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Travel guides & planning articles

Four island guides and the planning articles that help you choose between them — seasons, bases, itineraries and honest trade-offs.

Every guide on this site follows the same pattern: when to go, how to get there and around, where to stay by area, the things worth doing, a sample itinerary and straight answers to common questions. No invented reviews, no manufactured rankings.

Island guides

Madeira travel guide

Levada walks, Funchal, the north coast and the high country — plus where to stay and a 3-day itinerary.

Tenerife travel guide

Teide, Anaga’s laurel forest, La Laguna, and the north-vs-south decision, with a 3-day itinerary.

Gran Canaria travel guide

Maspalomas dunes, Roque Nublo, Las Palmas and the interior villages, with a 3-day itinerary.

São Miguel travel guide

Sete Cidades, Furnas, Lagoa do Fogo and tea country, with a 3-day itinerary.

Planning articles

Best time to visit

Season-by-season guidance for all four islands — winter sun, flowers, hiking and crowds.

Tenerife vs Gran Canaria

The two big Canaries compared, category by category.

Madeira or the Azores?

Portugal’s green archipelagos compared for weather, walking and getting there.

Subtropical islands of the world

The bigger map: the subtropical belt, ocean by ocean, with our four islands in context.

Plan this trip

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