At the beginning of the year, when we were planning our trips, we chose to combine 2 holidays in Brazil and Portugal – April 21st and 25th – to get to know the Madeira Island. We had found excellent flights on Google Flights from Lisbon to Funchal, using the tool Explore (have you heard of it?), and when we saw that the flight was 1h30, we thought it would be perfect for us to go with our little ones, aged 1 and 4. Luckily for us, my father decided to come visit us in Portugal and I was able to fit him in on this trip, buying tickets on the same flight and booking another room at the same hotel as well. It was a delight (and a huge help) to have him with us the whole time!
Now let's get to the details that matter! 😉
Tickets and luggage
We bought the tickets in January through Easyjet for our trip in April. The routes were Lisbon -Funchal / Funchal – Lisbon in the afternoon, great for the little ones' naps. We always use the Google Flights to compare airline prices and then buy directly from website of them so there are no surprises.
As Easyjet is a super company low cost, You are only allowed to take a bag on the plane free of charge that fits under your seat., that is, we have to pay for the cabin bags that go in the overhead bins, you know? Knowing this, we choose to buy a 23kg hold bag for the 6 days of travel and we only took our 3 backpacks on the plane (Paddy's only had his toys – pure cuteness!). We checked in Jú's baby carrier and the booster seat Paddy's together in a black bag on the counter check-in and our super foldable stroller, which could have been a “cabin bag” if we had paid for it, was delivered to the door of the plane free of charge. When we arrived at Madeira Island, we picked up everything from the conveyor belt indicated on the panel, including the stroller, but since the airport was small, it was quite easy to carry her on our lap all the way there.
Oh, in case you're curious, our cart is the Mountain Buggy Nano, a cheaper version of the Babyzen Yoyo.
Hosting
When we bought our tickets, I went straight into the Booking to search for hotels for the period. As I had read that the south of Madeira Island has a better climate than the north, that the Calheta Beach It was interesting for children because it was one of the 2 sandy beaches on the island and Funchal had the main attractions on the island, I only searched for hotels between Calheta and Funchal.
I got to the Calheta Beach – All-inclusive – Savoy Signature (rating 8.7) after using the filters we always use (free cancellation, rating above 8 and breakfast included) and also filtering by “indoor pool”. Since we are all crazy about water and I was afraid we wouldn’t be able to go swimming in the sea since it was still April, I chose to have an indoor pool so the kids could enjoy it in case the weather didn’t help. We compared the prices of other hotels without meals and this one, and we chose to have more comfort and convenience this time. I think that if we were traveling without the kids or if they were older, we would stay in Funchal and take advantage of the many cool restaurants there, but for this trip, I thought this configuration was good.
Calheta Beach – All Inclusive
The hotel is located opposite the Calheta Beach (artificial with sand from Morocco, from what I read) and is made up of 2 buildings that are separated by a street but connected by a really cool glass tunnel on the fourth floor. Every day we had to cross it a few times because our room was in the secondary building and the restaurant and pool were in the main building, so it was Paddy's joy to race there.
There are 2 not very large outdoor pools with a bar next to it and a view of the beach, an indoor pool that is also not very large and has warm water, a SPA, a children's room with some toys and lots of art supplies, a very simple outdoor playground, a comfortable lounge with a central bar, a restaurant. buffet for the 3 meals and there is also a nicer a la carte restaurant that requires reservations. This final detail was written in very small letters on a piece of paper handed out check in, but luckily Celo paid attention and we were able to make a reservation to have a different meal. Keep an eye on this because no one told us at reception!
I found the service in the restaurants, bars and reception to be impeccable. Not only at this hotel, but on the whole island, in fact. I don't think I've ever been treated so well in Portugal, to be quite honest. I asked several times for them to prepare unsalted food for Jú, who was still 11 months old, as well as yogurt and banana from Madeira – which I didn't always have – and they were very attentive to my requests, in addition to being very affectionate with the children. There was a wide variety of food every day at every meal, but we noticed an improvement in the quality over the weekend. Coincidence? I don't know… lol.
