Funchal

Madeira's capital

City Overview

Funchal, meaning ‘the place of fennel’ in Portuguese is the sixth-largest Portuguese city and capital of Madeira. With an amazing view of the Atlantic Ocean and built between cliffs and a mountain, the city is a great place to stay on the island of Madeira.

Airport Transfer

There are direct flights from Lisbon (1 hour and 50 minutes) and Porto (2 hours and 10 minutes) as well as direct low cost or national airline flights from Europe and USA to Funchal.

From the airport to the Centre of Funchal it takes around 20 minutes by taxi.

The Aerobus is the cheapest option and departs from outside of the arrivals area. It stops near various hotels and runs from 4.45 am taking around 30 minutes. You can buy a single or return ticket from the bus driver.

If travelling as a group it better to book a transfer service to meet you at the airport and take you to your hotel.

Getting Around

The city buses, run by Horários do Funchal, are fairly frequent and can be used to reach most parts of the city quickly. For places outside of the city, they are less frequent smaller bus service companies.

There is no central bus station in Funchal but several different stations. The Avenida do Mar is a good place to find a city bus (Horários do Funchal). Bus passes for a single day or 3, 5 and days can be purchased depending on the length of your stay.

Places to stay

Most people stay in the centre of Funchal to be within walking distance of most touristic areas or you can choose a local neighbourhood, closer to the ‘real’ Funchal. 

There is a wide choice of accommodation from 5-star hotels to local guest houses depending on your budget or preference.

Sightseeing

The Funchal city centre can roughly be divided into 2 parts. In the East, is the Old Zone of the city, which used to be a fisherman’s neighbourhood which has been turned into the trendiest part of the city, filled with bars, galleries, shops, and restaurants! This area is considered the nightlife area of city.

West Funchal is the newer part of the city, with shopping places, cafes, and museums. It’s the busiest part of the island with typical squares and old roads.

Mercado dos Lavradores is a huge Farmer’s Market in the East part of the city, where you can find the homegrown vegetables, fresh fish, local bakery items and flowers.

Praça do Município is the main square, called the Municipality Square, with its typical ‘calçada portuguesa’, filled with many historical buildings including the city hall built in the 18th century and the Museum of Sacred Art.

To visit the upper part of Funchal, in the mountain and where the Church of Nossa Senhora do Monte is located, the best way is by the Monte cable car. The ride usually takes about 15-20 minutes.

Carro de Cesto is a traditional sledge ride which are wickerwork sleds on wooden runners on which you sit and they descend through the hills of the mountains with two men, called ‘carreiros’ or sled drivers, on each side controlling it.

Madeira wine is a local speciality which you can experience at the Madeira Wine Caves. You will learn the history, process for making and enjoy tasting the wine. It’s a fortified wine, meaning it is stronger than conventional wines, and it is usually used either as an aperitif or a digestif, depending on the style.

Ilhas Desertas the Desertas Islands (literally ‘Deserted Islands’) if you are a nature enthusiast, are a great trip. Just 16 km southeast of Madeira, the Nature Reserve was created to protect the unique life of the islands’ birds, seals, and other species. You can get a boat trip to the islands directly from Funchal.

Ilhas Selvagens the ‘Savage Islands’ are the southernmost point of Portugal and are a very important bird nesting point, making them a closely protected natural reserve. The only manmade structures on the islands is a little house for the caretakers whom are the only people who live here year-round, and a lighthouse.

Porto Santo is the other inhabited island in the Madeira archipelago definitely worth a visit. The island is known for its golden beaches. There is a rumour that Cristopher Columbus lived on the island as he married the daughter of the first Capitan of the island. You can learn more about this at the Casa Colombo, a museum dedicated to the stay of the navigator.

Porto Moniz, is a place with natural swimming pools made by cooled-down lava filled with seawater, and Santana, that houses the traditional Madeiran cottages, the palheiros.

Bars, Clubs and Parties

The city has also lots of bars that make the city live throughout the night on the weekends! There you can get a sample of the famous ‘poncha’, a very sweet traditional alcoholic drink from Madeira made out of sugar cane, orange or lemon juice, and honey.

Cafes & Restaurants

Funchal has a large number of local traditional restaurants, as well as more modern international restaurants. There is several one- & two-star Michelin restaurants.

Seafood is a specialty in the city gastronomy, with ‘espada’ (scabbard fish) served with bananas as a local typical dish.

Bananas are one of the brands of the island of Madeira, and many other exotic fruits, such as blueberries, cactus figs, cherries, custard apples, grapes, passion fruit, pears and watermelons. These fruits are available pretty much everywhere on the island during the fruit season.

‘Bolo do Caco’ is the local traditional type of bread made from sweet potatoes and worth trying with your meal or used for a sandwich.

Main Events

You can decide to go in the summer for a vacation but another option is during the city’s carnival events.

The city hosts ‘Festa da Flor’ (Festival of the Flower’), where the city decorates itself with beautiful flowers and the people make a parade of flower-decorated cars. There is the annual Wine Fest in September and New Year’s is popular as the city has one of the biggest New Year’s fireworks shows in the world.

Other

Currency - Euro (EUR)

Language - Portuguese

Visas - Not needed for travellers from the US, Canada and Europe

Best Time To Visit - March – October

Timezone - Western European Standard Time (GMT)

Homosexual Activity - Legal