Madeira is a Portuguese island in the Mediterranean that you can visit all year round! In winter, they go surfing and launch the world's largest fireworks, in spring the island is buried in flowers, and its botanical gardens and relict forests are especially beautiful, and in summer and autumn you can simply swim, sunbathe on endless beaches and slowly explore its sights.
Top 10 attractions in Madeira
Funchal Monte cable car and toboggan
The cable car leads from the promenade in the old town of Funchal to Mount Monte. The journey lasts 15 minutes, during this time the cabin travels up 3, 2 km. These cabins are designed for 8 people, they are closed, so it can get stuffy on a hot day. The cable car runs quite low over the city - it offers excellent views of the coast and rooftops.
You can buy a ticket in both directions, you can only in one, or you can combine a visit with the botanical garden - a separate branch of the cable car leads to it. The way down Monte Mountain can be a separate attraction. You can walk through the gardens that cover the slopes of the mountain, or you can go on the toboggan: wicker sleds with wooden runners. They were invented by the Indians of North America, and here they began to be used from the middle of the 20th century and turned into an excellent entertainment for tourists. The sled is speeding downhill at a speed of 48 kilometers per hour and is driven by two robust park staff. Safe - but breathtaking!
Funchal Botanical Garden
A huge botanical garden, which occupies almost the entire slope of Mount Monte, was founded in 1952. First of all, the endemic plants of Madeira are preserved here, those that can only be seen on the island. But besides this, exotic plants from all over the world were specially brought here.
Part of the garden is occupied by a tropical forest - there are artificial lakes, grottoes, paths, this is more of an English-style park, only with palm trees instead of lindens. The second part is a garden of succulents that thrive in tropical climates. Another part is the pharmaceutical garden, where spices and medicinal herbs are collected, the fourth part is a garden of plants that are of industrial importance (for example, the very name of the city "Funchal" comes from fennel, which has always been grown here). Many fruit trees grow here.
In the botanical garden, there is an ornithological reserve, in which peacocks roam, and in which there are aviaries with parrots. There is an exhibition dedicated to tropical orchids - it has a separate entrance, as well as a natural history museum that tells about the nature of the island.
Porto Moniz lava pools
An interesting natural attraction, the inspection of which is perfectly combined with a beach holiday. A place associated with the former high volcanic activity and the origin of the island, when streams of hot lava flowed into the sea here - and they formed a bizarre network of bays on the coast, separated from the sea by thin lava barriers. These bays are shallow, which means that the water in them is always warmer than in the open sea, and there are no waves. Ideal for children, warm even out of season! Now they are specially equipped for swimming.
There are several such complexes in Madeira, the largest and most famous is located on the Porto Moniz beach. Some pools have a paid entrance - but there is infrastructure: sun loungers, showers, storage rooms. Some complexes are completely wild, but they are absolutely free.
Fortress of San Tiago
Fortress of St. Jacob was built in 1614. St. James is the patron saint of the city of Funchal, it is believed here that it was he who delivered the city from the plague in 1538. And the fort was built to protect against pirates who ravaged the island almost immediately after the plague - in 1566.
At the beginning of the 18th century, the fortress was modernized taking into account new requirements - after all, artillery made a huge step forward during this time. Since 1992, the fortifications have passed from the military department to the municipal one: now it is one of the main tourist attractions of the city.
The San Tiago Fortress has been restored and painted bright yellow and is the most striking and photogenic building in Funchal. You can climb on its walls. Until 2015, the barracks housed the Museum of Modern Art, but now it has moved - there is only a small exposition dedicated to the history of the fortress itself, an observation deck and a restaurant overlooking the sea.
Areiro Peak
Areiro is a mountain peak in Madeira, the most popular location for photography. The height of the mountain is 1818 m. It is not the highest on the island, but it is considered the most beautiful, and most importantly, the most attainable: almost the very top can be reached by car.
