The Mini Rough Guide to Madeira (Travel Guide eBook)

By Rough Guides

This pocket-sized guide is a convenient, quick-reference companion to discovering what to do, what to see and how to get around Madeira. It covers top attractions like Funchal, Monte, Jardim Botânico and Pico do Arieiro, as well as hidden gems, including Curral das Freiras, São Vicente and Ponta do Pargo. This will save you time and enhance your exploration of this fascinating country.

This Mini Rough Guide to Madeira covers: Funchal, Funchal Old Town, Monte, Curral das Freiras, Câmara de Lobos, Cabo Girão, Ribeira Brava, Ponta do Sol, Calheta, São Vicente, Quinta do Palheiro, Porto Moniz, Pico do Arieiro, Ribeiro Frio, Santana, Machico, Ponta de São Lourenço, Porto Santo

In this travel guide you will find:

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EVERY TYPE OF TRAVELLER
Experiences selected for every kind of trip to Madeira, from cultural explorations in Funchal to family activities in child-friendly places, like Parque Temático do Madeira or chilled-out breaks in popular tourist areas, like Porto Santo.

TOP TEN ATTRACTIONS
Covers the destination's top ten attractions not to miss, including Jardim Botânico, Palácio de São Lourenço, Cabo Girão and a Perfect Day itinerary suggestions

COMPACT FORMAT
Compact, concise, and packed with essential information, with a sharp design and colour-coded sections, this is the perfect on-the-move companion when you're exploring Madeira

HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL INSIGHTS
Includes an insightful overview of landscape, history and culture

WHAT TO DO
Detailed description of entertainment, shopping, nightlife, festivals and events, and children's activities

PRACTICAL MAPS
Handy colour maps on the inside cover flaps will help you find your way around

PRACTICAL TRAVEL INFORMATION
Practical information on Eating Out, including a handy glossary and detailed restaurant listings, as well as a comprehensive A-Z of travel tips on everything from getting around to health and tourist information.

STRIKING PICTURES
Inspirational colour photography throughout

• Language: English
• Publisher: Insight Guides
• Release date: Aug 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9781839058264

Rough Guides

Rough Guides are written by expert authors who are passionate about both writing and travel. They have detailed knowledge of the areas they write about--having either traveled extensively or lived there--and their expertise shines through on every page. It's priceless information, delivered with wit and insight, providing the down-to-earth, honest read that is the hallmark of Rough Guides.

Book preview

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HOW TO USE THIS E-BOOK

Getting Around this e-Book

This Rough Guide Mini e-book is designed to inspire you and help you plan for your visit to Madeira, and is also the perfect on-the-ground companion for your trip.

The guide begins with our selection of Highlights, plus a Perfect Itinerary feature to help you plan an unforgettable trip. The Introduction and History and Culture chapters give the lowdown on Madeira, past and present, while the Out and About chapter is a comprehensive guide to all the best sights. You will find ideas for getting active in Things to Do, while the Food and Drink chapter introduces you to the local cuisine and gives listings of our favourite restaurants by area. Travel Essentials offers just that; practical information to help you plan your trip. Finally, Where to Stay provides a special selection of hotels for every budget.

In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.

Maps

All key attractions and sights in Madeira are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map], tap once to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.

Images

You’ll find lots of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of Madeira. Simply double-tap an image to see it in full-screen.

About Rough Guides:

Published in 1982, the first Rough Guide – to Greece – was created by Mark Ellingham and a small group of friends who couldn’t find a guidebook to meet their needs. Combining a contemporary, journalistic style with a thoroughly practical approach to travellers’ needs, the immediate success of the book spawned a series that rapidly covered dozens of destinations. These days, Rough Guides include recommendations from budget to luxury and cover more than 120 destinations worldwide, all regularly updated by our team of ever curious, roaming writers. These Rough Guide Minis may be small, but they are packed with information and inspiration and offer amazing value for money.

© 2022 Apa Digital AG and Apa Publications (UK) Ltd.

