WHAT TO DO IN MADEIRA IN WINTER? WHAT TO VISIT AND EXPLORE?
On this post I will highlight what we did while visiting Madeira island in a short break during winter.
After a very agitated night because of strong thunders and lightning from a rainstorm we woke up at “Pestana Casino Park” (read my previous post, Madeira – Day 1) on our second day looking forward to exploring Madeira. However, the morning was cloudy, but it was not raining.
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We went downstairs to the restaurant for our first breakfast at the hotel. And what a breakfast! The breakfast at this hotel I think was one of the best we had for a long time.
It had a huge variety of items to choose from. A big table full of fresh breads, pastries and cakes. Another big table full of all kinds of fruits to pick from. A large variety of yogurts and cereals.
The hot counter had scrambled eggs, sausages, bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes and hash browns. Behind the counter there were various chefs ready to take your order for freshly cooked omelettes, eggs to your taste or anything else.
They also had a big bow with ice and bottles of champagne for you to help yourself. We don’t like drinking in the morning, but the champagne bow proved to be very popular with some other guests even at that time of the day.
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MADEIRA
Madeira Island, is a stunning Portuguese archipelago located in the Atlantic Ocean, it is often referred to as the “Pearl of the Atlantic.” Famous for its lush, mountainous landscapes, subtropical climate, and vibrant flora. Madeira offers a unique blend of natural beauty, cultural heritage, and outdoor adventure.
Madeira’s landscapes are incredibly diverse. From the towering volcanic peaks of “Pico do Arieiro” and “Pico Ruivo” to the verdant valleys and coastal cliffs, the island boasts panoramic views everywhere.
The “Laurisilva Forest”, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, adds to the island’s charm with its ancient trees and rare species of plants and birds.
Visitors can explore the island’s “levadas”, an intricate network of irrigation channels and walking paths that guide hikers through the heart of its most picturesque scenery.
Madeira’s culture is just as rich as its landscapes. The island hosts various festivals throughout the year, celebrating everything from wine and flowers to regional folklore.
The Madeira Wine Festival, for instance, showcases the island’s famous fortified wine, a tradition that dates back centuries.
The Flower Festival, with its parades and stunning floral displays, transforms the capital, Funchal, into a burst of colour and creativity.
For adventure seekers, Madeira is a paradise. The island offers countless outdoor activities such as hiking, canyoning, paragliding, and whale watching.
If you enjoy canyoning try this guided canyoning tour from Funchal
The surrounding waters are perfect for diving and snorkelling, with rich marine life that adds another layer of beauty to the island’s offerings. Golfers and mountain bikers will also find plenty to do, making Madeira a destination for all types of travellers.
You can also try this dolphin and whale watching experience in a custom-built Eco-catamaran with a stop for swimming.
VISITING MADEIRA
After a very filling and pleasant breakfast, we left walking in the direction of the Old Town.
Below is a map showing the places we visited on that day:
We booked our trip to Madeira independently as we are very confident in travelling by ourselves, in this case to Madeira we also spoke the language!
We were travelling independently as we are confident travellers and speak the language. However, if you prefer to be part of a tour and to have everything organised for you, I advise you to book a complete tour with Tourradar.
Tourradar has different kinds of tours that will fit your time and budget. If you book it via my links you can get a discount by using this code: RoseG50.
We crossed Santa Catarina Park again, this time walking around various parts of the park until we arrived at the “Don Henrique Statue” and the “Chafariz da Rotunda do Infante”.
After that we took the “Avenida do Mar” and walked all the way to “Mercado dos Lavradores” in the centre of Funchal.
“Mercado dos Lavradores” was built in 1940 in a mixture of Art-Deco and Modernist style and was designed by the architect Edmundo Tavares. It is a lively market, very colourful with all the flowers and fruits native of the island on display.
Madeira has many passion-fruit types, and you can see all of them at this market. Varieties such as the purple, yellow and banana one. As this is a very common fruit in Madeira there are many traditional desserts and drinks prepared with this delicious fruit.
There is also the fish market where you can find a large variety of fish and seafood and the popular local fish “Peixe Espada Preto” (Black swordfish).
Besides all the above there are beautiful native flowers and all types of vegetables, souvenirs such as painted ceramics and embroidered linens.
A visit to “Mercado dos Lavradores” is a must to anyone visiting Madeira even if you don’t want to buy anything, just to explore.
Leaving the market we just walked further down and turned on “Rua de Santa Maria” in the heart of the Old Town.
This road is famous for its buildings with doors that are all decorated with works of art. The road is full of bars and restaurants, art galleries and studios, souvenir shops and other nice local shops.
It is a vibrant road, and the art works displayed at the doors are all by local artists contributing to the cultural vibe of the area.
Below are various photos of the art doors found at Rua de Santa Maria.
We walked all the way down to the end of Santa Maria Road that ends on “Travessa das Torres”. From there we walked to the “Teleférico Funchal-Monte”, the Cable Car.
