Madeira

Introduction

Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, roughly between Portugal and the Canary Islands. The archipelago contains Madeira Island and Porto Santo Islands, as well as smaller uninhabited islands. It is an one of the autonomous regions of Portugal, but part of the European Union. About 250,000 people call Madeira their home.

Brief History

The first settlers began colonizing the islands around 1420 or 1425. In 23 September 1433, the name Ilha da Madeira (English: Madeira Island, or literally island of wood) began to appear in the first documents and maps. The name given to the islands corresponded to the large dense forests of native laurisilva trees that populated the island during the settlement. In 1617, Algerian pirates, having enslaved Europeans along the Mediterranean coasts, captured 1,200 men and women in Porto Santo. After the 17th century, as sugar production shifted to Brazil, São Tomé and Príncipe and elsewhere, Madeira's most important product became its wine. The British occupied Madeira as a result of the Napoleonic Wars, a consented occupation starting in 1807 and concluding in 1814 when the island was returned to Portugal. On 1 July 1976, following the democratic revolution of 1974, Portugal granted political autonomy to Madeira, celebrated on Madeira Day. The region now has its own government and legislative assembly.

Geography

The archipelago of Madeira is located 520 kilometres from the African coast and 1,000 kilometres from the European continent. Madeira not only contains the main island but also other islands. The main island chains are Madeira (including Ilhéu de Agostinho, Ilhéu de São Lourenço, Ilhéu Mole), Porto Santo (Ilhéu de Baixo ou da Cal, Ilhéu de Ferro, Ilhéu das Cenouras, Ilhéu de Fora, Ilhéu de Cima, Desertas Islands (including the three uninhabited islands: Deserta Grande Island, Bugio Island and Ilhéu de Chão), Savage Islands, the latter containing two groups again: the Northwest Group (Selvagem Grande Island, Ilhéu de Palheiro da Terra, Ilhéu de Palheiro do Mar) and the Southeast Group (Selvagem Pequena Island, Ilhéu Grande, Ilhéu Sul, Ilhéu Pequeno, Ilhéu Fora, Ilhéu Alto, Ilhéu Comprido, Ilhéu Redondo, Ilhéu Norte).

Cities and Towns

• Funchal - Island capital and largest city in Madeira, home to tourist resorts, gorgeous panoramas, and local color.
• Câmara de Lobos - popular fishing village just west of Funchal.
• Santa Cruz - city and home of the Madeira airport.
• Machico - second biggest city on Madeira.
• Ribeira Brava - large town along the central Southern coast
• Calheta - popular beach resort.
• Ponta do Sol - just west of Ribeira Brava
• Santana - large village in the north of the island
• São Vicente - along the central northern coast.
• Porto Moniz - the northwestern corner.
• Porto da Cruz - beach village in the northeastern corner of the Island.

Sights and Activities

• Levadas - An impressive system of aqueducts built between 1461 and 1966 to bring water from the mountains to farmland.
• Cabo Girão - One of the world's highest ocean cliffs (590m/1,935 ft. above sea level).
• Jardim Botânico - Funchal Botanical garden.
• São Vicente Caves - Volcanic caves (grutas) where you can visit lava tubes. edit
• Jardim do Monte Palace - Magnificent gardens of the former Monte Palace hotel.
• Jardim Orquídea - Orchid garden.
• Miradouros - Splendid views of the island can be seen from various viewpoints, including Pico dos Barcelos, Pico do Arieiro, Pico de Facho, Curral das Freiras, Monte.
• The Laurisilva of Madeira - a special kind of subtropical forest found only on Madeira, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Events and Festivals

Madeira Carnival

Funchal is the main focal point of the flamboyant Madeira Carnival in mid-February. Not unlike the Rio Carnival, albeit on a smaller scale, the event boasts big processions (on Avenida Arriaga in the capital) and also features live music and theater from Saturday to Shrove Tuesday, concluding with the Trapalhão ‘fun’ parade.

