Madeira Island
Madeira was discovered by explorers in 1419, the discovery found lush forests and rich land. Colonisation began, giving us the wonderful place we have today. The Island formed from volcanic activity around 5 million years ago.
What to do places to visit:
An Island always in flower, you can experience wonderful blooms all year around with amazing municipal gardens. With a wonderful flower festival around Easter time in Funchal
There are many museums charting the history of Madeira n’s existence, and a great number of wonderful buildings with an architectural importance, including many Churches. The folk are proud of their heritage with a very traditional lifestyle which can be experienced when you get away from the hustle and bustle of the main city.
The wildlife of Madeira can be experienced by boat at sea and on land, whales, dolphins, turtles, and great bird life on land and at sea. Many trips are organised to gain these experiences.
Walking some of the 2150km of Levada paths you can experience areas inaccessible by road, with stunning views, and mountain tops. These narrow paths follow the contours of the hills, gradually bringing much needed water to all areas, even following through tunnels through the mountain sides.
For younger more daring visitors Madeira offers many adrenalin sports, paragliding, canyoning, surfing, jeep safari, and mountain biking.
You can swim in natural sea pools in Porto Moniz, or in the sea off some of the many beaches of the Island, most are of black volcanic sand or stone, but two Machico and Calheta have yellow sand, and are ideal for swimming or relaxing.