We take a trip to the home of Ronaldo – the beautiful Portuguese island of Madeira
There’s a spontaneous and enthusiastic round of applause as our plane touches down in Madeira.
We are cheering both the gentle landing and the stunning approach to this airport said to be so challenging to land at that pilots need special training.
Stepping off the plane, I catch a first glimpse of the countless red-roofed homes scattered over the hills which will become an abiding memory from this trip.
That and the view from our hotel room, pina colada slipping down as easily as the waves roll over the rocks in the Atlantic Ocean below us.
I’ll be as bold as to say this might be one of the best hotel room views we’ve ever had.
But then we are in Madeira – an island where stunning scenery is around every corner.
Our particular corner of this Portuguese island is the village of Canico de Baixo.
And our hotel is the Riu Madeira. A large, all-inclusive resort with two outdoor pools, an indoor pool, as much fresh food as you can eat and as many cocktails as you can drink.
One of the outdoor pools
There’s also a tennis court, games room, an area to play bowls and evening entertainment from singers, bands, magicians and a ballroom dancing duo who call up our daughter to help demonstrate her Strictly Come Dancing skills.
The applause makes her day. And it’s the staff here, especially those in the busy restaurant area, who deserve a pat on the back.
It can’t be easy to keep guests from over 300 rooms fed and watered but they come round to top up your wine glass with an efficient smile before it’s even half emptied.
We’re almost as quick to clear our plates of tasty food. The main restaurant is buffet style catering to every possible preference. There’s also a more adult focussed Kulinarium restaurant with table service. And a poolside bar and grill.
The main bedroom in our junior suite
Our room is a junior suite with two large beds and a sofa bed for the four of us to choose from.
Having a separate lounge area allows us to spread out as does the large dressing room area – all kept spotless by our lovely maid.
Oh and that balcony I mentioned earlier overlooking the sea. It is literally a stone’s throw from the Atlantic Ocean.
Sea view from the balcony of a junior suite room at the Riu Madeira hotel
And there are plenty of stones to throw on the rocky beach.
The area around the hotel is a fun place to explore with caves, a small seawater pool, exercise equipment and a busy promenade to enjoy.
The lure of the swimming pool at our hotel is just as popular with our children – indoors if the showers sweep in, or outdoors when the sun shines.
Fortunately the sun is out for most of our week in Madeira so we can explore the narrow, hilly roads around the island.
We head east to the stunning clifftop walk of Ponta de São Lourenço .
The view from our walk at Ponta de São Lourenço
Drive north west through mountains and tunnels to the natural seawater pools and aquarium in Porto Moniz.
Seawater pools in Porto Moniz
And go south to Câmara de Lobos – a fishing village made famous by Winston Churchill, who painted its pretty harbour when he came in 1950.
Looking at Churchill’s view in Camara de Lobos
One must in Madeira is to head up high.
We take the cable car from the centre of capital Funchal to Monte. It’s a spectacular ride and at the top you can enjoy the beautiful Monte Palace gardens before riding back down again on the cable car.
Monte Palace Garden
Another way down is by toboggan on a traditional wicker basket sleigh along steep streets, guided by two people with nothing for brakes but the grips on their shoes.
If you like heights it’s worth stopping by at the Madeira Skywalk. You can walk across a glass walkway on a balcony 580 metres above the sea attached to some of the highest cliffs in Europe.
Madeira Skywalk
After a busy week of highs, it’s nearly time to leave.
The cliffs beneath the Madeira Skywalk
For a last time, we awaken and pull back the curtains to enjoy the view and the sound of the Atlantic from our bed.
Then it’s back to the airport, named after the island’s most famous export.
Not its fortified wine but the footballer Cristiano Ronaldo.
He was born here and returns regularly and this is one happy family which may follow suit.
Where we stayed
The Riu Madeira hotel in Canico de Baixo, a four-star all inclusive, read our full guide and review to it here.
