Curral das Freiras

Curral das Freiras sits on the floor of a deep basin ringed by the central mountains, walls rising a thousand metres and more on every side, and it is called the Nuns' Valley because the land passed to the Santa Clara convent in Funchal in the 1490s; tradition adds that the sisters fled here in 1566 when French corsairs sacked the town, judging correctly that nobody would find them. Until a road was cut in 1959 the only access was a mule path over the ridge, and until the tunnels opened later still the road was a long series of switchbacks. The classic view is from the Eira do Serrado viewpoint at 1,095 metres on the rim, a short walk from a car park above, looking straight down into the bowl. The valley grows chestnuts, and the village trades on them - chestnut cake, soup, liqueur - with a chestnut festival on 1 November.

History

Shepherds and freed or escaped slaves were the first to live in the valley, and a hamlet grew up towards the end of the 15th century; around 1462 Zarco granted the land for cultivation to João Ferreira and Branca Dias. On 11 September 1480 it was sold to Zarco's son, the second captain-donatary João Gonçalves da Câmara, and between 1492 and 1497 it passed to the nuns of Santa Clara, from whom it takes its name; it became an independent parish on 17 March 1790 (Wikipedia, Curral das Freiras).

What's there

• The cauldron - a village on the floor of a basin with walls a thousand metres high.
• Eira do Serrado - the rim viewpoint at 1,095 metres looking straight down.
• The 1566 story - nuns fleeing a corsair raid to somewhere unreachable.
• The chestnuts - the valley's crop, sold as cake, soup and liqueur.

When to go

Year-round. Half a day. 1 November brings the chestnut festival. Mornings are clearer - cloud fills the basin later in the day.

Before you go

Cloud frequently fills the valley and hides everything from the viewpoint. The road down is steep with tight bends. The village itself is small with limited facilities. Chestnut products are sold hard to visitors.

Nearby

Eira do Serrado is on the rim above; Funchal is south through the tunnels.

Key facts