Portugal

392
WHERE TO STAY IN FUNCHAL MADEIRA & PORTO SANTO
15
Hotel Girassol Hotel Girassol offers immaculate accommodations at reasonable
rates. It’s on the outskirts of Funchal, overlooking the Tourist Club (a small complex with
a restaurant, pool, and platform for swimming in the sea), where guests are allowed access
to the sea for a small charge. Most double rooms are actually suites, consisting of a bedroom,
a small sitting room, and a veranda, which make them a perfect size for families.
Each unit has a terrace or balcony overlooking the garden, the mountains, or the sea.
One pool is set aside for children. The dining room, which serves regional and international
cuisine, has sea views and, at dinner, live music.
Estrada Monumental 256, 9004-539 Funchal, Madeira. & 29/170-15-70. Fax 29/176-54-41. www.hotel
girassolmadeira.com. 136 units. 145€ double; 192€–200€ suite. Rates include breakfast. AE, DC, MC, V.
Bus: 1, 3, 5, or 6. Amenities: Restaurant; 3 bars; babysitting; health club with sauna; 2 outdoor pools;
room service. In room: A/C, TV, hair dryer, minibar.
Quinta da Penha de França This gracious old manor house is now a
guesthouse, with an annex containing 33 sea-view rooms, a balcony, and a terrace.
Rooms in the older section have high ceilings, thick walls, casement windows, and a
scattering of old-fashioned furniture, including some family antiques. Rooms in the
annex, completed late in 1999, are more contemporary, with traditional country-house
designs. Like a family home, the quinta is chock-full of antiques, paintings, and silver.
Near the Savoy, it stands in a garden on a ledge almost hanging over the harbor. It’s a
short walk from Funchal’s bazaars and is opposite an ancient chapel. Unlike most hotels
on Madeira, many of this hotel’s rooms have connecting doors, which can be opened and
rented as two rooms, for families with one to three children.
Rua da Penha de França 2 and Rua Imperatriz da Amélia, 9050-014 Funchal, Madeira. & 29/120-46-50.
Fax 29/122-92-61. www.penhafranca.com. 109 units. 57€–116€ double; 119€–157€ triple. Rates include
breakfast. AE, DC, MC, V. Bus: 2, 12, or 16. Amenities: 2 restaurants; 2 bars; babysitting; outdoor pool. In
room: A/C, TV, hair dryer, minibar.
INEXPENSIVE
Dorisol Estrelícia This hotel lies on the upper floors of a high-rise building, constructed
up a hill from the main hotel drag. The location is a bit inconvenient, so rates
seem low considering the quality of the rooms. Most units are midsize. All are wellappointed,
with durable modern furniture, neatly kept bathrooms and a view of the sea.
The hotel minibus runs to the center of Funchal several times a day.
Caminho Velho da Ajuda and Rua Casa Branca, 9000-113 Funchal, Madeira. & 29/170-66-00. Fax 29/
762-171. www.dorisol.com. 148 units. 86€–120€ double. Rates include breakfast. AE, DC, MC, V. Bus: 1, 2,
4, 5, 6, or 35. Amenities: Restaurant; 3 bars; babysitting; health club with sauna and Jacuzzi; 2 pools (1
indoor); tennis court (lit). In room: TV, hair dryer, Internet (in some; 10€ per day), minibar.
Hotel Madeira This five-story hotel sits in the center of Funchal, behind the
tranquil Park of San Francisco. The rooftop pool has an extraordinary panoramic view of
the town, mountains, and sea, and there’s a solarium area with a bar and snack services.
The small to midsize guest rooms surround a plant-filled atrium. One of the nicest features
is the sheltered sun window attached to each unit. Some rooms have balconies—the
ones in the front overlook buildings and have no view, but those in the rear have views
of the mountains above Funchal. All are comfortably furnished, with worn but durable
furniture and tidily kept bathrooms.
Rua Ivens 21, 9000-049 Funchal, Madeira. & 29/123-00-71. Fax 29/122-90-71. www.hotelmadeira.com.
53 units. 66€–75€ double; 80€ suite. Rates include breakfast. AE, MC, V. Bus: 2, 12, or 16. Amenities: Bar;
outdoor pool. In room: A/C (in some), TV, hair dryer, free Internet.