Four charming country cottages on Madeira Island to let in a unique Quinta. 


The Doll's House
1 bedroom, sleeps 2
+ baby


The Garden Cottage
2 bedrooms, sleeps 4
+ baby


The Wine Lodge
2 bedrooms, sleeps 4
+ baby


The Stone House
3 bedrooms, sleeps 6
+ baby 


The beaches in Madeira

One can find in Madeira Island many beaches which should satisfy most tastes, nowadays  even sandy beaches, pebble beaches, or natural rocky beaches. You can also swim in various bathing complexes, both private hotels and those run by the municipalities. Detailed information is available in various internet sites. The sea temperature varies from about 22º/24ºC during the summer to 23º/20º in the Autumn until December, 19º/18º in the winter/early spring and 20º/21º in late spring/early summer. The sea is warmer in Madeira than on the Atlantic coast of Portugal (only 18º/19º in summer) as  Madeira benefits from the Gulf Stream crossing the Atlantic from Mexico.

The sandy beaches in Madeira
 


1) A secluded natural beach Prainha  200m long, with grey volcanic sand about 25 min from Funchal by car on the V.R.1 motorway, situated on the eastern end of Madeira near Caniçal fishing village. It is accessible from the free parking area on foot in about 5 min. It is more suitable for good swimmers, because of  strong waves specially in winter.

- Number 21 on the map below.
 


2) In the town of Machico (2nd largest after Funchal) 20 min to the east of Funchal, 5 min before Caniçal, one finds an artificial sandy beach with golden imported sand. Thanks to a barrier the sea is calm and suitable for children.

- Number 22 on the map below.


3) In Calheta 30 min to the west , where the coast  is usually sunnier, two sandy beaches have been created with imported golden sand. Thanks to the barriers, the sea is also usually calm and appreciated by children.  

- Number 9 on the map below.

 

 

4) The best destination for fans of sandy  beaches in the Madeira archipelago is without doubt Porto Santo (the golden isle), a small island 50 Km to the northeast of Madeira. There you find a golden beach approximately 8 Km long on its southeast coast. The island is 2 and a half hour away by ferry and 20m by plane. Therefore, it is possible to visit and spend one day there.


The natural pebble and rocky beaches.  

In Madeira most of the volcanic beaches are rocky or have large pebbles. The largest with pebbles is Praia Formosa in the western suburbs of Funchal with free parking. But, one finds also other areas with natural beaches, which have more and more grey sand and less pebbles removed by the tides. For example Porto da Cruz village 30 min by car on the northeast. Previously covered by large pebbles it has become mainly a grey sandy beach like Prainha . The sea is usually rougher on the north coast with stronger waves. The Atlantic is different from the Mediterranean with some waves normally and it mainly suits good swimmers, although it can be also be very calm in the summer and occasionally throughout the year.

Another little grey sandy beach with a protective pier is Reis Magos in Caniço de Baixo 10 min from Funchal and children appreciate it.

The seawater swimming pools and public and private bathing complexes .

Often the residents and tourists swim mainly in the numerous seawater swimming pools which have been built or adapted on the rocky coast, where one can also find easy access into the sea by using steps from the rocks. They are mostly situated in the tourist areas of Funchal and Caniço. Among them the  public Lido municipal complex in Funchal and Barreirinha in the old town of Funchal. Also accessible is the private hotel Galomar Lido complex in Caniço de Baixo.  To use them costs about 3/5€ and some other hotels offer the same facilities and access to visitors, but are usually more expensive.  

The largest and most famous natural seawater pools are found in Porto Moniz nearly 1 hour from Funchal on the northwest of the island.

Porto Moniz -  Number 12 on the map.