Madeira's landscape is formed by numerous volcanic eruptions, all these mountain peaks are the remains of one huge volcano that erupted here many thousands of years ago. The landscapes that open from the height of the observation deck are absolutely incredible: the gray-green mountains are buried in white clouds. But when there are a lot of clouds, then nothing is visible below, so it is better to come here in good weather.
A hiking trail leads from Peak Areiro to the neighboring peak - Peak Ruivo, its length is 7 km. The trail is equipped and easy - there are steps and handrails, so hiking on it does not even require special shoes.
Paul do Mar
A small town in the southwest of the island, recognized as the center of surfing in the Mediterranean. Here, the depth begins immediately from the coast, the waves can reach 8 meters in height. The highest waves and strongest winds are here in winter, from November to February, and lower waves in summer - just for beginners.
Surfing has been developing in Madeira since 1977, when the famous surfer Jibus de Soltre discovered it. In 2001, the World Surf Championship took place in Paul do Mar, and since then this is where fans of this sport have flocked. And since surfers are interesting and wealthy people, the former village has rapidly developed into a medium-sized, but interesting and crowded resort. Several hotels have been set up here, many cafes and mini-markets have been opened, and the beach has been equipped.
There are several surf centers in the town where you can rent any equipment and get lessons from masters if you are just starting out.
Madeira Museum
Madeira is the birthplace of the famous Portuguese wine, Madeira. In Funchal, you can visit a museum dedicated to local wine-making traditions - this is the wine production of the British company Blandy. It is located in the buildings of the former Franciscan monastery. The production has been in operation for many centuries; the oldest exhibit in the museum is a 17th century pressure press. Real Madeira is not only its own grape varieties, but also special fermentation methods, which are described here.
In addition to equipment, it contains letters from Winston Churchill, who came to rest and paint in Madeira and was a well-known connoisseur of local wines.
There is a huge tasting room: here you can choose for tasting a wide variety of wines, from young ones to vintage bottles of the mid-20th century. The oldest wines that you can taste here are over a hundred years old!
Monte Palace and Garden
There is a snow-white palace on Mount Monte, around which an exotic tropical garden is laid out. The owner of this garden and palace is the foundation of the famous Portuguese businessman and philanthropist Jose Berardo. He is known for organizing many museums and art centers based on his collection, however, he is also known for the fact that just recently he was accused of a number of financial crimes. But this does not affect the work of the palace and garden of Monte.
The palace is an exhibition space where you can see a collection of African sculpture and a collection of a variety of rare minerals. The garden is decorated in an oriental spirit, there is a lake on which black and white swans swim, many statues - from ancient to modern. The garden is decorated with traditional Portuguese ceramics - azulejo, one of the largest ceramic panels, for example, representing the whole history of Portugal. Still, the most important thing in this beautiful garden is exotic plants and beautiful landscaping.
Viewpoint at Cape Cabo Girao
In the south of the island there is one of the highest cliffs in the world - Cabo Girao. This is a basalt cliff 589 m high - there is no higher one in Europe. The depth of the bottom at the base of the cliff is quite comparable - for example, whales swim freely to it, and sometimes they can be seen. From here you can enjoy breathtaking views of the entire coastline, including the city of Funchal, gardens just below the promontory and mountain slopes buried in clouds.
You can get to the rock in different ways: there is a cable car and buses from anywhere in Madeira. At the very top there is an observation deck with a glass bottom - this entertainment is not for the faint of heart, and the bravest can jump off a cliff on a paraglider.
Relict laurel forest
Do you think laurel is a small shrub from which it is convenient to weave wreaths? The real laurel is 40-meter trees covered with moss of unimaginable thickness! These were the ones that grew throughout Europe 50 million years ago. But time is inexorable, after the ice age and climate change on the mainland there are no more such forests - they remained only on the subtropical islands: in the Canaries, in the Azores and here in Madeira.
Madeira has the largest area of the relict laurel forest in the world, its area is 22 thousand hectares, it is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. There are 4 types of laurel growing here, many shrubs and other trees - for example, there are eucalyptus groves. Several hiking trails have been laid through the forest, mainly along waterways.