Madeira Flower Festival

Madeira’s Flower Festival is like no other, bringing all the island’s beautiful floral produce together in a riotous splash of color in the center of Funchal. There are floats, singing and dancing galore, flower carpet-making and musical performances. The day before sees costumed kids construct a ‘Wall of Hope’ in the Municipal Square (Praça do Município) and the whole shebang takes place two weeks after Easter.

Atlantic Firework Festival

Orchestras perform to a backdrop of elaborate fireworks every Saturday in June in Funchal. The event incorporates the International Fireworks Competition and the Madeira Music Festival at the waterfront. For classical music, head to the Teatro Municipal Baltazar Dias, Palácio de São Lourenço or Casa das Mudas.

Madeira Day

July 1 marks the autonomy of the archipelago of Madeira, granted by Portugal in 1976. There’s plenty of flag-waving and parades, and local events take place all around the archipelago and the neighboring islands.

Funchal Jazz Festival

Local acts and bands from around the world perform for two days at the Funchal Jazz Festival in early July. Jazz and blues musicians can be seen at the Santa Catarina Park and jam sessions, workshops, and master classes are also held.

Madeira Wine Festival

A really fun and intriguing event for tourists is the Madeira Wine Festival, which reveals some of the culture and history behind the island’s wine making heritage. The late-August celebration begins in Camara de Lobos with the picking and stomping of grapes and a parade, followed by the main event in Funchal, which hosts various shows and tasting ceremonies.

Columbus Festival

This week-long event takes place on Porto Santo, where Christopher Columbus lived for a time and still holds a special place in the hearts of Madeirans. There are parades, parties, and exhibitions in mid-September, with the culmination being the re-enactment of Columbus’s arrival on the island.

New Year’s Eve Fireworks

This is without a doubt the main event on the Madeira festival calendar. Forget the Chinese with their noisy firecrackers on Chinese New Year, the New Year’s Eve display in Funchal Harbor is the biggest and best. The display goes on for around 20 minutes and is best seen either from the marina or a special cruise ship launched for the day. Bars and restaurants all over the island put on parties for the celebrations.

Weather

Madeira has roughly the same climate as much of the Mediterranean or the Canary Islands, though the influence of the Atlantic Ocean means that differences between the highest and lowest temperatures are (much) smaller. Summers last from May to September with daytime temperatures averaging between 22 °C and 24 °C, nights around 19 °C. Winters last from December to April with days of around 19 °C and nights averaging 14 °C. The lowest and highest recorded temperature ever (at sea level) is 4 °C and 39 °C respectively.
The winter months are the wettest months, with from October to March around 80 mm of rain at lower levels but much more at higher levels, and stormy and cloudy conditions may last for a few days sometimes. That said, there are fine periods with settled weather during winter as well. From May until September it is usually dry, especially at sea level, but occasional light rain may fall and fog can occur. Higher in the mountains rain is more heavy during this time.

Getting There

By Plane

Madeira Airport (airport code: FNC) is located on the island of Madeira and receives international flights. About 20 airlines have flights to and from Madeira, mainly to Portugal, Spain and most of the countries in the west and north of Europe. It also receives flights from the Azores.
The smaller Porto Santo Airport (airport code: PXO) has some seasonal charters from Italy, the UK, Spain, Germany, Tangier and Casablanca, as well as regular connections to the Azores and mainland Portugal (Lisbon, Faro and Porto)

By Boat

Naviera Armas runs weekly services between Portimao in mainland Portugal and on to Tenerife, with connections to other Canary Islands, like Gran Canaria and Lanzarote.

Getting Around

By Plane

SATA Air Acores has flights between Madeira and Porto Santo.