Our room was actually a one-bedroom apartment. It had a suite with a large bed and TV, a living room with another TV, a guest bathroom, a balcony with a sea view and a mini kitchen. Of course, we barely used the kitchen because we ate all our meals at the hotel, but it was nice to have a fridge so we could put water for our outings and the milk that Paddy likes to drink before bed. We asked for a crib for Ju for free and the sofa in the living room had a mattress underneath it which was Paddy's bed. There was a supermarket under our building. Sweet Drop, which was crucial for buying snacks for the tours, but I was surprised not to find any small containers of food for Jú. We had to go around some markets on the island until we found some.
The only thing I expected to be different was the age range of the hotel. Because it is all inclusive and having facilities for children, I thought I would see a lot of families there and that Paddy could meet some friends and give us a break… lol. However, practically 80% of the hotel guests were elderly gentlemen, mainly French and English, and most of them were not very interested in children. I saw that the hotel had a very full schedule of activities for children and adults, but since we were focused on sightseeing as much as we could, we ended up not enjoying it much during the day, but we did see some live music after dinner. I think it could be a good option for those who don’t need to wake up early and don’t want to worry about restaurant reservations.
Car Rental
We read on some blogs that it was very important to rent a car that wasn't a 1.0 because of the hills around the island and I confirm the information! There really are a lot of hills and descents because the island is mountainous, so if you want to go around without stress, invest in a better car. We rented ours through the website RentalCars with the company Hertz and when we went to pick it up, we were pleasantly surprised to find that it was a hybrid, which saved us a lot of gas by using only the battery. We only spent 29 euros for the entire 6-day tour. Thank you, Hertz!
Map of the places we visited
These were the places we visited on the island (You can browse at will):
Summary itinerary
- Thursday (April 21st): We took the flight from Lisbon at 2:10pm and arrived at the island at 4pm. We picked up the car at Hertz and drove straight to our hotel in Calheta.
- Friday (April 22nd): We visited the famous Cape Girao, then we went to Funchal to ride Cable car, we walked in the Monte Palace and we got off at Monte Toboggan Run.
- Saturday (April 23rd): We went to see the Waterfall of Angels and then we took the cable car from Fajã of the Priests.
- Sunday (April 24th): We went to Porto Moniz and then in Seixal bathe in the famous natural pools.
- Monday (April 25th): We walked around the Historic Center of Funchal and we met a friend who lives there.
- Tuesday (April 26th): Check out of the hotel. We drove to the Three Wise Men Beach near the airport and then we caught our 3:45pm flight to Lisbon.
As you can see, we weren't able to go hiking, see the typical houses in Santana, take boats to see the whales, or visit Porto Santo, Cristo Rei or the Ponta de São Lourenço Lighthouse. These are some of the attractions that I would have loved to have included in our trip, but that didn't make sense this time and left us wanting more.
Now let's go into the details of each day with lots of photos, as always! 🙂
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 – 04/21/2022 (Thursday)
Our flight from Lisbon to Funchal was at 2:10 p.m., so we decided to arrive at the airport well in advance to have time to check in our bags and car seats and also have a leisurely lunch. Everything went well, with the flight leaving on time, the kids taking naps during the flight and the plane landing smoothly at what was once considered one of the most difficult airports in the world (they did some work to extend the runway, so it's less punk now). We picked up our bags, went to the Hertz counter to sort out the car bureaucracy and then went to pick it up at the designated parking lot. I found the display of trophies won by the team interesting. Madeira Island as Leading island Destination…
We drove for about 1 hour from the airport to our hotel, the Calheta Beach – All-inclusive – Savoy Signature, and we were impressed by the quality of the roads, the number of tunnels (it's quite tiring), the geography of Funchal and the views, both of the sea and of the interior of the island. It really is an impressive island!
We arrived at the hotel, parked the car on the street (but later discovered that we had the right to parking inside the secondary building), did the check in super fast and we went to put our things in the rooms. My father stayed in a suite in the main building with a sea view and we stayed in the secondary building in an apartment with a sea view too, but further away. We got ready to go to the pool and when we got there, we saw that the water was cold. What a disappointment… To top it all off, Patrick ended up slipping and falling into the pool and a guy who had just gotten out of the pool quickly jumped in to catch him, which was a shock. Afterwards we had to calm him down, dry him off and change him and we waited for the restaurant to open so we could go to dinner.
