The Portuguese island of Madeira is a vacation destination that most US based travellers only visit during a short stop. The reason for this is that most US based tourists to the Maderia archipelago travel courtesy of one of the many Atlantic exclusive cruise ships. And, the standard is that these liners only anchor for a few hours before setting out again for the next port of call. The briefness of stay is a shame since Madeira has great natural and cultural diversity to offer it’s guests.
As I am involved in the sphere of assisting tourists to Madeira Island, I often receive emails asking me to suggest an itinerary to see everything the island has to offer in 5 or 6 hours. The Funchal cable car is an ideal tourist attraction. Understandably, many people believe that this is a reasonable request. After all, if you look at Madeira on a map, you will find that the island stretches to dimensions that are around 14 miles across and 33 miles long.
In the recent past, the rugged volcanic landscape meant that taking a journey by car could be an extremely difficult and slow adventure. Up until a couple of decades ago, the only way to drive from one end of the island to the other was by using old, narrow, mountainside roads that were frequently punctuated by 180 degree turns and little or no protection from the sheer drops that waited just a few feet to your side. Definitely not recommended if you suffered from vertigo!
For the benefit of both locals and tourists alike, today, Madeira boasts a highway network that makes quick, easy travel the rule rather than than an exception. However, touring the whole of Madeira in a just a few hours would mean that you would miss the full extent of scenery, places of import and tourist attractions that we have to offer. So, in this case the best alternative, if time is limited, would be to choose a localised tour.
Thus, for transient ship passengers with little more than five or six hours available to explore, what tour is the most suited?
Well, for people who haven’t visited Madeira before, I would strongly suggest a city jaunt around Funchal, the island’s capital. As all cruise ships drop anchor in Funchal harbour, this choice will consists of minimum travelling mileage.
For convenience, download a detailed free map of Funchal.
Funchal and its nearby surrounds has more than enough to occupy the interests of everyone. A top five list would definitely consist of these choices:
Walk along to the cable car. This will give you a journey from from the Zona Velha in Funchal up to the traditional mountainside destination of Monte On the way up you will find yourself looking at some panoramic views of the Funchal City. You will also gain an aerial view of your luxury liner at anchor in the harbour – just right if you want to capture that special photograph of it.
Having completed your cable car journey, your initial place to visit should be Monte church. This church, much beloved by the locals, occupies the exact location where the first chapel on Madeira Island was built. This chapel, if local folklore is to be believed, was built to celebrate the first people to be born on the island, twins appropriately called Adam and Eve. In a small, gated side chapel of Monte Church, you will find the tomb of the last Emperor of the Austria-Hungarian Empire.
If you are interested in all things botanical, then stop by at the Monte Palace Tropical Gardens. These exquisite gardens, built into the mountainside, have intricate displays of trees, shrubs and flowers from around the globe along with a variety of weird and wonderful cultural objects that are housed in and around the grounds. A couple of the highlights are the formal Oriental Garden and the assortment of ceramic tiles that features examples from a period range of one hundred and fifty years.
When you are ready to leave Monte, exit the Gardens, turn left, and you will find the starting point for the famous Monte Toboggans ride. These icons of traditional Madeiran transport are made from chair sized, local, wicker baskets secured to ski-like wooden runners. Having seated yourself down, two steering side-runners will guide your ancient form of transport down the sharply descending hills. Ernest Hemmingway once gave the opinion that this ride was the most exhilarating experience of his life. Nowadays, health and safety regulations mean that, it is no longer so breathtaking, however you will still find nothing like it anywhere else in the world.
After all the thrills of your toboggan journey, you will be looking for a bit of relaxation and refreshment. So, catch a taxi or local bus back to the city centre and choose from the many restaurants and cafes that are available.
The seafront by the Marina has some high quality seafood restaurants. At these, you will be guaranteed that every item on the menu will have been purchased in the local fresh fish market earlier that day.
Or, you could choose to head for the back streets where some of the smaller cafes list on their menus traditional dishes at very affordable prices. You could find yourself enjoying a post meal glass of Madeira wine in a converted old wine cellar. Or, maybe, enjoying an espetada, a local speciality consisted of cubes of beef roasted on a wooden skewer, whilst being entertained by a traditional Madeiran folk troupe.
Whatever your choice, I can guarantee that, as your cruise liner takes you out into the Atlantic ocean and the mountain tops of Madeira fade into the blur of the horizon, you will be drawing up fresh plans to visit this delightful island again.