The last thing you want before a walking holiday is for your travel companion to end up on crutches with a knee injury. And just like that, our carefully planned hiking trip along Madeira's levadas, the winding irrigation trails that criss-cross the island, had to be scrapped.
Still, as far as backup plans go, being "stuck" in Madeira isn't exactly a hardship. Instead of grabbing hiking poles, we grabbed car keys, set up base in Funchal, and explored the island by road.
Each drive brought us to a new corner of the island, from jagged cliffs to cloud-wreathed forests, all around an hour or less drive from the capital.
A Base With a View
We checked into The Views Baía, perched above Funchal with sweeping vistas over terracotta rooftops and the Atlantic bay. The hotel had everything we needed: a good restaurant, a spa with panoramic views, an outdoor pool, and, crowning it all, Desarma, a Michelin-starred restaurant, with a price tag to match.
Quirky Stops in the South
ur first outing began at the Banana Museum, which proved far more interesting than expected. It traces the long history of banana cultivation on the island with exhibits and a guided tour, but the real highlight comes at the end, in the café, where banana beer pairs perfectly with a slice of rich banana cake.
After a short spin, we arrived in Ponta do Sol, a pretty village where the Duke of Luxembourg Pier juts dramatically into the Atlantic. I cooled off with a dip in the sea from the pebbly beach. Today, the town is also known as a hub for remote workers thanks to Madeira's "Digital Nomad Village" project.
With sea views like this, it's hard to imagine a better office.
From there, we zipped back through Madeira's many road tunnels and wound our way along the coast to one of the island's most picturesque spots: Câmara de Lobos, also known as Churchill Bay. This tiny fishing village, immortalised by Winston Churchill during his 1950 visit, still feels like something out of a painting despite the tourist crowds.
Colourful boats bob in the harbour, and the streets are lined with restaurants spilling onto the pavements. We spent the afternoon by the water, eating fresh seafood (served with banana, of course), sipping poncho (the local sugarcane rum), and soaking up the atmosphere. Absolute bliss.
Dramatic Landscapes in the East
The next day, we pointed the car east and found ourselves in a landscape that looked more like Mars than Madeira. At Ponta do Bode, a jagged red cliff juts dramatically into the Atlantic, barren and stark, yet oddly beautiful.
From other-worldly Mars to something that looked a bit more familiar: the Guindaste Viewpoint, Madeira's answer to the Cliffs of Moher. The comparison is fair; sheer walls of rock plunging into the Atlantic, seabirds wheeling overhead, and waves exploding against the cliffs.
The main difference? Warmer weather, at least most of the time. During our visit, a sudden rain shower swept in, catching us off guard. A sharp reminder of how Madeira's microclimates can switch from blazing blue skies in the morning to a cool downpour by afternoon.
No road trip in this part of the island would be complete without a stop in Santana. The village is famous for its triangular thatched houses, painted white with red doors and blue trim. They resemble something from a fairytale or a meticulously crafted model village. Tourist-heavy, yes, but undeniably charming.
A City in Celebration
By the third day, we stayed closer to base and let Funchal do the work. Visiting at Christmas is something special: the whole city seems to glow. Streets are lined with lights, giant nativity scenes pop up in squares, and a festive buzz fills the air.
We started the day at the Mercado dos Lavradores, Funchal's bustling farmers' market. The building is striking, with tiled walls and wrought iron balconies, but it's the colours inside that steal the show: pyramids of tropical fruit, stalls bursting with exotic flowers, and locals selling handmade crafts.
I couldn't resist stocking up on Christmas tree decorations. From there, we wandered into Funchal's Old Town, where narrow cobbled streets wind past cafés and galleries. In the afternoon, we took the cable car up to the Monte Palace, watching Funchal unfurl beneath us, the rooftops, cruise ships in the harbour, and a carpet of green rolling into the hills.
At the top, the Monte Palace Tropical Garden offered a lush escape, complete with koi-filled ponds, exotic plantings, and a scattering of artworks and sculptures. It's the kind of place you could easily lose a few hours, though we eventually caught the cable car back down, grateful for the easy descent. Those famous wicker toboggans were tempting, but perhaps not wise for anyone already nursing injuries.
The highlight of visiting at Christmas is New Year's Eve. Madeira's fireworks are the stuff of legend, once holding the Guinness World Record for the world's largest display. At midnight, the skies above Funchal erupt in a 360-degree blaze of colour, rockets shooting from rooftops, hillsides, and barges at sea. For ten dazzling minutes, the bay burns bright, reds, golds, and silvers cascading in every direction.
Cruise ships pack the harbour, their horns blaring in playful unison, while thousands cheer from the waterfront and hillsides. We skipped the lavish gala dinner, which cost €220 at our hotel, The Views Baía, or an eye-watering €600 at its Michelin-starred restaurant, Desarma.
Instead, we watched from our balcony. It turned out to be the best seat in the house, with the city spread below us becoming a stage for the most spectacular welcome to a new year I've ever seen.
Into the Wild Northwest
Our final day of touring took us northwest, to some of Madeira's wildest scenery. First stop: Fanal, part of the UNESCO-protected Laurisilva Forest. Here, ancient laurel trees twist and sprawl across mist-shrouded fields, giving the place an otherworldly feel. It's the sort of landscape where you half-expect to stumble across a character from The Lord of the Rings.
From the forest, we drove to Porto Moniz, where a network of natural lava pools has been carved out by the sea. Swimming here is a unique experience: sheltered from the Atlantic's power, yet with waves still crashing against the outer rocks. We finished the day at Seixal, one of the few sandy beaches on the island.
Unlike most of Madeira's pebble-strewn shores, this one is soft black volcanic sand, framed by cliffs and waterfalls. It felt like the perfect spot to round off our whirlwind road trip, toes in the sand, mountains at our back, and the Atlantic rolling out in front of us.
Final Thoughts
Hiking the levadas will have to wait, but Madeira by road delivered beyond my expectations. It's an island where you can swim in the morning, explore enchanted forests in the afternoon, and dine at a Michelin-starred restaurant by night. And while crutches weren't on the packing list, they didn't stop Madeira from being an unforgettable trip.
Deirdre Mullins was a guest of Visit Madeira. For more information on Madeira, visit https://visitmadeira.com/en/.
Discover more of Deirdre's travels by following her on Instagram @deirdremullins.
