Breezy Madeira is an eponymous island in the Madeira Islands, a Portuguese archipelago. The capital city of Funchal was settled in the 15th century and is a colorful collection of gardens, religious sites, and quirky tourist attractions like the thatched-roof Madeira Story Centre. Hike to the summit of Pico Ruivo and you’ll feel like you’ve climbed through the clouds. Unwind over a glass of Madeira wine, an historic fortified beverage that’s musky and subtly sweet.
Restaurants in Madeira
5.0 based on 141 reviews
Vinhos Barbeito entered the wine business in 1946, during a particularly dark time for Madeira. During World War II, production and sales had ground to a virtual halt. As a result, far more companies were leaving the business than were joining. But Mario Barbeito had faith in the future. He also believed that the value of great Madeira could only go up as it became older and production of young vintages declined. But while Barbeito saw those vintage wines as a nest egg for the future, he was content to let the wines age. He wisely built the business in the early years around more modest Madeiras. It was left to his daughter Manuela - when she gradually took over the business from him in the 1970s to continue his work. In the mid 1990s, Manuela Barbeito began to turn over the reins of the company to her son Ricardo Freitas. He not only brought a deep respect for Madeira's classical roots, but also brought new energy and new ideas to the company. One of these ideas was to restore the role that Madeira once had as a companion of food. Ricardo is continuing his grandfather's and mother's legacy of making wines and preserving them for future generations. But he is also creating his own legacy: a series of Madeiras he calls his "Signature" wines. These handcrafted wines combine the best elements of Madeira's classical tradition with Ricardo's own quest for purity and vineyard and varietal expression. Made in tiny lots, their astonishingly graceful style has prompted British wine critic Jancis Robinson to call Barbeito the "Lafite of Madeira".
We have been welcomed by Leandro who provided us a wonderful tour of the Barbeito production. A fantastic journey to discover Madeira whine, history and techniques. The awesome tour ended with a very nice wine tasting with a well detailed explanation of the different wines. I really recommend the tour for anyone who wants to discover more about Madeira culture and history.
5.0 based on 223 reviews
The biggest International Art Center, Gallery and Art shop based on Madeira island with worldwide delivery. We work as an art residence with Portuguese and foreign artists, representing their interests far beyond our island. We also work with several Portuguese ceramists to highlight their contemporary take on traditional Portuguese ceramics. You can get to know the artists by visiting the page ART RESIDENTS and our BLOG. See the CURRENT STOCK section for collections and works available now. All artworks are unique and have original certificate of authenticity The shop is open every day, except Sunday . The gallery is open from Monday to Friday and temporarily from 10 to 5 pm.
We had a wonderful art workshop in Caravel - this was a great chance for us to try watercolors painting, without any prior experience. The atmosphere in Caravel is very inspiring, waking up your creativity. We draw nice paintings and each of us was quite surprised with her own talent ;) Also at the back of the building they have a lovely shop with little masterpieces of ceramics, paintings, and other art. Just inside this shop it's easy to spend half-hour or more - and the biggest challenge is to choose what to buy without buying everything ;-) Thank you very much for this experience and I wish you a lot of success!
4.5 based on 1,165 reviews
The gardens at "Quinta do Palheiro" are famous not only for the variety of plants that grow there but for the beauty of their setting in the hills to the east of Funchal, the capital of Madeira. Madeira has long been called the "Garden Isle" and it seems that almost anything will grow in its fertile soil.The Palheiro gardens are situated at about 500 meters above sea level and were started in 1801 by the original owner the Conde de Carvalhal. He introduced Camellias to the Island, hence our vast collection. The gardens, some 14 hectares (with about 650 species of plants),include the Camellia avenue, Main Garden, Sunken Garden, Rose Garden, Long Border and the Ladies' Garden where you find the tea house. There is also the Ribeiro do Inferno, a deep valley with treeferns and indigenous plants.
Absolutely brilliant from start to finish, so many unusual plants and trees, colours and shapes of leaves, well worth a visit, Entrance fee 11 euros. Has a cafe but we didn’t use it, as our men had gone on ahead as they did not want to walk round. If you love gardens it is worth a visit
4.5 based on 1,153 reviews
The "Nuns Valley" is a small village situated in the crater of an extinct volcano, which has kept its 16th-century Santa Clara Convent where the nuns used to hide from pirates who were attacking Funchal.
