Booking terms in plain words

Transfers come with a tour

We sell transfers, from the airport, the cruise port or between hotels, only as part of a tour booking.

Name the tour when you book the transfer, or add the transfer to a tour you have already booked. It keeps its fixed price per car from the price list.

Payment

Once we confirm your date, we send a secure Revolut payment link for the full price, to pay within 24 hours by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or Revolut Pay, with no card fee, and we email you an invoice.

Sending a request charges nothing and is not yet a booking: the booking is made when we confirm it in writing and you pay by the time given in that message, and an unpaid date is released.

Payment in advance is the only way to book, and anything added on the day, such as an extra hour, is paid by a second payment link.

Revolut processes the payment on its own revolut.com page, so we never see your card details, and we never ask for them by message.

Cancellation

You can cancel free up to 24 hours before pickup, with a full refund, and after that, or if you don't come, we keep 50% of the price.

It is always free, with a full refund or a new date, when your flight is cancelled or diverted, your ship's call at Funchal is cancelled for any reason, IFCN closes your trail, the summit forecast is cloudy the evening before a sunrise run, heavy rain spoils a tour day, or we have to cancel.

Refunds go back to the card you paid with, usually within 7 days.

Right of withdrawal

The 14-day right of withdrawal doesn't apply to tours and transport booked for a set date, so the cancellation rule above takes its place.

Changes

Changes of time or place are free until the evening before, and after that we fit them in as the calendar allows.

What's in the price

The price is for the whole car and includes fuel, parking and child seats, and on your own route and tours also waiting at your stops, with no kilometre count.

Not in the price

Entry tickets, meals and SIMplifica trail fees are not included.

Travel insurance

We recommend travel insurance that covers the activities you book with us.

Reply time

We reply within 60 minutes during messaging hours (07:00–22:00), and we answer overnight requests by 08:00.

Messages during a ride

While your driver is on the road, WhatsApp sends an automatic reply and we answer at the next stop, so for a pickup before 08:00 please message us before 21:00 the day before.

Who answers

Your driver answers your messages on WhatsApp and drives the car.

Hours

Our pickup hours are 05:00–01:00, outside them we confirm each ride on request, and same-day rides depend on the car being free.

Booking on request

Every booking is a request until we confirm your date. If we're already booked, we tell you within 60 minutes and suggest another time.

If two bookings collide

If a late flight runs into our next booking, we tell you at once and agree the next step with you. We never pass your ride to anyone else without asking.

Group size

The car takes up to 6 passengers.

Waiting at the airport

We wait 60 minutes free from your actual landing, up to 90 minutes if your bags are lost, and after that it's €5 per started 15 minutes.

If we can't find you, we keep calling and messaging and wait 60 minutes after your actual landing before we leave.

Late or diverted flights

We follow your flight, so after a delay or a diversion the pickup moves to your real arrival time at no cost.

Waiting at hotels and the terminal

At a hotel or address we wait 15 minutes free, at the cruise terminal 30 minutes after the agreed time, and after that it's €5 per started 15 minutes.

At the airport the free time counts from your actual landing, and at a trailhead it follows the pickup window we agree.

Where we meet at the airport

Your driver meets you in the arrivals hall after customs with your name on a sign, and the short-stay parking is included in the price.

Pickup at hotels and rentals

At a hotel your driver waits at the main entrance, and for a holiday rental in a narrow street we send a map pin the evening before for the nearest point where the car can stop.

Stops on a transfer

One stop of up to 10 minutes on a transfer is included, and each further stop of up to 15 minutes costs €10.

Return trips

You can book the return in the same request, and each way is priced on its own, with no return discount.

Return pickups

We message you 2 days before a return pickup to reconfirm the time and place.

Night pickups

Pickups between 21:00 and 07:00 cost 15% more on transfers and on your own route, while sunrise runs and hiking transfers cost the same at any hour.

Public holidays

On 25 December and 1 January prices are 15% higher all day.

Tips

A tip is never added to the price for the car, and whether you leave one is up to you.

Child seats

Child seats are free, so tell us each child's age when you book and we fit the right seat.

Luggage

Tell us what bags you're bringing and we confirm they fit before you book.

Pickup area for your own route, tours and hiking

Your own route, tours and hiking transfers include pickup anywhere from Ribeira Brava to Caniçal, including Funchal and the hills above it, and a pickup further out adds the fixed amount shown for your area.

Pickup at the cruise terminal

Pickup at the cruise terminal is included on cruise days, and on your own route and island tours it costs €25.

Your own route

Your own route is priced by the hour, as a half day or as a full day, whichever is cheaper for your plan.

Minimum length

Your own route by the hour is for at least 2 hours, or 3 hours in July and August.

Extra time

Time beyond the booked hours costs €40 an hour for 1 to 4 people or €45 for 5 or 6, charged per started 15 minutes.

Changing the plan on the day

On your own route and island days you can change the plan on the day, and waiting at your stops is included.

How long a tour day is

A tour's hours count from your pickup, and inside them you stop wherever and for as long as you like.

Weather

We check the mountain forecast the evening before, and if the peaks are in cloud we swap the route or move the day at no cost.

Sunrise weather

We check the summit forecast the evening before and message you go or no-go by 20:00, and if cloud is forecast you move or cancel free.

Pickup time

We pick you up about 90 minutes before sunrise, so you're at the top before first light.

Where we meet at the port

Your driver meets you at the pedestrian exit of the passenger terminal on the Pontinha pier.

Back before all-aboard

You're back at the pier at least 60 minutes before all-aboard, and if a delay is ever our fault, we pay for a taxi back.

If the ship docks late

We follow your ship's arrival, so a late docking costs nothing, and we shorten the route if needed to keep you back 60 minutes before all-aboard.

If the call is cancelled

If your ship's call at Funchal is cancelled, for any reason, the booking is cancelled free.

Timed to your slot

You book your SIMplifica slot, and we drop you about 20 minutes before it starts.

Pickup window at the trail end

We agree a pickup window of 30 minutes either side of your expected finish, you message us when you're about 30 minutes from the end, and after the window we wait 60 minutes free.

No phone signal at the end

If there's no phone signal at the end, your driver waits at the car park named in your confirmation for the whole window.

Where we drop you and collect you

At trailheads your driver stops at the car park named in your confirmation, and we send you its map pin.

If the trail closes

If IFCN closes your trail, you choose a plan B route, a new date or a free cancellation.

Trail status the evening before

The evening before every hiking run we check your trail in the IFCN status table and message you what it shows.

Trail slots

We can't book SIMplifica slots for you, so you book your slot and we time the drop to it.

Muddy boots

Get in as you come off the trail, muddy boots and wet jackets included.

The evening before

The evening before, by 20:00, we send the pickup time, the car's plate, your driver's photo and the meeting point.

Keeping your details

We keep your details only as long as your request, your ride and its invoice need them, and then we delete them.

Terms reviewed on 25 September 2026