Madeira

The island of Madeira (from the Portuguese word madeira for wood) belongs to Portugal and is therefore a member of the EU. Madeira is located 951 km southwest of Lisbon and about 750 km west of the coast of Morocco in the Atlantic Ocean.

The Madeira archipelago includes the island of Porto Santo (reachable daily in about 2 hours by car ferry), the nature reserve of the archipelago ” Desertas ” (day trips possible) as well as the also uninhabited “Ilhas Selvagens”, known for its abundance of fish and shrimps.

Madeira has about 235.000 inhabitants on an area of 741 km², the main part of the Madeira people lives in the somewhat hectic capital Funchal and the surrounding area. The rest of the population (approx. 25%) lives in the rural main part of the island, where the coziness typical for this latitude prevails. Thanks to the support of the EU, Madeira has a “Central European” infrastructure with motorways, expressways, water supply, telephone and internet etc. The food supply with fish, meat and vegetables is of the best quality and for the most part directly from the island, the prices about 25% cheaper than in Austria, for example.

As a holiday destination Madeira offers a breathtaking landscape with rugged mountains, green valleys and countless river courses “Ribeiras” and more than 1000 km of hiking trails along the levadas, which serve as an irrigation system for the somewhat drier southeast of the island. Along the steeply sloping coastline, in many places bathing lagoons with sandy beaches protected by breakwaters have been built. (Calheta Beach, Ponto da Sol and Ribeira Brava).

The climate in Madeira is moderate, in summer rarely warmer than 30°C, in winter at the coast not below 18°C. The water temperature is 19°C in winter and up to 26°C in summer.

Offered holiday activities in the area:

CALHETA BEACH: Boat trips with whale and dolphin watching, sailing, diving, fishing, museum, rum factory, hiking etc.

FUNCHAL: In the capital (approx. 35 min. drive) historical buildings, botanical garden, Monte with the tomb of the last Austrian emperor Karl, museums, exhibitions, harbour, shopping centres, boat tours and much more.