*Take a toboggan ride on a traditional wicker basket.
*Visit the traditional fishing village of Câmara de Lobos, visited by Winston Churchill and find the spot where he painted the view. Also look for his statue in the village.
*Visit the salt water pools at Porto Moniz and the small aquarium in the town.
*Take a walk at inland Levadas – similar to canal paths – at various sites throughout Madeira. The Fanal forest walk in the north west of the island is one of the best places to explore.
*Take a walk at Ponta de São Lourenço for stunning scenery and ocean views,
*Visit Santa Catarina park Funchal with its large playground, busy lake and views over Funchal and its port.
*Football fans can stop at the CR7 Museu – a museum dedicated to Cristiano Ronaldo on the waterfront in Funchal. There is a statue of the footballer outside.
*Stop by at the Madeira Skywalk on the cliffs of Cabo Girão and walk across the glass walkway on a balcony that juts out of some of the highest cliffs in Europe, 880 meters above sea level.
We review the Riu Madeira Hotel on the Portuguese island of Madeira and give you a video tour
We love a Riu hotel so when we found out the Riu Madeira had been refurbished, we were excited to try it out. Here’s our full review and guide to this four-star all-inclusive on the gorgeous Portuguese island of Madeira.
Name
Riu Madeira
Where is it?
The hotel is in Praia dos Reis Magos in Caniço de Baixo on the south coast of the Portuguese island of Madeira, east of the capital Funchal.
It is nestled in the hillside overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.
Outdoor restaurant seating
What is it?
It’s a four-star all-inclusive hotel with three restaurants and two pools and is one of the Riu Hotels & Resorts hotels.
As it’s all-inclusive, everyone wears a wristband and all food and drink is included. It also has a spa, hairdressers, lobby bar and a big room to watch shows and entertainment each evening.
Is it family friendly?
It’s great for everyone including families. Children will love the pools, location and food – there’s so much choice that there should be something for even the fussiest eaters including pizza and three pasta options every day.
There’s a tennis court and a place to play bowls. But there isn’t a RiuLand Children’s Club as we’ve seen at other Riu hotels and the two outside pools are deep although there’s a separate little paddling pool.
The reception area
The rooms
There are 327 rooms, including single and twin rooms along with junior suites.
They all have air-conditioning, a balcony or terrace and free Wi-Fi, which was very fast and reliable.
The main bedroom in our junior suite
We had a fabulous junior suite with the most stunning view over the sea, wonderful to enjoy from the bed or balcony. It had two double beds pushed together and a separate area with a sofa bed. There were two televisions, a bathroom with two sinks and a shower, plus bathrobes which you could wear around the pool (not available in children’s sizes). The sound of the sea from the room was so relaxing.
The second room in our junior suite
Food and drink
There are three restaurants and all food and drink, including alcohol, is included.
The main buffet restaurant – we ate mostly in this restaurant which serves a huge selection of food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There are plenty of tables inside and out, overlooking the pools. It only felt really busy on one morning, which was a Sunday.
The main buffet restaurant
Kulinarium – this is an a la carte speciality restaurant. The food is delicious, made from local produce and the service is fantastic, staff are so attentive. The menu is small and there is no separate children’s menu but if there is nothing they fancy, you can always fetch something from the buffet restaurant. This restaurant gets booked up in advance so make sure you book a night on arrival.
Kulinarium
Pepe’s Food – this is a poolside grill bar which has a selection of food and drink open during the day.
Pepe’s Food
Sports and activities
There’s a hard-surface tennis court, a card games room and an area to play bowls plus a small gym.
The tennis court
We spotted lots of people running along the sea front and many stop to use the outdoor gym equipment dotted around on the path running behind the hotel.
We went in February half-term but from around July to mid-September there’s a daytime entertainment programme for six to 12-year-olds, six times a week.
Our hotel highlights
One of the outdoor pools
*The pools – the indoor pool, one of the outdoor pools and the paddling pool is heated during the winter months.
