Madeira travel tips
Portuguese-owned island Madeira is back on the green list once again.
I flew out there on 17 May, the grand travel restart day, to see what holidays to the island looked like for visitors this summer.
Here are my must-see spots, and read the full report here.
These vintage wicker toboggans are the most exhilarating way to race 2km down Madeiras steep hills. Powered by two carreiros wearing hefty rubber-soled shoes and traditional straw hats, the baskets used to be used to transport fruit and vegetables from Monte (meaning mountain) down to the capital Funchal. The only way I can describe it is like a slightly out of control waltzer.
Sail up the mountain in a cable car
The most effortless way to get up to Monte is by cable car, which shimmies 3,000m up the mountain from Funchal. The ride itself provides some stunning views: across the Atlantic Ocean, all blue and wild; and over the top of orange-roofed houses and green terraces growing fruit and vegetables.
Due to my nosebleed-speed visit, I didnt get the chance to walk one of Madeiras levadas, a deep channel, typically for irrigation, that cuts through the mountains. Best I got was peering at one from the coach.
Marvel at the Cabo Girão Skywalk
Staring 580 metres down through a glass floor isnt everybodys idea of a good time, but its quite an impressive sight. From the Cabo Girão Skywalk, views across Funchal, the ocean and the Islas Desertas (the Ronseal of islands the only inhabitants are a large spider colony) unfurl.
Book a table at Design Centre Nini Andrade Silva Restaurant
Interior designer Nini Andrade Silva lent her expertise to the eponymous restaurant, right by the cruise ship dock in Funchal (unsurprisingly empty right now). The restaurant is housed in a glass box atop a lifestyle store below selling all kinds of uber-cool trinkets and has the best views back over the bay.
Espetadas are the skewers of meat that are a hallmark of the Madeira islands. Dressed in salt, laurel leaves and a lot of garlic, the skewers are hung from metal hooks on the table, and drip juices onto the table below. We ate at Vila de Carne in Funchal, but thats just one of many places to try this speciality.
Gawp at the Ronaldo sculpture
Madeiras most famous son, Ronaldo, is immortalised in bronze outside arrivals at the airport (currently wearing a face mask). This statue is not the first iteration, unveiled in 2017 by sculptor Emanuel Santos, which was widely mocked; its since been replaced by a better likeness of the footballer.
