Madeira for Families: A Jet2 Holiday Review

Madeira for families is an advertisement feature written in collaboration with Jet2 but all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Have you heard of Madeira?

Before our recent holiday with Jet2, we really didn’t know much about this island.

The more research we did about this Portuguese destination, the more excited we became about our up and coming visit.

If, like us, you’ve not heard of this destination, you are probably wondering where the Madeira islands are?

This archipelago of volcanic land mass is located in the North Atlantic Ocean above the Canary Islands, off the west coast of Africa.

This unique location means the weather in Madeira makes it a perfect year round destination.

The hottest time time of year to visit Madeira is August and September.

The sub tropical climate means that Madeira is fortunate enough to be sunny all year round.

Just in case you missed it: 5+ Reasons to Book a Package Holiday

We visited Madeira at the end of September/beginning of October and the weather was mild and sunny.

This is a perfect time of year for families to visit who want to enjoy lovely weather without enduring really high temperatures.

When we heard Madeira described as the Hawaii of Europe, we had to know more about this holiday destination.

There are lots of unique things to do in Madeira for families that make it a fun and memorable place to visit.

We had such an amazing experience in Madeira that we are going to share with you everything about our Jet2 holiday.

Our mission is to convince you that Madeira is somewhere you need to visit on your next holiday.

Let’s dive right in!

Madeira: How to get there?

Jet2 fly to Madeira from several UK airports. You can choose from Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, London Stansted, Manchester or Newcastle airports. Check Madeira flights with Jet2 here.

We chose to fly from East Midlands Airport, which is only a 20/30 minute drive from our home in Nottingham.

The flight from the UK to Madeira takes around 3 1/2 hours to 4 hours.

There is only one airport in Madeira, so we landed in Funchal. This is the capital city of the island and we felt it was a great location to begin our holiday.

Everything about our departure from East Midlands Airport with Jet2 to Madeira couldn’t have gone smoother.

We were welcomed at the check-in desks with those famous Jet2 friendly smiles.

The queue moved quickly and our luggage (of which you get 22kg per person) was dealt with promptly.

The Jet2 flight was incredibly comfortable for all of us, which made a huge difference to us as a family.

My husband is a very nervous flyer and it was our first trip abroad since the pandemic.

The details really matter to us like being on time, not hanging around on the tarmac and a safe and smooth flight. Jet2 ticked every box!

The cabin crew were very helpful throughout the trip and we really enjoyed the regular updates from the captain during the flight.

When we arrived in Madeira, there were plenty of Jet2 staff on the ground to give us the information we needed and direct us to our transfer.

The transfer to our hotel, Enotel Lido Resort in Funchal, took around 45 minutes.

We all loved this part of the journey, as we could tell that Madeira was a stunning location and it only helped us get more excited about what the week ahead was going to bring.

Madeira: Where to stay?

We are more than happy to recommend Enotel Lido Resort as a great place to stay in Madeira.

This hotel is located in the Monumental district of Funchal. It is an excellent location with lots of facilities near by including bars, restaurants and shops.

Plenty of bus routes pass through this area and there’s also a large taxi rank.

The hotel itself is just wonderful. The staff cannot do enough for you. The facilities are also excellent.

The first thing that hits you when you arrive at Enotel Lido Resort is the incredible sea views. They are such a feast for the eye.

We continued to enjoy these incredible views from the balcony of our family room, which elevated our family holiday in Madeira to the next level.

Our stay was beyond comfortable and we didn’t want for anything.

The room was cleaned to a high standard every day. The beds were dreamy.

We also had lots of space to store our clothes and personal items.

Enotel Lido Resort is a 5 star all inclusive hotel, and it managed to surpass all our expectations with the quality of food available throughout our stay.

All inclusive holidays work so well with families. I love that the kids can pretty much help themselves to anything and it doesn’t matter if they don’t like it.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner were all served in the Atlantico restaurant on the second floor.

This happened to be the same level as our family room which made visits to the restaurant with the children very convenient.

There is plenty of indoor and outdoor seating in the restaurant, which works perfectly for this year round destination.

You can also continue to soak up those incredible sea views while enjoying your meals.

The food is served buffet style, but somethings are prepared for you like omelettes at breakfast and pasta during meal times.

Drinks are served by the friendly, and sometimes singing, waiters.

Breakfast included cooked options, as well as cereals, fruit and pastries.

Fresh fish, meat and salad was served at every meal time, along side vegetables, potatoes cooked in a variety of ways and a huge selection of desserts and ice cream of course.

As well as the buffet restaurant, Enotel Lido Resort also has a cafe for snacks and 3 themed restaurants available in the evening. We managed to visit the Asian, Italian and Madeiran restaurant during our stay.