We had our first meal at the restaurant buffet of the hotel and my first impression was very good. I thought there was a good variety of food, with a section for salads, another for cheeses, another for children, others with hot dishes and a considerable one with desserts. We quickly got a highchair for Jú, ordered drinks and had a happy dinner.
A long but very exciting day!
Day 2 – 04/22/2022 (Friday)
Summary of the day's itinerary:
Cape Girao
We had a wonderful breakfast and went straight from the restaurant to explore the island. We checked the weather forecast and when we saw that it was sunny, we went straight to the Cape Girao, the highest cable in Europe, at 589 meters high, famous for its suspended glass platform. We managed to park the car right in front of the attraction and went inside to enjoy the amazing view, without having to pay anything for this. What a wonderful place! Luckily it wasn't too crowded, and I dare say that's because some people are really scared to walk around there...lol Our little ones luckily didn't even mind the height. The view is really incredible, look:
Funchal Cable Car
Then we drove to Funchal, more precisely to the parking lot next to the Funchal Cable Car, and we saw a huge line that was discouraging. Since we were with a baby stroller, I asked if we had a special line and the lady organizing the lines happily took us straight to the ticket office. We bought the tickets (12.50 per adult one way, Paddy, who is 4 years old, and Ju, who is almost 1, didn't pay) and took a special shortcut to the cable car, meaning we didn't have to wait in line at all. So it's really worth traveling with a baby, huh? I recommend it!!! 🙂
The cable car ride was wonderful, because the day was beautiful and our son was super excited, which made us super excited too. (At the end of the trip when we asked him what he liked most about the island, he quickly answered that it was the cable car… cute, right?) We got a cabin just for us, which was great, and the 3200 meter incline ride took about 20 minutes. When we bought the ticket, we could have bought a return ticket for an extra 5.50 euros, but since we wanted to go back the Monte Toboggan (or Basket Cars), I didn't even consider buying it.
Monte Palace
We got off the cable car, enjoyed the view from the viewpoint and went to the Monte Palace. We are in doubt between him and the Botanical garden, I confess, but as the MP was there next door and I knew that the Monte Slide It was right at the exit, we decided relatively quickly on it. We paid 12.50 per adult to get in (Children again free and adults were entitled to one shot of madeira wine (in a café inside), we went down some stairs and when we started walking along the paths, I realized that it was a bad idea to go with a baby stroller. I really wish the girl at the ticket office had warned us… The garden is on several levels, so there are a lot of stairs, and the entire path is made of uneven stones, which made our pace much slower than we would have liked. Luckily, Jujuba soon fell asleep with the baby and we were able to calmly see many details of this magnificent garden with plants from all over the world. It was a hot day, but because of all the vegetation around, we didn't get too hot.
We thought the place was incredible and at the end, to complete the tour, we went to the café to have our Madeira wine (I loved it, it's very sweet!) and we also took the opportunity to have lunch. We ate hot dogs cooked on the grill that were very tasty (Juju a small container of supermarket food) and we rested a lot before leaving the garden. This final walk was quite boring because we were tired, especially Paddy, the sun was stronger and it was an uphill walk to the exit, but we made it.
Monte Slide
As soon as we left we saw a basket cart going down with its 2 carriers and 2 passengers very excited! For those who don't know, these Very traditional Madeira Island cars are handcrafted using wicker and wood, and have two or three seats. They are driven and controlled by two drivers, dressed in white and wearing straw hats on their heads, who skillfully use their own boots, with thick rubber soles, as brakes.
