Madeira Sunset Sailing: Swim, Snorkel & Relax At Sea

Friendly staff and overall a very nice experience. The boat did go out quite far from Funchal. Sunset was very nice, great swimming in a stunning environment. Staff very helpful.

Seeing the island was nice but we were let down with the whole experience. We thought there was going to be a jazz saxophone player based on previous pictures and is a main reason I booked the experience and there was none. Additionally, we were offer a drink to “try” which we did, but then were later charged for the drink so we thought it was a little misleading. There was very minimal interaction with the crew because on this particular trip, they had their friends on the boat as well and they paid more attention interacting with their own friends than any of the actual guests. In fact, we were even late leaving because we had to wait for their friends to arrive. During the swim, they didn’t really give us any extra detail or timeline so we opted to not enter the water. Later, we found out that it was pretty warm and that they had life vests for us to use if needed, but at that point, it was too late: it would have been nice to know beforehand. Next time, I would opt for a differ t boat and different experience.

Very nice captain and good service. Nice swimming and view of the eland from the sea side. When they sea a whale or dolphin they stop and let you enjoy.

The BEST experience, if you enjoy sailing boats 🙂. Unlike the big, cold (and sometimes crowded) catamarans, this wooden traditional portughese sailing boat is a delight on the ocean waves ⛵️🌊. The crew is equally delightful - helpful and professional but also kind hearted and a great source of local knowledge - so we would definitely do this again! We'll certainly recommend this trip to all of our friends.

Superb experience with a lovely and fun crew. Made our final day special with great music onboard a cozy ship watching the sunset. Strongly recommend for everyone looking for an amazing evening at sea.

What a FANTASTIC, MAGICAL end to a day! Our group consist of a couple and 2 friends ages 27-57 and we can't praise this trip enough. From emailing the staff to enquire about our meet up point and them ringing within minutes to ensure we knew where we were going, to the staff on board who could not do enough for us to have the most enjoyable time possible. The live music was perfectly fitting for the beauty that was around us whilst enjoying a cocktail or two from the bar. We had use of snorkels and a paddle board during the swim stop and to top it off we ended the trip by seeing lots of exciting dolphins putting a display on for us & of course the sunset! Don't hesitate just book it. You will not regret it. Thank you ventura and your amazing staff! ❤️🐬

The driver, Fernando, dropping us off and picking us up gets a 5 star. He knew the trail and was very personable. I would simply add that PR3 is a trail that is all roots and stones, so bear that in mind when booking.

Amazing day en the crew is lovely as wel! We spotted some pilot whales so our day couldn’t be any better! Would highly recommend this tour and sail boat.

The last day of our holiday was made magical by this fabulous boat trip, the small sailing boat was so much better than the larger catamaran cruises going out. The trip was utter heaven, getting up close to dolphins and whales and later secluded beaches for a swim

When we took the trip we sighted a group of pilot whales. The captain managed to move the boat close to a distance of just around 2 meters from them without disturbing them. It was amazing! I think this experience is rather rare, but besides the boat trip with this very nice crew was also worthwhile.

Brilliant 3 hour trip on a beautiful sailing boat, first out to see dolphins and then back along the coast. Our guide Anna and captain Alex were excellent- knowledgeable and passionate about their jobs and the island.

Thank you guys for a great experience. We were lucky to be the only 2 people on the 10.30am trip so we got a private tour. First we headed out about 3 miles into the open sea and saw a large group of spotted dolphins that swam along and under the boat, never seen wild dolphins so close before. Then we sailed to Cabo Girao, enjoying the great views of the island and returned to Funchal following the coastline. The crew was really nice and gave us a lot of information, you can see they are so passionate and really enjoy what they are doing. We recommend this tour to everyone, in our opinion it's a lot better than the catamaran tours that have 100 people on board, especially considering the current situation with the Covid-19. Will definetely do it again next time we are in Madeira!

Excellent crew plenty of dolphins fine scenery lovely old boat what more can I say except a bit of actual sailing would have been nice

We would have enjoyed this even if we hadn't seen the dolphins (and a sunbathing Leatherback turtle). Alex and his colleague (sorry, i didn't catch the name) were very knowledgeable and kept us informed of developments on our trip - just six of us on the boat so plenty of opportunity to follow the action. We also appreciated that Ventura have the animal's conservation and well-being at heart.

Firstly, some might find this annoying, but I don't wish to disclose wether we saw wildlife or not, because it should not affect the rating of a service. You could pay top money for a amazing trip and still not see a single animal, does that make it worse? I reserved and paid our boat ride through Tripadvisor (first time I ever reserved anything here), and got the needed information via email. When we went down to the Marina and Shop 10 (Ventura Nature Emotions), they had got our reservation no problem. A little suggestion here: The mere "Shop 10 at Funchal Marina" was not very instructive for someone who had never been in Funchal or the Marina before. The shop is easy enough to find if you punch in Ventura Nature Emotions in Google Maps. The boat ride took almost precisely 3 hours, Ana and Alex were extremely professional, yet calm and cool and fun to chat with. Thank you for the experience! They do offer drinks, but remember to bring water and sun lotion! And of course your swimming gear if you feel like swimming, or dare. I do warn you, if you have been on a ship before, 3 hours feeling seasick might be a little annoying to say the least. I strongly recommend this over the other ones available, not only price wise, but also because of the actual experience! Muito obrigado!

