Come and discover the charms of a holiday in Funchal
Funchal is the capital city of the island of Madeira situated in the north Atlantic sea, 400km north of Tenerife. Its location means that the island has a relatively mild climate – the temperature rests around 20C all year round. It is therefore an ideal location for a winter break as well as a summer holiday. See here for all holidays to Madeira
Your holiday in Funchal - contemporary and historic
The city of Funchal is five centuries old, which is evidenced by its beautiful architecture including its fifteenth century cathedral and eighteenth century town hall. The town is boarded with beautiful scenery and is situated on the top of a hill which gives spectacular views over neighbouring towns and the Atlantic sea.
Funchal is not a party town resort – and is definitely not the new Malia – but that doesn’t mean that the Madeirense don’t know how to have fun. There is a wealth of different festivals throughout the year – starting with the large and impressive fogo de artifício on the 31 December which sees in the New Year with a very impressive firework display. Funchal has a wide range of bars and restaurants for the hungry holidaymaker - two traditional dishes from Madeira that need to be tried during your stay are the bacalhau, a dried salted codfish and espada com banana a scabbard fish served with banana. All this must, of course, be topped off with a slice of Madeira cake.
If you’ve got a head for heights and wish to experience Funchal and the harbour from above you can take a trip on the cable car to Monte, a peak 560m above Funchal seafront. If the views from Funchal are impressive, these views will blow your mind.
Although Funchal is the capital city of Madeira you will still get a strong taste of the beautiful nature that Madeira is renowned for whilst on holiday in Funchal. A holiday to Madeira is not complete without a walk in the world famous countryside. Madeira has 1000’s of levadas or small canals which run across the island. These canals offer some interesting and sometimes challenging walks for the more adventurous tourist.
Madeira is a relatively small island and there are lots of smaller cities to be explored – all in close reach of Funchal. Visits to nearby Canico and Garajau and to the mountains on the north of the island are a must to get the real feel of this beautiful island.
Funchal does not have a beach and Madeira is not a beach holiday location. A two hour ferry ride however from the island brings you to the sandy shores of Porto Santo where you can sunbathe and make sand castles until your heart’s content. See here for holidays to Porto Santo
Find out what the fuss is about
A Funchal holiday really is a break in paradise for those who love to walk and explore. There is so much to see that many tourists return year after year. Come and see why – book your affordable Madeira holiday today with lastminute.com.