Town · Madeira, Portugal · 32.73°N 17.18°W
Calheta, Madeira
Calheta is a town of 1,618 people in Madeira, with a hospital 23.9 km from the centre and Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport (FNC) 38 km away.
Weather now
Not live yetForecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0)
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Normal for November, 1991-2020
19°high · low 16°C · 12 rain days
Who Calheta suits
Generated from the data below by published rulesGood fit for
- Beach loversA beach 0.8 km from the centre
Weaker fit for
Nothing stands out as a weaker fit.
What makes Calheta stand out
- Calheta has the most cafés within a 15-minute walk in Madeira among towns under 3,000 people (6).
- Calheta is the closest town in Madeira among towns under 3,000 people to a beach (0.8 km).
A fact appears when a town ranks first for a measure in Portugal, in its region, or among towns of similar size there.
Climate comfort
Not enough data
0% of its inputs are precise enough here; a score needs 60%.
Based on: Average daily high (January), Days above 35°C (recent), Days with rain (year), Tropical nights (recent), Frost days (recent)
Car-free living
33/ 100
Rank 582 of 797 in Portugal
Based on: Places within a 15-minute walk (grocery), Places within a 15-minute walk (pharmacy), Places within a 15-minute walk (cafe), Distance to nearest (train station), Distance to nearest (bus station)
Built on 75% of its inputs; the rest are not published for this town.
Access to services
26/ 100
Rank 698 of 807 in Portugal
Based on: Distance to nearest (hospital), Nearest airport with scheduled flights, Places within a 15-minute walk (grocery), Places within a 15-minute walk (doctor), Places within a 15-minute walk (school)
How precise is each number?Town-levelmeasured or computed for this townModelledestimated from a grid or a modelRegionalonly available for the wider area
Calheta compared with Porto
Pick another town in Portugal to see the differences in plain terms.
- Average January highShown for reference: at least one value is not precise enough to call a difference.Calheta Regional16°CPorto 13°C
- Average July highShown for reference: at least one value is not precise enough to call a difference.Calheta Regional23°CPorto 26°C
- Days with rain per yearShown for reference: at least one value is not precise enough to call a difference.Calheta Regional95Porto 119
- Days above 35°C per yearShown for reference: at least one value is not precise enough to call a difference.Calheta Regional0Porto 1.0
- 48 min more daylight in DecemberDaylight on 21 DecemberCalheta 10 h 00 minPorto 9 h 12 min
Housing & costs
Official · INE Portugal, EurostatCalheta is in the municipality of Calheta (R.A.M.). Rents, prices and crime are published for each municipality as a whole, not for single towns.
Climate today
Regional · ERA5-Land reanalysis 1991-2020Month by month
Regional · ERA5-Land reanalysis 1991-2020August is the warmest month (24°C average high) and February the coolest (16°C). December is the wettest (98 mm) and July the driest (6 mm).
- JanuaryAir 16° · Sea 18°10 rain daysCrowds: Medium
- FebruaryAir 16° · Sea 17°8 rain daysCrowds: Medium
- MarchAir 16° · Sea 17°11 rain daysCrowds: Medium
- AprilAir 17° · Sea 17°9 rain daysCrowds: High
- MayAir 19° · Sea 18°8 rain daysCrowds: High
- JuneAir 21° · Sea 20°3 rain daysCrowds: High
- JulyAir 23° · Sea 21°1 rain dayCrowds: Peak
- AugustAir 24° · Sea 22°2 rain daysCrowds: Peak
- SeptemberAir 23° · Sea 23°7 rain daysCrowds: High
- OctoberAir 21° · Sea 22°13 rain daysCrowds: High
- NovemberAir 19° · Sea 20°12 rain daysCrowds: Medium
- DecemberAir 17° · Sea 19°12 rain daysCrowds: Medium
Crowd levels are for Madeira as a whole: nights booked through online platforms in 2025, against the region's busiest month (Eurostat).
Is it getting hotter?
Regional · ERA5-Land reanalysisDays above 35°C per year
Both measured periods come from the same reanalysis as the climate section. The bar scale runs to 10 days.
Healthcare & getting around
Town-level · straight-line distancesWithin 1.2 km of the centre
- Grocery stores1
- Pharmacies1
- Doctors & clinics0
30 min by car
- Hospitals0
- Sea beaches14
- People25,428
60 min by car
- Towns over 10,0005
- Hospitals5
- Sea beaches27
- People258,336
- Nearest train stationNone within 60 km
- Nearest bus stationRodoeste 807.1 km
- Nearest hospitalHospital CUF Madeira24 km · 34 min by car
- Nearest airport with scheduled flightsCristiano Ronaldo International Airport (FNC)38 km · 51 min by car
Distances are straight lines from the town centre. Drive times are by road in free-flowing traffic (OSRM on OpenStreetMap roads); people counts add up the towns reached.