Table of Contents

10 Things Not To Miss

A Perfect Tour of Madeira

Overview

Natural Wonders

Size And Population

The Capital City

The Rural Interior

Tourism And Madeira

History and Culture

Portugal’s First Colony

Energetic Agriculture

Plundered By Pirates

Madeira And Britain

Modern Times

Out and About

Getting Around

Funchal

The town centre

The market, Old Town and seafront

West of town

Glorious gardens

Around Funchal

Monte

Villages in the hills

Western Madeira

Câmara de Lobos and Cabo Girão

Ribeira Brava

The southwest coast

The northwest coast

The central highlands

Pico do Arieiro

Ribeiro Frio and the levada trails

The road to Santana

Eastern Madeira

Machico

The northeast coast

Porto Santo

Vila Baleira

An island tour

Things To Do

Shopping

Best Buys

Wicker

Needlework

Other handicrafts

Food and drink

Collectables

Flowers

Where to shop

Entertainment

Nightlife

Festivals

Carnival

Flower Festival

Wine Festival

New Year’s Eve

Religious Festivals

Sports

Spectator Sports

Walking & Hiking

Golf

Tennis

Trail Running

Horse Riding

Swimming

Diving

Big Game Fishing And Boat Trips

Children’s Madeira

Food and Drink

What To Eat

Table Wines

Madeira Wine

Other Island Drinks

To Help You Order

Menu Reader

Where To Eat

Funchal Town

Funchal Hotel Zone

Funchal Tourist Zone

Beyond Funchal

Porto Santo

A–Z Travel Tips

A

Accommodation

Airports

B

Bicycle hire

Budgeting for your trip

C

Camping

Car hire

Climate

Clothing

Crime and safety

D

Driving

E

Electricity

Embassies and consulates

Emergencies

G

Getting there

Guides and tours

H

Health and medical care

Holidays

L

Language

LGBTQ travellers

M

Maps

Media

Money

O

Opening hours

P

Police

Post offices

Public transport

T

Telephones

Time

Tipping

Toilets

Tourist information

V

Visas and entry requirements

W

Websites

Y

Youth hostels

Where To Stay

Funchal Town

Funchal Hotel Zone

Funchal Tourist Zone

Beyond Funchal

Porto Santo

10 THINGS NOT TO MISS

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1. Madeira’s hills and mountains

Venture out on spectacular scenic walks. For more information, click here.

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2. The Adegas de São Francisco

Visit the oldest working wine lodge in Madeira. For more information, click here.

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3. Monte

The fashionable hilltop town above Funchal is best known for its exhilarating toboggan rides. For more information, click here.

Paul Murphy/Apa Publications

4. Jardim Botânico

Marvel at Madeira’s extravagant flowers. For more information, click here.

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5. Pico do Arieiro

Drive above the clouds to the top of Madeira’s second-highest peak. For more information, click here.

Phil Wood/Apa Publications

6. Funchal’s Museu de Arte Sacra

Outstanding Flemish paintings enjoy pride of place in this museum. For more information, click here.

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7. Porto Santo

Relax on gorgeous golden sands on this nearby island. For more information, click here.

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8. Madeira’s lido complexes

Enjoy a dip. For more information, click here.

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9. Palheiro cottages

These traditional thatched cottages are still in use in the Santana region. For more information, click here.

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10. São Vicente

One of Madeira’s most attractive villages, with volcanic caves nearby. For more information, click here.

A Perfect TOUR OF MADEIRA

Day 1

Funchal finery. Split your first day in the capital Funchal between the magnificent Quinta das Cruzes and the Adegas de Sao Francisco, the historic wine lodge. In the former, you can check out the antiques and faded splendour of one of Funchal’s grandest mansions, and in the latter, you can taste Madeira’s extraordinary fortified wines.

Day 2

Cable car and market. Still in Funchal, take in the amazing views via one of Madeira’s cable car routes, either from the base station in Old Town or from the Jardim Botânico (explore the gardens first if you choose the latter). Both go to Monte and offer return journeys. Next, browse your way around the Mercado dos Lavradores, a busy, colourful spectacle, with leather goods, wickerwork, and handicrafts on sale alongside fruit, vegetables and fish.

Day 3

Wicker toboggans. It’s a short hop by road to the hilltop town of Monte, where you can explore the many local gardens, such as Jardim do Palácio do Monte, and indulge in a traditional downhill wicker toboggan ride, aided by drivers dressed in straw boaters.

Day 4

Hill gardens. Spend the day exploring the Palheiro Gardens, the most magnificent of Madeira’s many splendid gardens. The hill-draped estate is a short bus ride from Funchal, and famous for its exotic plants, wild ravine, and gorgeous winter camellias.

Day 5

Pico do Arieiro. You can take a bus tour to the summit of Madeira’s third highest mountain, Pico do Arieiro in the central highlands of the island. It’s something of a moonscape, whose plunging barren volcanic landscapes glow russet red in the sunlight.

Day 6

Nuns’ refuge. Next, head to the equally spectacular Curral das Freiras, which you can reach via bus, car or organised tour, a 10km (6-mile) trip from Monte into another world. The village’s name means ‘Refuge of the Nuns’, and it’s encircled by a ring of mountains and was for a long time barely accessible to the outside world. It’s an extraordinary sight, with the steep slopes around it dotted with terraces.

Day 7

São Vicente. The enchanting prettiness of São Vicente is worth the cross-island trip from Funchal. Not only will you see one of Madeira’s most picturesque villages, but if you’re feeling adventurous you can drive the heart-stopping, dazzling old coastal road from here to Porto Moniz.

Day 8

Porto Santo. On the last day of your trip, fly or boat over to the island of Porto Santo, with its 9km (5.6 miles) of golden beach. This tiny, mountainous, white-sand-fringed island is the ideal place to relax and spend the last day or so of your holiday.

Overview

A mere speck in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, Madeira is thickly draped with vegetation, a colourful riot of flowers and fruit trees. Rugged mountains peek through the clouds, and microclimates hover over isolated villages. Spectacular cliffs crash down to the surf below.

Although the islands were known to Roman and Carthaginian sailors 2,000 years ago, Madeira was only settled a few decades before Columbus made his way to America. It became part of the Portuguese empire after the great expedition teams of the fifteenth century claimed it for King João I. But Madeira is nearer to Africa than to Lisbon. It lies 600km (372 miles) off the coast of Morocco and nearly 1,000km (620 miles) southwest of the Portuguese capital.

Madeira is an archipelago, formed from volcanic eruptions many millions of years ago. The land is like an iceberg; massive mountains poke through the clouds, forming the mere tip of a submerged mass. Apart from Madeira itself, only one other island in the group is inhabited – the arid, much flatter holiday hideaway of Porto Santo. Christopher Columbus visited Porto Santo in the second half