We were not sure if we wanted to go up to Monte at that time, because the top was full of clouds, but the ticket office lady told us that the cable car was only going to operate for the next few hours only because there was forecast of heavy rain in the afternoon. So, we decided to go up at that time before the rain.
As the cable car approached the top, things started to get darker and darker, and when we finally arrived at the top, everything was covered in clouds.
We went straight to “Monte Palace Tropical Gardens”. Although it was cloudy and misty, it was possible to walk around and visit the gardens.
We bought our tickets to get into the garden and just when we were about to get in the heavens opened. Very heavy rain. We waited to see if the rain would stop, and we waited and waited, and it didn’t.
So, we decided to buy some of those plastic overalls and an umbrella each (another two umbrellas to our collection!) at the garden’s shop, to be able to walk down the paths and visit the garden under the rain.
That was fun! We went everywhere and the rain wouldn’t give us a break. It rained throughout the whole visit, but it was something different to experience.
We still enjoyed the garden very much. It’s beautiful, but we could only imagine how it would be in a sunny spring day when all the flowers pop up.
Below are various photos of the different areas of the garden.
As the rain wouldn’t bulge, after the visit to the garden we decided to take the cable car down as it was going to stop operating soon, before the storm comes. Wait, this wasn’t the storm? No, apparently it would get worse.
Have a look at this video from The Travelling Surveyor Instagram to see how bad the rain was:
We went straight to our hotel to change from our wet clothes and shoes (we still managed to get wet with the overall and umbrellas).
When we got there, we heard that the cruise ships at the harbour were calling their guests as they were going to sail earlier than planned to avoid the storm that was due to come.
We had a reservation for “Restaurante do Forte” at 8 pm on that evening. This restaurant was inside the “Forte de São Tiago”, a stately, historic fort from 1614. As the rain didn’t stop, we called a taxi to take us to the restaurant.
The restaurant is in a beautiful setting with an excellent service. We chose the “Special Concept” menu that included: couvert, amuse bouche starter accompanied of white or red wine, sorbet, main dish accompanied by white or red wine, dessert accompanied by Madeira wine, coffee and petit Fours. All for 55 Euros per person.
Below are some of the food we had at Restaurante do Forte.
They have other packages that include pick up and return to your hotel on a vintage car for 105 Euros per person.
It was an excellent evening and dinner, and I can highly recommend to anyone looking for a nice restaurant in Madeira.
When we finished our dinner, it had stopped raining. No sign of the storm so far. We returned to our hotel and stopped at the bar for another drink before retiring to our room. The sky was looking very cloudy!
We had booked a tour to visit the west side of Madeira for the next day. They would pick us up at 9 am and take us to visit the following places: Câmera dos Lobos, Cabo Girão, Skywalk, Ribeira Brava, Encumeada, Porto Moniz and Pau da Serra.
I will tell you all about the tour and the next day on my next post.
Don’t forget to check the tours available at Tourradar if you prefer to have your trip and tours all organised for you.
I hope this post will give you some idea of what can be done in one day in Funchal, Madeira and will help you plan your own visit there.
HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR TRIP
Below you will find a list of what to visit, where to stay and where to eat in Funchal, Madeira. I classified each place as follows:
BOLD – Visited, tried and recommended
NOT BOLD – Not visited or tried, but planning to visit or try and heard very good reviews
RED – Visited and tried but do not recommend, avoid or be cautious
*** – Excellent
** – Good
* – OK
£££ – Expensive
££ – Fair and affordable
£ – Cheap
PLEASE NOTE: Every hotel, restaurants and attractions I mention on my blogs are not sponsored reviews and we always paid the full price when visiting. We give our own opinion of the place and detail our experience, good or bad.
WHAT TO SEE
ATTRACTIONS – Day 2
1 – Parque Santa Catarina – ***
2 – Mercado dos Lavradores – ***
3 – Rua de Santa Maria – ***
4 – Teleférico Funchal-Monte – ***
5 – Monte Palace Tropical Gardens – ***
WHERE TO STAY
ACCOMMODATION
1 – Three House Hotel – 4* – ££
2 – Belvedere Boutique – 4* – ££
3 – Quinta São Lourenço – 3* – £
4 – Sé Boutique Hotel – 4* – ££
5 – Barcelo Funchal Oldtown – 5* – £££
6 – Funchal Tropical Apartments – 3* – £
If you prefer to look for your own accommodation, search and book via the below widget:
I use affiliate links such as the links above for Booking.com, Get your Guide, Viator and others. It means that if you use any of my links to make a booking, I will get a small commission from the partners I’m affiliated with without any additional cost to you. Please, use the links provided when making a booking, this is a way of supporting blogs like this so we can continue writing informative and interesting posts. I’m very thankful for that.
WHERE TO EAT
RESTAURANTS
1 – Restaurante do Forte – ££
2 – Leeno’s Bar & Restaurant – ££
3 – Restaurante Casal da Penha – ££
4 – Solar da Ajuda – ££
5 – Ákua – £££
6 – Kampo – £££
If you tried any of my recommendations above, please send me a message and tell me about your experience good or bad, so I can update the list accordingly. Thanks!
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