By Car

Driving in Madeira is not for the faint-hearted. A small number of main routes marked "Via Expresso" or "Via Rapida" (VE and VR on maps) are well-maintained, reasonably straight and level - thanks to a large number of tunnels, bridges and viaducts. All other roads are narrow and often steep. If a member of your group really enjoys the challenge of driving up ceaseless-seeming hairpin bends up mountains against oncoming traffic and usually with a sheer cliff face on one (or both) sides, then you may wish to consider hiring a car. Otherwise, it is best not to attempt driving on most of the island and instead to use buses and taxis. Of course a holiday based on public transport is less flexible, but for a driver with less than 100% confidence many of the roads are tiring, stressful and even dangerous. No-one should feel ashamed relying on the local bus, taxi and tour drivers (who after all are much better used to this kind of road). If you do decide to drive, then renting via the Internet is usually cheaper than walking-in.

By Bus

Beware: bus timetables are very confusing as they do not include clear route details. Pay special attention to any footnotes for your route listed on the schedule, as holidays or school days can change the presence of the route.

Tickets can be bought from the driver, who can provide change. For extra-urban buses, fare varies by distance traveled so tell the driver your destination and he'll give you a transfer if necessary. If you'll be taking the bus often, multi-day bus passes are available from most bus companies, but they are limited to one operator, so only useful if you'll by staying in the same general part of Madeira.

There are three bus companies on Madeira.

• Within the city of Funchal, Horarios do Funchal (yellow buses) operates lines no 20/21 Funchal - Monte, line no 29 Funchal - Camacha, no 56 Funchal - Santana (via Ribeiro Frio), no 77 Funchal - Santo Antonio da Serra (via Camacha and Sitio Quarto Estradas), no 81 Funchal - Curral de Freiras and no 103 (Funchal - Arco de Sao Jorge (via Faial, Santana and Sao Horge).
• Connecting the west side of Madeira, Rodoeste (grey/white with red stripe) operates lines no 3 Funchal - Estreito de Camara de Lobos, no 6 Funchal - Arco de Sao Jorge (via Encumeada), no 7 Funchal - Ribeira Brava, no 80 Funchal - Porto Montiz (via Calheta and Prazeres), no 96 Funchal - Jadrim da Serra (Corticeirias), no 139 Funchal - Porto Moniz, no 142 Funchal - Ponta da Pago (via Prazeres) and no 148 Funchal - Boa Morte.
• Connecting the east side of Madeira, S.A.M. (green or white buses) operates lines no 23 Funchal - Machico (Espressbus), no 53 Funchal - Faial (via Airport), no 113 Funchal - Canical (via Airport) and no 156 Funchal - Marocos (via Machico, changes bus at Machico).

All Rodoeste and S.A.M. buses converge in the centre of Funchal.

By Boat

Porto Santo Line operates a modern ferry, the Lobo Marinho, carrying passengers and vehicles between Madeira and Porto Santo every day. The crossing takes about 2 hours and 10 minutes.

Red Tape

If you are a European Union (EU) citizen, you may enter without any restriction as per your EU citizenship rights. If you are not an EU citizen, you will need to obtain a Schengen Visa. This visa is valid for any country in the Schengen zone.

Money

See also: Money Matters

Madeira has adopted the Euro (ISO code: EUR, symbol: €) as its official currency. One Euro is divided into 100 cents, which is sometimes referred to as eurocents, especially when distinguishing them with the US cents.

Euro banknotes come in denominations of €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200, €500. The highest three denominations are rarely used in everyday transactions. All Euro banknotes have a common design for each denomination on both sides throughout the Eurozone.

The Euro coins are 1 cent, 2 cents, 5 cents, 10 cents, 20 cents, 50 cents, €1 and €2. Some countries in the Eurozone have law which requires cash transactions to be rounded to the nearest 5 cents. All Euro coins have a common design on the denomination (value) side, while the opposite side may have a different image from one country to another. Although the image side may be different, all Euro coins remain legal tender throughout the Eurozone.

Work

Madeira is presently one the best locations in the E.U. for companies with operations in the single market and worldwide. With reduced direct and indirect taxation, adequate infrastructures, competitive operational costs, safety and quality of life, Madeira is positioned to provide the investor with a unique package of benefits, offering a wide range of solutions to enhance the efficiency and performance of various forms of investment.