We were excited about what we saw and climbed a few more hills until we found the ticket office. We bought tickets to go in 2 cars (30 euros each), the first one with Paddy and Celo, and the second one with me, Jujuba and my dad. Yes, Jujuba went too! lol Since Celo, Paddy and I really wanted to go and didn't want to leave my dad alone with Ju, we had to go together. The line was huge and I would have had the right to skip it because of Ju, but since Celo and Paddy would be at the back, I didn't think it made sense. We all waited together and in less than half an hour it was our turn. How exciting, guys! I even asked the drivers to go slower, but I don't know if they really did. I thought it was really exciting, as did my dad, but Ju was so calm that I think she thought it was slow... lol
We reached the end of the trail after a 10 minute descent and took a taxi for 10 euros to the cable car parking lot. We drove straight to the hotel, where we had dinner and collapsed into bed. A fun day, for sure!
Day 3 – 04/23/2022 (Saturday)
Summary of our relaxing day:
Relaxing at the hotel
We had breakfast and as the weather was cloudy and we found the previous day tiring, we decided to enjoy the indoor pool from the hotel. We spent a good amount of time enjoying the kids having fun in the water, even though the temperature wasn't very warm, and when it started to get cold, we went up to our room.
Waterfall of Angels
We rested and got ready to have lunch at the hotel restaurant and as the weather improved, we went out to explore a little. We went to see the famous Waterfall of Angels, which is a waterfall that falls in the middle of the street and washes the entire car. There were a lot of people walking to it, but I think going by car might be cooler, right? We thought it was cool! Here's a really rough photo, because what really turned out cool was the video, but I won't post it here...lol.
Fajã of the Priests
Then we went to the cable car Fajã of the Priests, which is very close by, and we were amazed by the view from up there and the steepness of the cable car ride. We paid 10 euros per adult (children again free) and off we went on a sinister descent. It gave us butterflies in our stomachs, you know…
We loved walking along the path between the beach and the organic plantations. It’s a super remote place, where some people stay to experience exactly that peaceful pace. At the end of the walk, we arrived at the famous restaurant and we thought it would be interesting to stop for just a snack, since we had just had lunch. We ordered grilled limpets, typical seafood from Madeira, and I confess that I didn't like it very much. Celo and my father loved it. We also ate caco cakes, which are delicious breads, plain and also with a little olive oil…I recommend them! We rested while Juju took a nap, Paddy threw pebbles on the beach and when the deadline to catch the cable car back came (6pm), we went back.
We drove back to the hotel, had dinner and went to bed early to make the most of the next day. A totally relaxing day!
Day 4 – 04/24/2022 (Sunday)
Summary of the day:
Porto Moniz Natural Pools
After breakfast, we took advantage of the beautiful day and went straight to see the Porto Moniz Natural Pools, one of the main attractions of Madeira Island. We found the road to be excellent, with beautiful views, some cows along the way and a delicious smell of the forest, you know? Zero traffic, zero stress….
When we arrived in Porto Moniz, we went straight to the famous pools, because we saw that the city still seemed empty. We parked the car in front of the pool complex, paid for parking with coins in the machine and when we saw the view, we were super excited! The place was really well thought out, because it has shallower and calmer areas, others that are deeper and calmer too, but for those who enjoy it, there is even a somewhat dangerous part where the strong waves crash.
We rushed to get into the water, hoping it would be a little warmer than in Cascais, but I found it just as cold… lol. We got in with some effort, of course, and after the shock, we were able to enjoy it a lot. My father and Jubs didn’t get in, but Celo, Paddy and I did. When it got cold, Paddy would lie down on the concrete floor to warm up and I would cover him with a towel until he felt better. Then he would run around a bit and we would relax. It’s hard for a cold child to get your heart pumping, right?
