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A subtropical garden with palms and flowers above the Atlantic coast
Subtropical gardens on the Atlantic coast (illustrative)

Europe · Portugal

Madeira

A garden island in the Atlantic with a remote-work village and 20 degree winters.

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Madeira is a volcanic garden 600 kilometres off Morocco, green from cliff to peak, with a capital that looks over a bay of cruise ships and jacarandas. It is not a beach island; it is a walking, eating and looking island, with levada paths along the old irrigation channels and a climate that never really does winter or summer. Remote workers discovered it during the pandemic and many never left.

The palm: Canary Island date palm

Funchal’s gardens are the reason to come: Monte Palace, the Botanical Garden and the Quinta do Palheiro grow palms from every continent alongside strelitzias, orchids and jacarandas. The island’s own forest is laurel, a UNESCO relic of the pre-Ice Age Mediterranean, and it hides behind the palms on every hillside.

When to go

°Crainsea January: 19°C by day, 8 rainy days, sea 19°C19°February: 19°C by day, 7 rainy days, sea 18°C19°March: 20°C by day, 7 rainy days, sea 18°C20°April: 20°C by day, 6 rainy days, sea 18°C20°May: 22°C by day, 3 rainy days, sea 19°C22°June: 24°C by day, 2 rainy days, sea 21°C24°July: 26°C by day, 1 rainy days, sea 22°C26°August: 27°C by day, 1 rainy days, sea 23°C27°September: 26°C by day, 3 rainy days, sea 24°C26°October: 25°C by day, 8 rainy days, sea 23°C25°November: 22°C by day, 9 rainy days, sea 21°C22°December: 20°C by day, 9 rainy days, sea 20°C20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Typical daytime highs, rainy days per month (one drop is about four days) and sea temperature. Green bars are comfortable months, amber bars are hot or wet or cool, and the darker bars mark the best time to go.

Sights

Monte and the cable car

Up from Funchal’s old town to the palace gardens, then down the hill in a wicker toboggan steered by men in straw hats.

Levada walks

The Levada das 25 Fontes and Caldeirão Verde follow water channels through laurel forest to waterfalls.

Pico do Arieiro to Pico Ruivo

A ridge walk above the clouds between the island’s highest peaks. Start at dawn.

Funchal old town

Painted doors on Rua de Santa Maria, the Mercado dos Lavradores and poncha bars.

Beaches

  • Praia da Calheta

    Golden sand behind two breakwaters on the sunny south-west coast.

  • Porto Moniz pools

    Natural lava pools filled by the Atlantic at the island’s north-west tip.

  • Porto Santo

    The neighbouring island, two hours by ferry, has nine kilometres of dune-backed sand.

Events

  • May

    Flower Festival

    Floats of flowers and a carpet along the seafront in Funchal.

  • Jun

    Atlantic Festival fireworks

    Saturday firework competitions over the bay through June.

  • Dec

    New Year fireworks

    Funchal’s bay display is one of the biggest in the world, watched from cruise ships and hillsides.

For remote workers

Internet5/5

A comfortable month: about €1,800

Ponta do Sol on the south coast launched Europe’s first digital nomad village in 2021, with free coworking, events and a community that now reaches Funchal. Portugal’s D8 visa covers non-EU remote workers. Fibre is excellent, English is everywhere and the sea stays above 18 degrees all year.

Compare as a base

For families

Calm water3/5
Shade3/5
Medical care4/5

Madeira has few natural sand beaches; the lidos of Funchal and the golden beach at Calheta (imported sand) are the family swimming spots, plus the volcanic pools of Porto Moniz. Levada walks, the cable car to Monte and the toboggan ride down entertain older children.

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Three things to know

  1. Stay in Funchal or on the south coast; the north is greener, cooler and wetter.
  2. Rent a car for the levadas and the peaks, and expect tunnels: the island has more than 150.
  3. Espetada, beef on a laurel skewer, and bolo do caco garlic bread are the dishes to order in the hills.

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