A dream that was born like the Sunrise: on the sea

The ocean that saw many Madeiran’s leave their homeland, navigating to distant shores, also saw the sons of the Island return with the desire of setting down anchor. Our founding partner – adventurer and visionary, overcame the first stormy seas of VMT Madeira after re-discovering the North and leaving the South of Africa behind.

His passion for sea life, natural wildlife and adventure resulted in a marine dream with his feet firmly planted on the ground, and after more than a decade of activity, with other partners, boats and a variety of excursions, we are proud to say that we have already transported more than 200 000 passengers.

Looking to the horizon, the sustainability, as much environmental as financial, is one of the principal pillars of this family-run company with about 25 qualified professionals and including a handful of collaborators during the so-called high season. Our biggest ambition of course, is to

continue to offer memorable experiences to the average 60 000 clients that visit us every year.

Welcome aboard!

A company with favourable winds

Guaranteed sightings

On the majority of days, the tuned orientation of nature enables marine animal sightings in all their splendour. However, there is the odd day (rare) that even with all the know-how and expertise of our crew, it is impossible to keep up with the free-swimming dolphins and whales. So, in this case, if no sightings are possible during our regular whale and dolphin watching trips, we offer a second trip for free.*

The offer of this 2nd trip is personal and not transferrable and a has a lifetime guarantee.

**From June to 15 September, the courtesy trip is subject to our availability.*

Convenience store

Forgotten something at home or in the hotel?
Need to purchase a last-minute ticket?

Relax! The winds are in your favour! Our convenience store has a little of everything you might need: snacks, cool drinks, sun cream, hats, sunglasses, personal hygiene items, and souveniers of your trip to Madeira. And the best – and most convenient – is that the shop is located next door to our check in desk in the Funchal Marina.

Our Team

A team specialised in creating a good ambience. And not only at sea.

You must have heard that you should distrust anyone that is not an animal lover.
This is not an issue with us. We are all fans of marine wildlife, therefore our extreme daily dedication to the care of dolphins, whales, turtles and sea birds.

Continually on the lookout over the vast ocean and your needs as a valued client, we have a versatile team consisting of professional crew members who specialise in sailing, some of who are certified sea guides and also have courses in First Aid at sea. On land we are trained in client reception, and conflict control. Besides this, some of our team are fluent in various languages and have a good knowledge of the marine species that we see as well as information about the surrounding areas that are part of our excursion.

At the helm of our business, we have this saying: This mariner’s life doesn’t defeat us. To the contrary! The Atlantic is our home. Memorable by Nature!
The selling power of VMT Madeira extends to our comercial partners, being travel agencias and selected hotels.

In the streets of Funchal always look out for our official salespersons.

Our Boats

Come aboard the stars of our company.

Stable vessels that offer safety and comfort, our catamarans are the pillars of our company and true members of the team on each excursion. To guarantee the well-being of all and for the protection of the environment, we follow all guidelines of security, before and after we head out into the open sea. Besides this, every year we do periodic maintenance, and inspections are carried out by the competent authorities.

As we develop our Maritime Tourism observation of cetacean activities in a sustainable way, each one of our catamarans is considered an eco-tourism boat and has earned the prestigious Blue Flag reward.

All the boats have engines, also sails which are hoisted when conditions allow to provide an even more relaxing experience, and so eliminate engine noise and reduce CO2 emissions. All catamarans also have covered areas with seating, nets over the bow that serve as a solarium, toilets and a bar with a variety of drinks and snacks.

Sea Nature – 2014	Sea the Best – 2008	Sea Pleasure – 2004
Sea Nature – 2014 23,80mx11m 216 passengers, 2 decks, 44 tons Model: Custom Made (rebuilt in Lagos, Portugal) Sails: 200m2 Mast: 26,5m Engines and output: 2x Iveco – 160hp	Sea the Best – 2008 23mx10,5m 98 passengers Model: Taiti (Fountaine, Paiot, La Rochelle, França) Sails: 250m2 Mast: 28m Engines and output: 2x Volvo – 160hp	Sea Pleasure – 2004 20mx10m 70 passengers Model: Ocean Voyager (CIM Shipyard, La Rochelle, França) Sails: 200m2 Mast: 25m Engines and output: 2x Nanni – 62.5hp

Sustainability

To be sustainable is to launch the anchor today and think about tomorrow

Our team, eco-friendly by nature, feel more at home close to the sea. The cetaceans and other species do a memorable job in welcoming every one of us into their eco-system. Therefore, one of our biggest priorities is sustainability. Our commitment to wildlife is to contribute for all we have received with the best we can offer in return. It’s been said that we should take nothing from nature except photos. Wrong! Many times we take much more from the ocean than that! Besides the daily dose of inspiration, we collect rubbish found floating on the ocean and many times have to free trapped sea life from discarded nets.

Blue Flag

VMT received the prestigious Blue Flag award, a reward that is assigned yearly to eco-tourism boats and other entities that maintain and follow a rigorous set of criterium: information, education and environmental management, safety and services, social conciousness and even working responsibly with wildlife.

During our daily activity we promote, for exemple, lectures in schools and other institutions about sustainability. We also maintain the safety limits, time and noise levels while approaching the cetaceans, always respecting the freedom of these animals. Besides this, we encourage recycling and the reduction of refuse, always trying to stimulate the local economy and respecting the rights of our collaborators.

Learn extra here about our ‘house rules’ in more detail.

Eco Discipline Project

As an eco-tourism company, part of the services we offer our local community is informing and creating awareness for good practice in relation to our environment and marine life. We often introduce our cetacean awareness to the most varied of classrooms, with dynamic and interactive lectures using Eco-logic. However these lectures are not limited to schools, but are for associations and institutions as well.

Focusing on the defense of Ecologic values and stimulating the daily practice of sustainability is half-way to educating a new Eco generation.

This is why we are always receiving new interns every academic year. After all, sustainability should be the gift from all of us to the future.

To be a part of sustainability and ECO , contact us.

Code of Conduct

	For a better cetacean observation, we please ask there to be silence on approach, and when viewing these animals. There will also be a reduction in the speed of the boat and the radio will be switched off. Our sightings are in compliance with the Regional Legislative Decree 15/2013/MA that defines and regulates the observation of Marine Vertebrates in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.
	Do not throw any form of food to the Cetaceans, birds or Turtles. They are wild animals and are used to searching for their own food. These actions may be prejudicial and encourage them to lose the ability to hunt for food.
	Please separate your garbage, using the containers provided. Our company is committed to trying to reduce the amount of rubbish produced and to recycling whenever possible.
	Whenever conditions are favorable, and there is time and it is safe, we hoist the sails with the objective of offering a unique experience without engine noise and, at the same time, reducing the carbon dioxide emissions.
	Conserve your health and don´t run risks (respect the digestion period after meals, respect the crew’s safety information, use sun cream and a hat, and after a few hours of exposure to the sun, go into the water slowly to allow your body to aclimatise).
	Be always watchful with your children. For your peace of mind, we supply life-vests for both adults and children which may be worn during the whole trip or whenever there is a stop for swimming.
	Save water when using the toilets and warn us if you detect any leaks, because, contrary to toilets in our homes which have channeled water systems, water on board is limited, and becomes a prescious commodity when we are a few miles from land. Please do not throw paper or any other object into the toilet. This may cause the system to become obstructed affecting the funcionality of the facilities.