Indoor pool
*Entertainment – after dinner in the show room there was a different music act each evening until around 9pm followed by a show from 9.15pm including a magic show, a circus-themed performance and an Elton John tribute. Our favourite was the ballroom dancing as our daughter got picked to have a go.
The bar area
*Views of the sea – the view from our bed and balcony and many of the sunbeds of the ocean, were stunning.
View from the sunbeds
*The staff – staff were so friendly and attentive throughout the hotel.
Top tips
Pool towels are available from a hut next to the outdoor pools. You are allowed one each but can swap for a dry one or for a pool card whenever you want.
The towel hut
Breakfast got busier later in the morning so go earlier if you can for a more relaxing experience.
If you want to eat at the a la carte Kulinarium restaurant book as soon as you arrive because it fills up quickly.
Tell us more about Madeira
Madeira is one of the Madeira Archipelago (group of islands), as well as Porto Santo, Desertas and the Selvagens. The islands are south west of Portugal, off the coast of Africa and are actually closer to Morocco than Portugal.
Madeira used to be hard to explore as it is so mountainous with rugged coasts, but today there are raised roads and loads of tunnels – two of them over 1.9 miles long.
My abiding memory of Madeira will be of all the red-roofed homes scattered over the hills and the pretty lights sparkling on the hillsides at night, which you can even see from the airport as soon as you arrive.
The view from the Madeira Cable Car
Nearby
If you leave the hotel by its rear exit, you cross a narrow path to get to the pebbly beach.
It’s pretty to look at but not easy to walk on and quite hard to swim from – you’ll need shoes and there are a lot of rocks plus the sea seems rough. There is a jetty with steps down into the sea and further around to the left is a part sectioned off by rocks which feels safer to swim in.
The beach is pebbly
Madeira is a wonderful island to explore. We had a hire car and marvelled at some of the steep mountain roads.
The capital Funchal is just a 15-minute drive from Riu Madeira. We were lucky enough to be there during its Carnival celebrations and enjoyed one of the colourful parades.
We took a cable car from Funchal, it’s a stunning ride up to the top where we visited the beautiful Monte Palace gardens before riding back down again.
Monte Palace Gardens
Another way back down but not for the faint-hearted is by the famous Madeira Toboggan Ride. Passengers on wicker basket sledges are helped down the hill by two runners wearing straw boaters, in a tradition dating back to the 19th century and experienced by my grandparents in the 1970s.
We also visited the traditional fishing village Camara de Lobos which was loved by Winston Churchill after he visited in 1950 and stood at the site where he painted a portrait of the bay.
Looking at Churchill’s view in Camara de Lobos
We headed east to the stunning clifftop walk of Porto do San Lourenco and drove north west to the natural seawater pools and aquarium in Porto Moniz.
A seawater pool at Porto Moniz
When to go to the Hotel Riu Madeira
We went in February when the average temperature is 20 degrees and the rain is 97mm. This was perfect for us as we don’t like it too hot. Here is a year-round look at the average weather in Madeira:
January 20 degrees, 80mm rainfall February 20 degrees, 97mm rainfall March 21 degrees, 53mm rainfall April 21 degrees, 55m rainfall May 22 degrees, 22mm rainfall June 24 degrees, 6mm rainfall July 26 degrees, 1mm rainfall August 27 degrees, 2mm rainfall September 27 degrees, 28mm rainfall October 25 degrees, 89mm rainfall November 23 degrees, 88mm rainfall December 21 degrees, 118mm rainfall
Riu Madeira more information
Accessibility: The hotel is on a hillside but is said to be generally suitable for those with reduced mobility. There are stairs up from the pool area to the restaurant and reception but also a small lift.
Facilities: Gym, hair salon, spa, tennis court, bowls, three restaurants, three pools, paddling pool, free Wifi.
The gym
Address: Praia dos Reis Magos, 9125-024 Caniço de Baixo, Portugal