Language

Portugese is the official language, but quite a few people will speak some English. English is as common as in mainland Portugal, although people will always appreciate it if you try and learn a few words of Portuguese. Note that the Portuguese spoken in Madeira tends to be heavily accented.

Eat

• Restaurante Arsénio's - Rua de Santa Maria 169 Funchal. A very nice restaurant in the historic part of the capital, Funchal, with live music and traditional Portuguese dishes but it is a little bit pricey. It is situated in the central street of the old town of Funchal, where the most famous restaurants of the capital are situated and you can find multilingual friendly service.
• O Avo - Rua da Praia, 49, Funchal. This small bar restaurant is situated in a small street in the heart of Funchal. There is a limited choice of delicious Portuguese dishes accompanied with beer in a very good price. The friendly owner of O Avo welcomes you in his place with a shot of beer where you can find many locals having their lunch.
• Muralhas Bar - Rua da Pedra d'Eira, Canical. An excellent choice for having a nice seafood meal in Canical, Madeira. Canical is a small fishing village, where you can find fresh seafood in a very affordable price. This restaurant offers a very nice atmosphere, where you can find original madeiran food and enjoy the beautiful scenery of Canical.

Sleep

There are numerous options to stay on the Island, mainly along the south coast which is the most popular because of the sunnier and drier wetter conditions. Funchal itself has many options, so do villages like Calheta, Canico and Camara de Lobos. There are few camping options, but some hostels mainly in the capital. Apart from that, there are many midrange to luxury places, from nice chalets and B&B's to luxurious hotels.

Drink

Madeira Wine is a fortified wine prized equally for drinking and cooking. There are four major types of Madeira: Malvasia (also known as Malmsey or Malvazia), Bual (or Boal), Verdelho, and Sercial, the latter two being drier.

One drink you surely have to try though is the famous Poncha, Madeira’s traditional white-rum lemon juice and Bee's honey drink.

Health

See also Travel Health

There are no vaccinations legally required to travel to Madeira. There is one exception though. You need a yellow fever vaccination if you have travelled to a country (7 days or less before entering Madeira) where that disease is widely prevalent.

Finally, other possible health issues include diarrhea and other general travellers' diseases like motion sickness. Watch what you eat and drink and in case you get it, drink plenty of fluids (to prevent dehydration) and bring ORS.

Safety

See also Travel Safety

Emergency Service telephone number is 112 Some police in Funchal have red armbands, this signifies that they speak another language other than Portuguese, mainly English and German. Crime figures for Madeira are very low.

Keep Connected

Internet

Wifi is common in many places in Portugal, including hotels, restaurants and coffee bars. Free wifi along the Algarve coast is available in many places. Internet cafés can still be found in most larger cities and tourist areas though.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

Portugal's international telephone code is 351. The general emergency number is 112.

There are three mobile telephone operators in Portugal: TMN, NOS and Vodafone.

Each provider offers a variety of prepaid (Pré-Pagos) and contract (pós-pagos) SIM cards, both of which are available to foreigners. It generally means much lower rates for calls and especially internet. Be sure to switch off data roaming if you don't buy a local SIM card, as prices for internet are very high.

Post

CTT is the national postal service of Portugal. It has relatively fast and reliable services and it takes several days to over a week for your post to arrive within other European countries, more so if you send post to North America or Australia. Post offices (correios) have varying opening hours, but in general post offices are open on weekdays from 08:30am-6:00pm and on Saturday mornings until 12:30. More information about offices, costs and other details can be found at the CTT website. It's a relatively efficient but also relatively slow postal service. If you want to send packages overseas, you'd better use international companies like FedEx, DHL, TNT or UPS, as they are competitively priced, fast and very reliable.

External Links

• Official Governmental Website
• Official Tourism Website