The journey home
The last bus back: plan the return first
Where is the last bus listed?
Most route pages show a dated timetable card from SIGA’s sheet, with first and last departures by day type and an expiry date.
PDF-only pages link to the official sheet; a few pages have neither a card nor a verified PDF. Check the return direction and your travel day on the available sheet before setting off.
Every stranded visitor we hear about made the same mistake: they planned the way out and not the way back. This guide is the fix, and it deliberately prints no times, because most route pages carry them with a date.
Choose the return before the outward trip
Pick the return departure first, then the outward one that gives you enough time. Prefer the second-to-last bus: if it does not run, the last one is still a plan. Save the route page or a screenshot with the date you saved it, and keep your phone charged.
Read the right day type
Most SIGA sheets combine Sundays and public holidays. Read the actual “Feriados” heading: the 380/381 return table combines Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, while 127 separates Sundays and holidays. School-period notes may also apply. Do not automatically use a Sunday column for a holiday.
Find the return stop before you walk away
The return stop is not always opposite the arrival stop; in villages the bus may turn at a different point. Check the official stop information where you get off and, while the bus is safely stopped, ask the driver where the return leaves. Times printed at a route’s starting point are not the times at your stop. The return may have a different number: SIGA numbers the return of 340 as 341 and of 380 as 381. Read the return table on the corresponding route page and verify the stop; do not assume the same route or stops in reverse.
If you miss it
Check SIGA’s service notices first: a missing bus may be a notified change. Look for another route serving the same town, for example Santana, Machico and Santa Cruz each sit on more than one corridor. Failing that, a taxi needs a separate budget and a way to call one; spare bus coins are not a taxi budget. Hotels and cafés can usually call a local taxi for you.
Before a flight or a ship
Aim for an earlier Aerobus than the one that just works. The airport guide carries the dated Aerobus card and explains the 500R return from Praia Formosa; the cruise guide covers all-aboard deadlines.
One-way hikes
PR1 has an unnumbered Horários do Funchal bus at Pico do Areeiro, with a published season from 29 March 2026 to 27 March 2027. The Achada do Teixeira exit has no verified bus: arrange pickup before a through-hike. Rabaçal also needs onward transport from the stop. Check current trail access before starting.
Checked against
Advice restates this site’s route pages, most of which carry dated SIGA timetable cards. No departure time is printed here on purpose. Checked 15 October 2026.