Levada do Alecrim: PR6.2 route, booking and the Lagoa do Vento junction

Is Levada do Alecrim the right Rabaçal walk?

Levada do Alecrim, PR6.2, is a 7 km out-and-back from ER105 at Rabaçal to the levada’s source at Lagoa Dona Beja. Choose it if you want a same-start-and-finish levada outing rather than a route ending at a different road. Visit Madeira rates it easy and lists about 2 hours 30 minutes; allow additional time for stops and your journey to the start.

At our 26 October 2026 check, both IFCN’s classified-route table and Visit Madeira list PR6.2 open. That is a dated status check, not a guarantee for a later visit. Recheck IFCN notices and the reservation for your date before setting out.

Start at ER105, not at Casa do Rabaçal

The official start is Rabaçal on regional road ER105. Follow the signs for PR6.2 Levada do Alecrim towards the water source at Ribeira do Lajeado. The route follows the levada at roughly 1,300 metres altitude; the published minimum and maximum are 1,256 and 1,339 metres. Those figures are elevations, not total ascent.

Do not descend towards Casa do Rabaçal simply because another Rabaçal walk begins there. Tell a taxi or transfer provider that you need the PR6.2 start on ER105, and agree the return at the same place. A drop-off advertised only as “Rabaçal” leaves the actual walking distance uncertain. Our plateau guide explains the wider access choices; this guide does not assume a bus or shuttle serves your chosen time.

Dona Beja is not the Lagoa do Vento detour

PR6.2 reaches the source of the levada at Lagoa Dona Beja, whose water feeds the Lagoa do Vento waterfall. The ordinary Alecrim return retraces the same path. Reaching Dona Beja does not mean you have also walked down to Lagoa do Vento.

PR6.3 Vereda da Lagoa do Vento is a separate classified trail. Visit Madeira describes its start near Casa de Abrigo do Rabaçal, a junction with the Alecrim connection and the branch to Lagoa do Vento. Its published 1.8 km each way belongs to PR6.3’s own start and finish. It is not a measured extra distance from every point on PR6.2.

For the simplest plan, stay on PR6.2 and return to ER105. If you choose the PR6.3 connection towards Casa do Rabaçal, use the current signed route and map and plan how to reach your pickup afterwards. Do not treat the two published return distances as a ready-made combined loop.

Booking and the 2026 visitor fee

The published 2026 fee for an independent visitor over 12 is €4.50 for PR6.2. Children aged 12 or under are exempt from payment but still need registration and booking. Book through SIMplifica for the actual trail and entry slot; same-day reservations depend on remaining capacity.

Adding PR6.3 means selecting that trail too. IFCN says the portal calculates the applicable individual or combined tariff during checkout; a combined rate does not provide unlimited access or remove the requirement to reserve each trail. The published one-day combined rate, excluding PR1, is €9.00. These are 2026 rules and prices, not a promise for 2027.

Alecrim or 25 Fontes and Risco?

Pick Alecrim for the defined ER105-to-Dona-Beja return. Choose the 25 Fontes and Risco outing when those waterfall branches are your priority, accepting their separate route choices and approach logistics. They share the Rabaçal area but are not interchangeable trail bookings.

In particular, IFCN’s controlled outward route and return bypass for PR6 at 25 Fontes should not be copied onto PR6.2: Visit Madeira describes Alecrim as a same-path return. Follow signs for the route you actually booked rather than combining names from different walks.

Easy-rated does not mean an all-weather path

Choose footwear with grip and carry water, food, rain protection and a charged phone. A 7 km trail at around 1,300 metres is a different commitment from a short town walk. The official easy rating is not evidence of step-free access, suitability for every child or protection from changing weather.

Keep the out-and-back as your fallback plan rather than adding the Lagoa do Vento descent late in the day. If weather or on-site instructions rule out the walk, leave the detour out too; do not improvise an unsigned return.