February's floods left parts of Madeira under a blanket of debris. But not for long. As MARIE-CLAIRE DIGBYdiscovers, this subtropical island offers visitors luxurious accommodation, good food and pleasant surroundings
SIPPING A COFFEE in the sunny, flower-filled rooftop cafe of the Mercado dos Lavadores, or Workers’ Market, in Funchal on a recent Saturday morning, it was almost impossible to believe that just six weeks earlier, almost to the hour, terrified shoppers had sought refuge there. They had gathered, high on the roof, as a giant wall of water carrying with it enormous boulders, tree trunks and a fleet of parked cars that it picked up along the way swept down from mountains surrounding the city.
Friends has been incredulous when we told them we were going to the Portuguese island of Madeira on holidays at Easter, so soon after the storm that killed more than 40 people and left hundreds temporarily homeless. “You’re going where? But didn’t you see the news on TV – floods of biblical proportions, landslides, people swept away in their cars, giant boulders tumbling down streets, smashing everything in front of them?” they asked, with concern. A flurry of anxious e-mails later, we were assured that life was getting back to normal and that we’d be able to visit as planned.
Driving out of the airport, the first thing that struck us is that Madeira is hilly, very hilly, and also very prosperous in appearance. The slopes ascending from the Atlantic are stacked with large, extremely well maintained houses; few “charming ruins” are on view.
The island is tiny – 57km long by 22km wide – and emigration has been a fact of life for its 250,000-strong population. Madeirans are home birds, however, and many families forced to find work abroad maintain a home on the island – and keep it in pristine order.
On the road from the airport to Funchal there was no sign of the devastation wreaked by the storm of February 20th. In the harsh, unpredictable manner of weather-related natural disasters, the damage was localised. In some areas houses were badly damaged or completely demolished, and bridges and roads were swept away, while other areas suffered no damage at all.
“My colleague was here in the market with a group that morning,” tour guide Filipa Olim told us. “She phoned me and said they were all sheltering on the roof. The main door into the market was completely filled with rocks.” Olim was upset as she recalled the disaster that unfolded without warning that busy morning. “I was at home, and I stayed home for a week; there was nowhere to go.”
When the water receded, Funchal, a sober, elegant city, was blanketed in debris and mud. But not for long. “Everybody pitched in to clean up the city,” a hotel manager told us. “And nobody asked, ‘Who will pay us?’ ”
Remedial work is still being done in places, and temporary bridges have been erected where needed, but anyone planning a visit to the island, famous for its fortified wine, tropical gardens and rugged mountainous scenery, can rest assured that their holiday will not be disrupted.
Our plan was to stay at three very different hotels, each belonging to a 10-member marketing group called Quintas da Madeira, and to visit several other hotels in the group, to see what was on offer to the independent traveller in search of luxurious accommodation, good food and pleasant surroundings. Oh, and if our fellow guests were no more than two decades older than us, that would be a bonus, as Madeira has a reputation as being a bit sedate, and appealing to an older age group.
Checking in at Quinta da Casa Branca, a stylish, modern 43-bedroom hotel on the outskirts of Funchal, it became apparent that the OAPs, if indeed any were in residence, would be of the sleek, ultrastylish variety.
The hotel’s reception and bar area, in a Mies van der Rohe- inspired glass pavilion, is perched on the two garden-level bedroom wings sitting at right angles to each other, looking out over a lush subtropical paradise, with the Atlantic glittering in the distance.
A heated swimming pool is discreetly positioned behind a bank of foliage – nothing as vulgar as exposed flesh to disturb diners at the chic Garden Pavilion restaurant, where, as we ate breakfast in the sunshine, the only sounds were of birdsong, and the hypnotic swish of metal rakes gathering stray leaves.
Bedrooms are comfortable rather than luxurious, and there is a residents’ library with squishy sofas, newspapers and a computer with internet connection.
What attracted us to Casa Branca was its much-praised gourmet restaurant, set in an 18th-century building in the gardens. Here chef Miguel Laffan – he has an Irish grandfather – offers a six-course seasonal tasting menu for €50, as well as an à la carte selection.
The highlight of a delicious feast was a luxurious shellfish plate of lobster tortellini, scallop cannelloni, prawn in kataifi pastry, crab cake and an emulsion of coco, lime and curry.
Two days later, a 20-minute drive brought us to Ponta do Sol, reputedly the sunniest spot in Madeira, and Quinta da Rochinha, a determinedly contemporary hotel perched high on a cliff face, and accessible only by a concrete lift shaft cut into the rock face.
Comfortable, understated rooms, with fantastic views of sea and mountains, a heated infinity pool, a spectacular sun terrace protruding over the sea, with an honesty bar alongside, and a selection of chill-out zones from which spectacular sunsets unfolded every evening – yes, this was definitely our favourite quinta, and one of the less expensive, too.
The restaurant, a glass-walled oasis of calm with sea views so arresting they occasionally upstaged the food, served a modern European menu with occasional fusion twists, at very reasonable prices. The breakfast buffet here was the best we experienced in Madeira.