Had a fantastic morning with this lovely old boat , gracefully sailing along. Just the right pace , not overcrowded like the many catamarans and with a knowledgable crew, can totally recommend them .

We had two amazing trips out with Ana and Alex on our holiday in February 2020. On the first trip we saw 3 pods of Dolphins and enjoyed a trip along the coastline. The second trip took us towards the islands where we saw Pilot Whales. Ana and Alex were great company, really knowledgeable and enthusiastic, making sure that we were comfortable and handing our coats to those that were under dressed. We had a really great time, and will definitely be sailing with them when we return to Madeira

Booked this trip the night before as a last minute birthday gift experience, and was not disappointed (except by the toilet being out of order!). Relaxed and friendly crew with an obvious passion for, and understanding of, marine life. After a fair bit of searching, we were pleased to see a number of dolphins, including a youngster, alongside the boat. Even travelled using actual sailpower due to the wind conditions on the return to port. Tot of madeira wine to celebrate the trip too!

This trip was excellent on an authentic old local boat. The crew were very friendly with a marine biologist to point out all that we were seeing including an endangered monk seal. A thoroughly enjoyable morning, thank you.

We loved our boat trip! The crew was very nice and knowledgeable and spoke excellent English. We took a morning boat and spotted 2 big groups of dolfins!! We were able to book our trip here on TripAdvisor just the evening before.

We had a fantastic morning spotting lots dolphins hosted by a knowledgeable and friendly team. Thoroughly recommended!

Our family has spent a great time on the sailing boat. We could admire both the beauty of the island and the ocean. Additional advantage was meeting of the dolphins. Our boat guide and the skipper were very friendly, told us many deatails about sea wildlife as well as about places worth visiting on Madeira. Strongly recommend sailing with Ventura Nature Emotions

We got really lucky and had the boat to ourselves as it was low season. We saw loads of dolphins and the staff explained all about them and the sea around the island. Boat was clean and well maintained, they offered drinks onboard if needed.

We had an absolutely fabulous Sunday Morning out with Ana and Alex on a lovely sailboat out of Funchal. We really appreciated all that this marine biologist and experienced skipper had to say about the whales and dolphins in the area and felt ourselves very lucky indeed when we came across a pod of about 12 to 15 dolphins who chose to play around our boat and stay with us for quite a way - that was truly magical!! Absolutely great experience and the extremely friendly and knowledgable crew made it extra worthwhile. Thank you! We can highly recommend this trip and the people who ran it.

Only four passengers with friendly crew of 2. Enjoyable sail through choppy seas added to the adventure. Really worthwhile.

Great experience. staff with little care for passengers , very friendly and smiling. Explanations in English & French. To do on boats with few people as we were. Good job!

Boat with all conditions. Commander and assistant very friendly and professional, was a magnificent sunset, great cocktails aboard

3h incredible, very nice boat equipped with all useful amenities. We were able to observe dolphins, a full explanation of the observed species was given. The most daring can swim in this beautiful ocean of perfect blue. A little glass of Madeira to celebrate the sun and return to port. Experience to renew without hesitation!

A top event. Enjoyed the beautiful scenery in fine weather and saw about 30 dolphins. Thank you very much

A great experience! We have seen dolphins we recommend this agency with a super nice crew it is really worth it👋

Good weather. Beautiful, well maintained wooden sailboat. Nice, cheerful, well informed crew. Striped dolphin sighting. Perfect. Recommendation.

Upea sää ja puitteet kruunasivat tämän delfiinien bongausreissun! Olimme keskenämme oman porukan kanssa (5hlö) purjeveneen kyydissä oppaiden kanssa ja 3 tuntia kului äärettömän leppoisasti. Näimme yhteensä kolmen eri eläinlajin edustajia ja aivan lähietäisyydeltä (pullonokkadelfiini & atlantintäplädelfiini, merikilpikonna). Reitin loppupuolella rohkeimmat saivat myös käydä pulahtamassa meressä. Saimme matkan aikana ostaa virvokkeita ja meille tarjottiin myös pienet lasit madeiraviiniä. Kerrassaan onnistunut retki, menisin uudelleen enemmän kuin mielelläni!

Thank you for the great trip by sailboat for dolphin watching. The crew was super nice and did everything to make sure we were okay. There are various comfortable seating on board. We've seen a lot of dolphins. The boat is not so big, so boat trip is also more individual than on a large catamaran. We will definitely come back.