 pm – 07.00 pm
Minimum of persons to sail the trip: 2, if booked in advance

Price: €23,50 per adult. If you need a birdwatching guide it will be €20 more, per group.
Children between 4 & 12 years old 50% discount

Note: No transport is provided from your hotel to the marina. The boat is at Funchal marina, next to the main pier.

Friendly advice:
Take appropriate footwear – warm jumper – sun protector - hat

• Book Now!

• Terms and conditions!

E-mail us for availability and bookings - info@madeirabirds.com

Will you be in Madeira during June? So you can not miss the amazing fireworks show in Funchal harbor. Each Saturday of June, as part of the Atlantic Festival, there is a pyrotechnic show performed by a contestant country of the Atlantic Festival fireworks contest in Madeira.

So what we propose to you is to spend an hour and a half on board Gaviao enjoying the peaceful night atmosphere at Funchal bay and observing the fantastic fireworks floating in the air at the sound of music. We may assure you that the best place to assist to it is at sea, in Gaviao.

This is our program for the 9th, 16th, 23rd and 30th of June 2007:

9,30 pm - Boarding at Funchal marina and welcoming on board

9,35 pm - Sail along Funchal bay

10,30 pm - Musical Fireworks show at Funchal harbor

11,00 pm - Return to the marina

Come with us to experience one of these colorful nights!

Price per person : € 30,00
Includes: Sparkling wine, soft drinks and dry snacks
Limited capacity

This 5-day trip will give you the chance to observe almost all the seabirds that breed in the archipelago, as well as provide you with free time to be in close contact with Nature on board a 47.7-foot (14.5-m) yacht.

We leave from the Quinta do Lorde marina, located at the eastern tip of the island, in the village of Caniçal, late Monday afternoon, so that we arrive at Selvagem Grande at lunch time on the following day. This first leg of the trip will take about 20 hours, depending on the winds and conditions at sea. This will be an opportunity for you to see how a sail boat is navigated.

During the first hours of the trip, take advantage of the opportunity to enjoy the landscape of Madeira, as seen from the sea. With a bit of luck, you might see some dolphins, and who knows?, even whales.

The low, sweeping flights of Cory's shearwaters will be a constant scene, as well as the visit of some Bulwer's petrels. Up until nightfall, there may even appear petrels (Pterodromas), Manx shearwaters and Madeiran Storm-petrels.

Following a good dinner to regain the energy spent in the first hours of the journey, you will need to rest because the second day holds some surprises for you.

In the morning, you will already be able to make out the outline of Selvagem Grande, the flocks of Cory's shearwaters, which become more and more frequent, and the White-faced Storm-petrels which appear to crash into the waves.

In the distance, Selvagem Grande appears to be a lifeless, abandoned rock in the middle of the ocean, but as the wind pushes the boat closer, the natural treasures are revealed and the island comes to life.

After lunch, we disembark and one of the guards of the Madeira Nature Park will give a guided tour of the island, where you will find thousands of Cory's shearwater nests, the rock walls where the little shearwaters, Bulwer's petrels, and Madeiran Storm-petrels breed, and on the top of the island, the holes where the silent White-faced Storm-petrels hide.

The Berthelot's pipits accompany you on your voyage of discovery and sometimes you will encounter other Passeriformes that use this island to rest after many miles of flight.

Under the rocks you will find the little geckos and the lizards, who scamper away as soon as they're uncovered.

At dusk, delight yourself with the sunset and the return of the Cory's shearwaters to their colony, turning the sky a different shade of colour and making their distinct call.

For Wednesday, the sea conditions permitting, we have scheduled a visit to Selvagem Pequena, which lies about 11 miles away. Given the fact that the restricted access to this island is controlled, our reconnaissance trip will be entirely by sea.

On the morning of the fourth day, you can use the opportunity to dive in the limpid waters and observe the rich diversity of fish that gather at shallow depths. After lunch, the boat will weigh anchor for a reconnaissance visit around Selvagem Grande and leave for Madeira at the end of the afternoon.

Most of the return voyage will be made during the night, with arrival in Madeira scheduled for the early afternoon of Friday. As we pass close to the Ilhas Desertas, you will have another opportunity to observe the Zino's/ Fea's petrels and the other seabirds that breed on those islands.

Price per person: 1,150 €

Just once a year... Make your reservation for 2007!

This programme lasts 2 days and offers you the opportunity of being in touch with Nature on board an excellent sail boat, and observing the rich marine avifauna of the archipelago of Madeira, the Zino/Fea's Petrel, in particular. On this tour, you will also get a close-up look at Ilhas Desertas and Porto Santo.

The departure from the Quinta do Lorde marina, next to the village of Caniçal, is at the end of the day. We will head for the Desertas, islands that shelter important colonies of seabirds, where about 1000 pairs of Madeiran storm-petrels breed. During the first hours of the voyage, you can take delight in the magnificent landscapes and the fantastic sensation of sailing on the wind, as you look for seabirds.

This crossing is ideal for observing the greater part of the seabirds found in our waters, with particular importance given to the Band-rumped Storm-petrel (Oceanodroma castro), the Little Shearwater (Puffinus assimilis baroli) and Cory's Shearwater (Calonectris diomedea borealis).

We will spend the night in the bay at Deserta Grande, where you can go to sleep to the song of the Cory's shearwater and the Madeiran Storm-petrel, who break the silence of the night when they return to their colonies.

On the morning of the following day, before sailing to Porto Santo, the boat will sail around the Desertas on the south side, passing close to Bugio, the only European breeding site of Fea's petrel (Pterodroma feae). The voyage to Porto Santo will take place during the daytime and take about 7 hours, depending on the number and diversity of birds observed, the detours needed to draw close to them, and the meteorological conditions.

The second night will be at the Porto Santo marina and dinner will be served on the boat. Following dinner, we can take the opportunity to go for a walk and learn some of the customs of the island.

On the following morning, before the mooring lines are untied, we will walk along the beach to observe the waders and other water fowl that regularly visit Porto Santo.

We will return to Madeira after lunch, sailing around the north side of Porto Santo, giving us a greater chance of seeing different species of seabirds. The crossing to Madeira will take a little more than 5 hours, with arrival at the marina scheduled for nightfall.

Price per person: 400€

Just twice a year... book now for 2007!