The Portuguese Island of Madeira is situated 620 miles SW of Lisbon and 435 miles West of N Africa.
Flights from London take three and a half hours.
Temperatures usually vary between 25-
With its subtropical climate, striking scenery, exotic vegetation and friendly people, Madeira is a warm and restful retreat at any time of year.
Madeira is not a destination for clubbers or party animals.
You will find a year-
The city of Funchal is home to half the Island's population and most tour operators offer accommodation in the Funchal hotel zone. That is the place to be if you want to stay close to the little night life which Madeira offers and if you wish to avoid driving.
You can travel in the city by bus or taxi and take a day trip around the island with a tour bus.
Our useful links page gives links to the bus timetables but outside of Funchal services are limited.
If you prefer to escape the urban environment, hiring a car to meet you at the airport will give you the freedom to fully explore the island and stay in the beautiful scenery of the Madeiran countryside.
Many self catering properties are situated in rural locations where a car journey is necessary to find food, drink or anything else.
A location in a village where you can easily walk to the shop, bar or restaurant is a major advantage.
The villages outside Funchal are mostly located high on hillsides with views out over the distant Atlantic. Above 500m low cloud often closes in except in high summer. The few coastal villages are generally sunnier, especially on the south west facing coast. The north coast of the island is rugged and picturesque but the prevailing winds bring most of the island's rain from the north. Which is why in past centuries the levada irrigation channels were constructed to bring the water to cultivate sugar cane on the sunny south facing slopes.
Our village, Jardim do Mar is widely considered to be the most scenic unspoiled coastal village in Madeira
We make no recommendation for any particular car hire company, but you will usually find the most competitive prices on price comparison web sites.
We do recommend that you take care to check that your quote gives you your required level of insurance cover for your commitment in the event of damage to the hire car.
It is usual for the most competitive prices to require that you accept liability for an excess of 1000 euros, if you are happy with this, that’s fine.
If you are not comfortable with this level of commitment, look for another company. Be aware that if it is suggested that you may remove the excess liability by making an unspecified additional payment to the local car provider on arrival, you could be asked for a very substantial sum, often 4 or 5 times as much the normal charge of about 3 euros per day.
