Madeira is celebrating its 500th anniversary with many events and celebrations, including a visit from some of the world’s most famous tall ships. Funchal, on the southeast side of the island, is center of a year long celebration and is hosting the Funchal 500 Regatta. A fleet of some 25 tall ships will race from mainland Portugal to Funchal, where they will participate in a maritime festival and celebrations from October 2 – 5. On top of that, the 4th edition of the International Film Festival of Funchal will take place in November, from the 7th through the 15th.
The Funchal 500 Regatta began in Falmouth, England in early September before a fleet of 20-25 tall ships sailed to Ilhavo, Portugal. The ships then sail to Madeira for the final leg of the race and to take part in the island’s celebration of the 500th anniversary of the first Portuguese settlement. After the ships leave, the film festival will help to introduce the island to the film world, and introduce high-quality movies to the islanders.
In recent years many holiday travelers and second home buyers have discovered Madeira as well as the city of Funchal as an ideal destination. The islands have wonderful year round weather, a solid housing market and, of course, some of the most unique wine in the world. With its location in the tropics, the weather here is ideal for those who want a sunny and warm place to visit year round or retire to. Much of the infrastructure and housing on the island has been renovated and built over the past few years, so there is much to offer visitors and residents alike.
Getting to Madeira is relatively easy, particularly since the runway at Madeira Airport (FNC) was rebuilt in 2003. The airport has daily flights to and from Lisbon and Porto, from which you can get connections to just about anywhere. There are also a number of carriers that have direct flights to Madeira, including several discount airlines such as Easyjet and Thomsonfly.
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