Our trip (with Lido Tours) included going to the top Pico de Arieiro so we could look down on the village, then onto the village itself where we enjoyed some chestnut bread and chestnut cake and had a sample of chestnut liqueur.. And we visited the chestnut museum! We didn't actually have time to eat anything in the restaurant itself, but did see people eating - you guessed it - roasted chestnuts! It's only a small place, but nice for a gentle wander - and don't miss the church, it's also pretty spectacular, especially given the size of the village. Our trip then went on to Camara de Lobos, another beauty spot where we thoroughly enjoyed a glass of poncha.
4.5 based on 982 reviews
One of the most beautiful and memorable hiking trails I've done. The vegetation among us is green and the actual 25 waterfalls are with the walk.
4.5 based on 8,480 reviews
Open to the public since 1991, the Monte Palace Madeira occupies an area of 70.000 square meters and houses a huge exotic plant's collection, coming from all over the world, together with swans,duck's and Koi fish. The Monte Palace Museum is an ideal exhibition space nestled within the beautiful surroundings of a tropical garden. There are three floors, two of which are dedicated to sculptures and the third houses a unique mineral collection gathered from the four corners of the world. Monte Palace Madeira, also includes one of the most important tile collections in Portugal. The tiles exhibited amidst the tropical vegetation represent several ages, coming from palaces, churches, chapels and private houses throughout the former Portuguese empire. We are open everyday except 25th of December. Our prices are: Adults - 12,50€ Children younger than 15 years old: Free Entrance as long as they are accompanied by adults. Check our new facebook page montepalacetropicalgarden
These are much more than just great tropical gardens: there are sculptures, great displays of tile-work, exhibitions (gem stones and Zimbabwean sculptures, when we were there), koi carp in profusion, a superb display of hundreds of orchids, a romantic Romeo and Juliet balcony and strand, waterfalls and fountains everywhere. A couple of cafes too. Absolutely excellent and really well worth a visit - just remember it’s a lon way above the town and often a fair bit cooler. Thoroughly recommended.
4.5 based on 3,403 reviews
Acquired in 1840 by Charles Ridpath Blandy, the Blandy's Wine Lodge has always been and is still an integral part of the production of Blandy's Madeira Wine. Located in the center of Funchal, Blandy's Wine Lodge allows visitors to Madeira an opportunity to experience first hand Madeira Wine in the making. Our tours will guide you through some of the history of the wine, its development and evolution, as well as the opportunity to taste the various styles of Madeira. Blandy's Madeira celebrated its bicentennial in 2011, the Blandy Wine Lodges give you a privileged perspective on 200 years of Madeira Wine. The lodge was bought by Charles Ridpath in the mid-19th century and not only was it an extremely valuable property, but was also very useful due to the fact that it was directly connected to the family's town house. Each one of the Lodge's rooms have their own character and due to the differing temperatures and humidity, the wines all have differing ageing profiles based on their location within the lodge. The eastern warehouse holds wine dating back to 1920 and the family's private vintage collection is held within thick stone walls, below the ground floor. The museum holds artefacts that include letters from Sir. Winston Churchill, coins from Blandy's bank and the island's oldest wooden lagar, dating back to the 17th Century. Murals from the renowned German artist Max Romer decorate the tasting room and references from the company's wide range of vintage wines are held in the sala frasqueira. Today the Lodge is the heart of the family's wine business where over 650 casks, tonnels and vats are stored, ageing the finest of the family's wines in the traditional canteiro method.
We did the 45 minute tour; brilliant guide, plenty to see, two different styles of Madeira wine to sample at the end of the tour, with the possibility of paying a very reasonable amount to sample many other wines, which we did! If you then buy a bottle of the wine that you sampled, the cost of the sample is deducted from the purchase price (and an additional 10% deducted if you had done the tour, so we ended up with two nice bottles of Madeira for 16.40 euros. Most helpfully, they give you a voucher to pick up the bottles at the airport after you have gone through security.
4.5 based on 6,144 reviews
Popular spot. Good place for picking up buses, taxis or the great Green Train down to the coastal resort of Camara dos Lobos You will pay through the nose at the cafe - tea, coffee and custard tarts @ €15 would almost buy a meal for two with wine locally
4.5 based on 2,422 reviews
Really enjoyed the walk across to end of the headland. Rock formation is fascinating. Great views. Dolphins seen in the bay. Tip - the excellent path is rough in places and I would recommend wearing good trainers or walking boots to support your feet.
4.5 based on 2,933 reviews
We have visited the pools after the volcanic caves tour. Entrance fee to the pools is about 1.5 euros for an adult and 0.5 for children. It worth the visit to see the beautiful waves crashing onto the volcanic rocks forming natural ocean pools. The water during December was freezing and only few brave people went in. The kids though were fascinated of the black crabs climbing on the rocks. A very nice 2 hours to pass with kids even in the winter months.
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