Tearing ourselves away from this oasis of calm and comfort, we headed back towards Funchal to experience a more traditional Madeiran hotel stay, at Quintinha Sao João, where the Barreto family run a home-from-home for their guests, many of whom return year after year.
The A Morgadinha restaurant, serving Goan-influenced food, was what brought us to Quintinha Sao João. The proprietors lived for some years in the Portuguese colony, and the matriarch, Dona Dina Barreto, handed over her recipe collection to the hotel chefs, who faithfully reproduce her curries, including an authentic, aromatic rather than mouth-numbing, pork “vindalho” made with chilli, garlic, cumin, turmeric and vinegar.
Spicy curries aside, this was definitely the sort of place you’d send your parents to but would think twice about booking with noisy teenagers in tow. Having said that, it was lovely to see guest-relations manager Rosie Borges, a UK native who has lived in Madeira for 20 years, interact with several quite elderly guests with unfailing charm and generosity, and the hotel had a charming, country-house feel.
That’s the charm of this tiny island. There are designer hotels with smart spas and stylish restaurants to give the hot spots of Europe a run for their money, elegant manor houses tastefully converted to provide a taste of a bygone era, and other, more homely places to stay, where a cup of tea enjoyed in the flower-filled garden might be the highlight of the day. Something for everyone, you could say, not just the blue-rinse brigade.
- Marie-Claire Digby was a guest of Quintas da Madeira, quintas-madeira.com
Go there Where to stay, eat and go
Where to stay
- Estalagem Quinta da Casa Branca. Rua de Casa Branca 5-7, Funchal. 00-351-291-700770, quintacasabranca.pt. Elegant, stylish hotel in quiet surroundings. Definitely a dress-for-dinner spot. Rates from €205; internet specials from €130 for a double room, including breakfast.
- Estalagem Quinta da Rochina. 9360 Ponta do Sol. 00-351-291-970200, pontadosol.com. Comfortable, no-frills rooms, with spectacular sea views and terraces or patios. Good restaurant and stylish bar. Parking can be difficult to secure near the entrance lift. From €45 per person per night, including breakfast.
- Estalagem Quintinha Sao João. Rua da Levada de S João 4, Funchal. 00-351-291-740920, quintinhasaojoao.com. Good- sized rooms in a quiet garden setting, within easy walking distance of Funchal town centre. From €66 per person per night, including breakfast.
Where to eat
- Quinta da Bela Vista. Caminho do Avista Navios 4, Funchal. 00-351-291-706400, belavistamadeira.com. Step back in time in this old-school manor house where the Swedish royal family are regular guests. The hotel is furnished with a vast collection of antiques, currently being catalogued by Christies, and thought to be the most important collection of British antiques outside the UK. Dinner, served by white-gloved attendants, made the most of local ingredients – scabbard fish in a cashew crust, pork loin, and passion-fruit soufflé.
- Estalagem Quinta Jardins do Lago. Rua Dr João Lemos Gomes 29, Funchal. 00-351-291-750111, jardins-lago.com. Jardins do Lago has a formal dining room that is highly rated, but eating a more casual lunch outdoors, at the Colombo Bistro alongside the swimming pool, was a memorable experience, not least because we got to meet Colombo himself, the hotel's 51-year-old giant tortoise from the Galapagos.
- Quinta do Furão. Achada do Gramacho, Santana. 00-351-291-570100, quintadofurao.com. Head chef Yves Gautier, originally from Brittany, is one of Madeira's top chefs, and at his doorstep in this northwestern corner of the island he has a wealth of organic produce. The restaurant is set in a vineyard, with a terrace overlooking dramatic cliffs and a gushing waterfall. This is the place to eat the local speciality of beef skewered on a bay-tree twig, cooked over a wood fire.
- Albatroz Beach Yacht Club. Quinta Dr Americo Durão, Sitio da Terca, Santa Cruz. 00-351-291-520290, albatrozhotel.com. You can take a dip in one of the hotel's two seawater pools, or play a game of tennis, before eating at this quinta's gigantic 400-seat restaurant. Situated right in front of the airport, it's a handy spot for a pre- or post-flight meal.
Where to go
- Monte cable car. Take the cable car from Funchal old town up 600m to the hill town of Monte, a 15-minute pleasure trip ascending slowly over the João Gomes valley, or an interminable white-knuckle ride, depending on your head for heights (€10/€15 return). You can come back down by even more exhilarating means – sitting in what looks like a giant wicker bread basket pushed down the road by two men wearing straw boaters. The Monte toboggan run is quite an experience (€20).
- Porto Santo. Madeira doesn't have many beaches, so you can take a day trip by fast ferry or short flight to Porto Santo, 40km north of Madeira, which has a 10km stretch of golden sand to lounge to.
- Levadas. Madeira is a walker's paradise, and the Levadas are a system of irrigation channels with footpaths running alongside that can be negotiated by even the moderately fit. Guided walks are plentiful and easy to book.
Go There:
Sata (01-8444300, sata.pt) flies to Funchal from Dublin.