We really enjoyed the themed restaurants as they provided a nice contrast to the buffet restaurant and cafe.

They served delicious food.

Each themed restaurant served a set menu, but I found that small tweaks could be made to accommodate my own personal taste.

There was always a vegetarian option too.

As well as great food, the other thing we loved about this hotel was the swimming pools. Enotel Lido Resort has 2 swimming pools, one outdoor and one indoor. The indoor pool is heated, and this is where Brook and Indie spent most of their time while we were at the hotel.

There was an excellent entertainment program and kids club available also.

We could join Portuguese language lessons, quizzes, aquafit and a huge range of kids activities daily during our time in the hotel.

>> Get the best Package holidays to Madeira with Jet2holidays here <<

What is Madeira like?

This was a question we were keen to answer during our stay in Madeira.

Even though I’d done a lot of research about Madeira before our visit, I was still very curious about how our experience was going to be.

It’s a really small island, measuring 55km long and 22km at its widest point.

The tallest peak, Ruivo Peak, is 1861 metres above sea level.

These dimensions create a stunning landscape of dramatic coastline, tall mountains and deep valleys.

With its sub tropical climate also, Madeira is brimming with beautiful forests, plants and wildlife unique to its location.

To sum all this up, it’s makes Madeira a truly beautiful place to visit which everyone in the family can enjoy.

Being such a small island, you might be wondering how long to stay here?

I’d say that a week is a good length of time to explore the main highlights if you are visiting with children.

We found staying for a week gave us a good balance of being able to go sight seeing whilst also enjoying some downtime at our hotel.

I think most families want a good combination of things to do and relaxation from a holiday like this.

Being an island, I was also very curious about the beaches. A lot of people ask online ‘are the beaches in Madera sandy’, and I guess the answer is yes and no.

The natural beaches in Madeira are black sand beaches.

Where there is golden sand, this has probably been imported to the island.

There is a natural golden sand beach on the island of Porto Santo.

I wouldn’t describe Madeira as a beach holiday, which was just fine by us.

I love the sea, and to stroll along the beach listening to the waves while Indie and Brook play with rocks, but we are not the type of family who sits on the beach all day long.

We’d rather spend our time exploring and visiting the local landmarks.

If this is something you can relate to, then I’d definitely recommend that you make Madeira your next holiday destination.

What Madeira lacks in beaches, it makes up for in lido’s, and we found these all round the island, with the most famous natural swimming pools being at Porto Moniz.

The other thing we noticed about Madeira was how eco friendly it was.

From our hotel’s eco friendly policies, to the island’s ability to use its natural resources to provide over 50% of its energy, it really felt like a green place to visit in more ways than one.

Last but by no means least, the people of Madeira were incredibly friendly and welcoming.

Everyone we came into contact with were so lovely and this really did make our holiday in Madeira a very special one.

How to get around Madeira?

We used several ways to get around Madeira during our stay, to work out which is the best for families.

The bus services from our hotel to central Funchal were excellent. The total price of a one way ticket was around 8 Euro.

We could also get a taxi direct from our hotel into Funchal, for the same price.

Given that for a family of 4 a taxi was the same price as the bus journey, we favoured using taxis for local trips to the centre.

We also used the cable car to go to Monte, which even though a little more expensive than public services, is a super fun thing to do with kids in Madeira.

When it came to travelling further a field, we chose to use the guided tours arranged by Jet2.

This allowed us to visit the main sights without the stress of driving with kids.

Would I hire a car in Madeira? In all honestly, I wouldn’t if travelling with children who are prone to getting restless and can cause distractions while driving.

Remember the dimensions of the island I mentioned earlier? That means that there are lots of roads going up the sides of mountains with some tight hairpin bends to contend with also.

To visit the most beautiful locations on the island, some of these roads are unavoidable.

If you are not comfortable with driving in these conditions, I’d leave it to the people who drive on these roads every day and just sit back and enjoy the views.

Things to do in Madeira with Kids

Explore Funchal

Funchal is the capital city of the island and is well worth exploring.

It provided us with a distinct contrast to life in other parts of the island as well as being a lovely place to stroll around and enjoy an ice cream.

During our visit here we saw performances of traditional music and costumes.

We popped into the market, which in itself is a colourful feast for the eye.

We’d also recommend a walk along the marina and getting lost in the picturesque old town near the cable cars.

Take the Cable Car to Monte

In Funchal you can take the cable car to the village of Monte above the city. The ride is just spectacular giving you both amazing views over Funchal, out to sea and also of the surrounding area.

Visit Monte Palace Madeira Tropical Gardens

When you reach Monte via cable car, you are at the entrance for Monte Palace Madeira, and it’s a beautiful place to visit.

