Thread: Funchal - Madeira Island - Portugal

Greetings from Madeira Island...
All questions are wellcome...

Greetings to you, too!
And thank you very kindly for the offer to answer questions about your area.
It's nice to have someone from an area that, for many of us, is so far away, and not real familiar to us.

Hello from Funchal Canarymoon...
You are all wellcome im Madeira Island...

If I were planning a cruise that called at Funchal, what are the top two or three things that you would say I should not miss?

Originally Posted by canarymoon

If I were planning a cruise that called at Funchal, what are the top two or three things that you would say I should not miss?

Hi Canarymoon and everybody else interested,

Acording to Daniel, my husband, the top three places that you should not miss in Madeira are:
--- Pico do Areeiro, one of the mountains in the central part of the island. It stands at an altitude of 1818 meters and, very often during the summer months, as clouds form low in that area, when you reach the top, you can see lots of peaks, coming out of those cotton wool like clouds.
--- Encumeada, 1007 meters high, also in the central part. From this view point, and when the weather is clear, you can see both the north and the south costs.
---Eira do Serrado, at 1095 meters high, from here you can look down at all the Curral das Freiras (Nun's Valley) area. Curral das Freiras, a village nowadys, is the center of the vulcano that originated Madeira.

I'm, now, going to add three recommendations of my own:
--- Cabo Girão, on the south coast of the island and at 589 meters above sea level, is the highest sea cliff in Europe and the second highest in the world.
--- Porto Moniz, very nice sea side village on the western coast. Has beautiful natural pools, among vulcanic rock formations.
---Paúl da Serra, the Plateau, at 1500 meters, is very different from the majority of the island, as this an almost flat area, having only, here and there, some small rock heaps. Vegetation is also in the form of small shrubs.


Thank you for reading my post and I hope I was able to attract a bit of your attention to Madeira.

Thank you for the good suggestions, Eusebia!

Originally Posted by Char

Thank you for the good suggestions, Eusebia!

You are very much welcome, Char!

Is my signature alright? Please let me know.

Originally Posted by biaria

You are very much welcome, Char!

Is my signature alright? Please let me know.

Be sure to put your web site in once it is up and running.

Originally Posted by Char

Be sure to put your web site in once it is up and running.

Ok, I will. Thanks.

I would like to add the Monte Palace Gardens by cable car. You can also take a sled part way back. The cable car is easy to reach from the port (a longish walk or short cab ride) and you should plan on at least an hour in the gardens, although the more time the better. Lots of shade on a hot day so why not take a picnic. Strong legs are recommended.