Lunch in Porto Moniz
We stayed in the pools and sunbathed until we got bored (lol) and hungry. We then stopped at the playground for the kids to play a bit and then we went to eat quickly at the restaurant/snack bar. Spoon, because it had a good rating on TripAdvisor. The place is quite small and has few employees, so we ended up waiting a long time for our sandwiches and salads. The idea of having a snack was precisely to not waste too much time in a restaurant, but it clearly didn't work out... and the place isn't anything special. We thought it would have a nice view, but look how boring it is:
Viewpoint of the Ribeira da Laje
After we finally paid the bill, we drove to Seixal, where we stopped at Viewpoint of the Ribeira da Laje to see this beautiful view:
Slug Puddles
We then saw that it was possible to go down a hill and we imagined that it would lead to the pools, so we went without much expectation. Halfway there, Celo thought it would be better to go back to get the car and drive there. We arrived at what I now know are the pools. Slug Puddles, which are natural pools with breathtaking views. This time Jubs and I didn't go in, but Celo, my dad and Paddy did. The adults managed to swim to the end of the pool and I was terrified that strong waves would hit them, but fortunately none came. Just look at this beautiful place:
We left there feeling refreshed and took a beautiful road through the island to our hotel. We stayed with impression that the north side of Madeira Island is more beautiful than the south side because it is more native, you know? We loved it! We arrived at the hotel, had dinner and went to bed. A delicious day!
Day 5 – 04/25/2022 (Monday)
Last full day on the Island…
We had breakfast and then went to the Kids Club room to play with the kids. I took the opportunity to tidy up the mess in our room a bit and we got ready to have lunch at the hotel's a la carte restaurant where we had booked.
Special lunch at the hotel
We arrived at 1 pm, were well attended to and ordered dishes that were much more beautiful and tasty than those at the restaurant. buffet, since the kitchen is the same. Psychological? I don't know...lol
Historic center of Funchal
After lunch we went to explore the city center Funchal, capital of Madeira Island, which I had read had several interesting attractions. We parked the car in the well-known cable car parking lot and walked to one of the main ones, the Farmers' Market. As it was a holiday, the market was closed and we could only see it from the outside, but I read that there are several stands from local producers with a rich diversity of products. It seems that some add sugar to the fruits to captivate tourists, so just in case, be careful!
After this initial frustration, we continued walking around the center following the route indicated in our Publifolha guide to Portugal. We passed by Funchal Cathedral, built in the 15th century and also closed because of the holiday, then we went to the Town Square, where the City Hall is, we walked around Funchal Municipal Garden, which is super nice and not mentioned in the guide, and we stopped for a snack at Café Ritz Funchal, which has a facade decorated with tiles depicting scenes from Madeira Island.
A dear friend met us at Café Ritz and we caught up before heading back to the hotel. I even felt like living on Madeira Island after hearing about her experience.
We went down the side street of Palace of Saint Lawrence and we came across the parade of the soldiers' band from the barracks, which is housed right there in the Palace. It was really cool. We then walked along the famous Avenida do Mar to the parking lot and drove straight to the hotel. We had dinner, put the kids to bed and packed some things for the check out the next day.
This was the summary of the tour:
Day 5 – 04/26/2022 (Tuesday)
Day to leave…
We had our last full breakfast at the hotel, picked up our bags, did the check out fastest in history (thanks to All Inclusive) and we headed towards the airport for the Three Wise Men Beach, a place frequented by our friend who lives on Madeira Island. We actually wished we had left earlier and gone to visit the famous typical Madeira houses in Santana, but we got busy and time was too short for this tour around the middle of the island, so we only did the south coast.
Three Wise Men Beach
We parked the car very close to the beach, Paddy threw lots of stones into the sea (he loves it!), we sunbathed while we walked and then went straight to the airport.
We filled up the car at a BP station just outside the airport and were surprised at the total cost of 29 euros for the entire trip. We really saved a lot with the hybrid car! We then returned the car to Hertz at the same parking lot where we picked it up, and it was super quick too, because we had full insurance from RentalCars.
Airport
We did the check in With Easyjet, we checked in our car seats and luggage and went to have lunch at the airport before boarding. There were few restaurant options and we ended up choosing Pizza Hut. Then we boarded and were left waiting for almost an hour to get on the plane. After 40 minutes they told us that there was a technical problem with the oil, they told us to sit down and after 10 minutes they called us back for another boarding. Be patient, you know… The good thing about all this is that Jujuba slept in the baby carrier and stayed asleep for half the flight. We arrived in Lisbon on time and were home in no time, very happy with our trip to Madeira Island.
A trip that will stay in our hearts! <3