The tropical gardens are just stunning, and there are also museums to visit which include a unique collection of African art and a huge collection of minerals which was particularly impressive.

Madeira Toboggans

After a visit to Monte Palace Madeira, it’s worth taking the short walk to the Madeira Toboggans.

This experience is unique to Madeira and in our opinion it’s a must do activity.

There had been lots of debate as to whether we were brave enough to ride the Madeira Toboggans and in the end we went for it.

You sit in a wicker toboggan, and you have 2 men who steer you down the hill and act as your brakes for the 2km trip, which lasts around 10 minutes.

We giggled for the entire ride, it was so much fun and I’m so pleased we decided to take the leap and do it.

Go check out our Instagram reel to see what it was like.

Try Poncha

This is one for the adults.

Poncha is a very traditional drink in Madeira, made from citrus fruits, honey and rum.

We were taken to a local bar in a mountain village during a guided tour, where it was made fresh from locally sourced ingredients.

This is how it should be made.

We were told many times to avoid buying it in the bottle, as it wasn’t the real thing.

Having tried both, I would very much agree with them!

Guided Tours

Taking guided tours are a great way to explore Madeira.

Not only does it take the stress out of driving around the island, but you also get to see some incredible views.

You can take 2 or 3 tours and have covered the majority of the main sights in Madeira.

If it’s your first visit to Madeira, it’s a great way to see the island.

We had a meeting with our Jet2 tour rep the day after we arrived, and she offered us a selection of tours.

The great thing about these tours was that the tour guides were excellent.

We all learned so much about the island as well as being able to get a real flavour of the lifestyle and culture of Madeira.

Santana

One place you are likely to visit on a guided tour of Madeira is Santana.

This beautiful village on the north of the island is where you will find examples of the houses the original settlers of Madeira lived in.

They feature stone walls and steep thatched roofs.

These houses sell local products and souvenirs now, but one is still inhabited and therefore not open to the public.

Take a Levada Walk

Levadas are troughs that transport water around the island of Madeira for irrigation and more recently power generation.

There are over 2000km of levadas around Madeira and they make for incredible hiking experiences for all abilities.

We took a short walk along a levada during one of our tours, and it was an incredibly unique experience.

Ribeiro Frio Natural Park

We also visited Ribeiro Frio Natural Park during a guided tour, but if you wanted to spend longer in the area enjoying the local wildlife and hiking it could certainly be done.

We were blown away by the incredible views and the birds flying over head.

Porto Moniz

If you want to see some incredible natural swimming pools, the very best the island has to offer are at Porto Moniz.

Made from volcanic lava and naturally filled with sea water, they are a very popular attraction in the area.

As our tour guide reminded us, the pools are not heated, so only go in if you are prepared for a bracing dip.

If the weather isn’t on your side, there’s also an aquarium in Porto Moniz worth a visit.

Take the Cabo Girão Skywalk

If you and your family are feeling brave, you simply must visit Cabo Girão.

Claiming to be one of the highest cliffs in the world at 589 metres high, you can walk out onto the glass platform and enjoy the incredible views.

My advice would be, don’t look down!

Take a Jeep Safari

If you thought taking a tour bus around Madeira was exciting, then taking a jeep safari takes things to a whole new level!

As jeeps can take roads that buses can’t, it really is a nail biting and breathtaking way to explore the island.

During our jeep safari we explored the incredible scenery of the Nuns Valley, and loved every minute.

Visit Câmara de Lobos

Câmara de Lobos is a colourful fishing village about 7 miles west of Funchal.

As well as being a beautiful place to visit with plenty of cafes and restaurants, it’s also famous for somewhere Winston Churchill enjoyed spending time while on the island.

Câmara de Lobos features in paintings by Winston Churchill displayed in his former home, Chartwell in Kent.

Take a Boat Tour

One thing there is no shortage of in Madeira is boat tours.

Whether you want to embark on a replica pirate ship or a catamaran, they all promise a different way to see the island with the chance of seeing whales and dolphins.

Final thoughts on Madeira for Families

Bearing in mind that we knew very little about the island of Madeira before this trip, we came away utterly convinced that it is the perfect place for families to go on holiday for so many reasons.

For us, there were many interesting places to visit and explore. We thoroughly enjoyed learning more about Madeira and it’s culture during our time here.

We’d also recommend Madeira for families as it’s one of the safest holiday destinations we’ve visited in recent years.

Madeira is also perfect for families looking for some winter sun.

>> Check out the best Family Holidays with Jet2holidays here <<

Not only is Madeira perfect for families who enjoy nature and exploring, but there are plenty of adventure activities that you can enjoy on the island like mountain biking and water sports.

All in all, we thought Madeira provided the perfect combination of things to do and rest and relaxation. We’d happily go back to the island and book with Jet2 to get there.