Daily life
Town-level · Overture Maps places, 2026-10-21.0Within 1.2 km of the centre
- 1Grocery stores & supermarketsPortugal median: 3
- 1PharmaciesPortugal median: 1
- 6CafésPortugal median: 4
- 8RestaurantsPortugal median: 9
- 2BakeriesPortugal median: 2
- 3Gyms & fitness studiosPortugal median: 1
- 4SchoolsPortugal median: 2
- 0Doctors & clinicsPortugal median: 1
Nature & surroundings
Town-level · WorldCover, Copernicus DEM, Natura 2000, OpenStreetMapPeople & community
Modelled · EU Census 2021 gridUnder 1515 to 6465 and over
International residents
| Share of residents | Calheta | Median town in Portugal |
|---|---|---|
| Born in another EU country | 1.9% | 1.6% |
| Born outside the EU | 17.3% | 5.5% |
| Moved here from abroad in the past year | 3.1% | 1.1% |
19.2% of residents were born abroad, against 7.1% in the median town in Portugal (2021 census). From the 1 km census grid cells within 1.5 km of the centre (3,056 residents counted).
Environment & natural hazards
- Earthquakes1 since 1900Magnitude 5 or larger within 100 km. Largest: M5.3.Town-level · USGS earthquake catalog
- Wildfire7 of 10 yearsYears with a fire of 30 ha or more within 10 km of the centre, 2016-2025; 16,765 ha burnt by those fires.Town-level · EFFIS
Places like Calheta
Common questions about Calheta
What is the weather like in Calheta through the year?
January averages a high of 16°C and a low of 14°C; July averages 23°C and 19°C. There are about 95 days with rain a year. These are averages for 1991-2020. These are regional figures for the wider area, not for the town itself.
How many very hot days does Calheta get?
Calheta averaged 0 days a year above 35°C in 2016-2025, against 0 a year in 1991-2000. These are regional figures for the wider area, not for the town itself.
Does it freeze in Calheta?
Calheta averaged no frost days a year in 2016-2025. These are regional figures for the wider area, not for the town itself.
What is within walking distance of the centre of Calheta?
Within 1.2 km of the centre there are 1 grocery stores, 1 pharmacies, 0 doctors and clinics and 6 cafés. In a straight line, the nearest bus station is 7.1 km away, the nearest hospital is 24 km away, the nearest beach is 0.8 km away and the nearest coastline is 0.7 km away.
What is the nearest airport to Calheta?
Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport (FNC), 38 km from the centre in a straight line.
How much daylight does Calheta get in winter?
10 h 00 min on 21 December, against 14 h 19 min on 21 June.
Who is Calheta a good fit for?
By the published rules: beach lovers (A beach 0.8 km from the centre).
Sources & methodology
Every value comes from one of the open datasets below and is computed the same way for every town. Each section names how precise its values are: town-level, modelled or regional. Distances are straight lines from the town centre, and amenities are counted within 1.2 km of it. Read the full methodology.
"Who Calheta suits" lines come from fixed rules applied to every town in the same way. A rule only uses values that are modelled or better, and each line shows the numbers that triggered it. How the rules work.
| Dataset | Used for | Version | Licence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (30 m elevation) | Elevation | glo30_s120 | Copernicus DEM licence (free for any use, with attribution) |
| Burnt areas (European Forest Fire Information System, EFFIS) | Wildfires | 2016-2025 | CC BY 4.0 |
| ERA5 monthly sea surface temperature (Copernicus Climate Data Store) | Sea temperature | monthly_1991-2020 | CC BY 4.0 |
| ERA5-Land reanalysis (Copernicus Climate Data Store) | Climate | points_1991-2025 | CC BY 4.0 |
| ESA WorldCover 2021 (10 m land cover) | Land cover | v200_2021 | CC BY 4.0 |
| EU Census 2021 population grid (Eurostat) | Census grid | V3 | Free reuse with acknowledgement (European Commission reuse policy) |
| Nights spent in short-stay accommodation booked through online platforms (Eurostat tour_ce_omn12) | Crowds | 2026-11-01 | CC BY 4.0 |
| Price level indices (Eurostat prc_ppp_ind) | Price level | 2026-11-01 | CC BY 4.0 |
| GeoNames | Place names and populations | 2026-10-31 | CC BY 4.0 |
| INE Portugal (local statistics on rents, house prices, crime and population) | Rents, house prices, crime and population | 2026-11-01 | CC BY 4.0 |
| Natura 2000 protected sites (EEA, end 2024) | Protected areas | end2024 | CC BY 4.0 |
| OpenStreetMap (Geofabrik extracts) | Stations, hospitals, beaches, coastline | 2026-10-31 | ODbL 1.0 |
| OurAirports | Airports | 2026-10-31 | Public domain |
| Overture Maps places | Amenities | 2026-10-21.0 | CDLA-Permissive-2.0 |
| TEMIS UV index climatology (KNMI / ESA) | UV index | v2.0_clim_2004-2020 | Free use with credit; TEMIS asks to be told how the data is used |
| USGS earthquake catalog (ComCat) | Earthquakes | 2026-10-31 | Public domain |