São Vicente Caves — Attraction in São Vicente

The cave is nteresting to see but the organization of the tour makes it equally disappointing. Firstly: you wait 'a few mins' to start the tour and although asking a few times the guides nobody could answer when the tour starts. It took about 20 mins to finally start the tour. Secondly: after starting we had to wait next few mins just at the entrance to the cave where it is pretty cold and windy... nobody was informing us how long and why the group had to wait... maybe because the guide was collecting more and more people even just arriving at the parking?? Thirdly: once started the tour we noticed that the group was consisting of nearly 30 people. So the main activity during the tour was waiting until everybody arrived to the group. Fourthly: obligatory photos made for everybody during the tour and you can buy the photo after the tour. Nobody asked if you wish to have such a photo. Please just imagine how much time it takes to make the photos of 30 people... and last but not least: the tour covers 700 m which takes... 30 mins. The guide gives very very litle information as she is mainly focused on collecting the group. So to sum up: the cave is nice to see but not for 8 Euro and additionally accompanied by very...

The Lava Caves were heavily altered for tourist experience. Every now and then you get a glimpse of how the tubes looked before. Changing the tubes to allow tourists to pass through is fair enough, but it was definately overdone here. This was paired with some hints of the guide that the artifical water reservoirs are a "wishing well" and information about where you can buy the wine that has been lying in the cave for 6 month. The remaining Information about the tubes was scarce.

After the tour through the caves you enter the "volcanic center". There is an exhibition that you cant look at because you are supposed to see the eruption of a volcano before seeing a movie about the creation of madeira. The movie was old and inaccurate in parts. What followed was an expedition to the center of the earth (luckily our guide told us that it was just a simulation ….). An "elevator ride" on a vibrating plate later you can stare at the center of the earth, followed by a 3D animation of different swirling dots depicting the mantles of the earth. The movie ends showing pictures of Madeira underlined with victorious music and...

There are the caves and the Volcanism centre.

The caves provide a very well organized visit, lasting about 30 minutes, properly conducted by expert guides. The visit supplements the repetitive monotony of a slightly diverse visual offering, with the creation of a mysterious, properly illuminated path, referencing it with well-chosen music and a certain illumination with magical architectures and, especially, with the Earth Center's telluric imagery. .

The Volcanism Center is located next to the São Vicente Caves, on the cliff opposite the Ribeira de São Vicente in a charming village on the north coast of Madeira, at the bottom of the valley, where the formation of the island began. It combines culture and knowledge with leisure and entertainment, in a pavilion that allows around 90 visitors to watch, in a pedagogical and playful way, the audiovisual shows that recreate the geological evolution of the caves, the eruption of a volcano and also to the simulation of the birth of the Madeira...