Madeira Hotels With Views

This page covers hotels outside Funchal’s city limits — properties in Calheta, Porto Moniz, Santana, Ponta do Sol, and Caniço de Baixo, each representing a distinct part of the island’s coastline. The Funchal page covers hotels within the capital: the clifftop palaces of the Lido strip, the rooftop pool towers of the city centre, and the botanical estate on the western hillside.

Together the two pages cover Madeira’s full range of view-specific hotel options from north to south coast. The properties here are farther from Funchal than the capital hotels but each occupies a position that would not exist in a city setting: a cliff vineyard on the north coast, a hotel above natural lava pools, an all-inclusive resort on the island’s only sandy beach.

Aqua Natura Madeira in Porto Moniz occupies a position with no equivalent on the island: it is built directly above the natural lava rock pools on Madeira’s northwest coast, with all rooms facing the Atlantic and the volcanic formations below. The restaurant terrace delivers the same view over the pools and the open sea in a single sightline. Porto Moniz is 45 kilometres north of Funchal along the coastal expressway, and the hotel provides free access to the natural pools as well as a diving centre on site.

Hotel Quinta do Furão in Santana makes a different claim: it is the only hotel on a vineyard above the north coast cliffs, with three hectares of organic vines descending toward the Atlantic. The two properties cover Madeira’s most remote coastlines and the most distinctive views away from the capital.

The west coast, between Ponta do Sol and Calheta, has the highest concentration of view-specific properties in a short stretch of coastline. Estalagem da Ponta do Sol occupies a cliff above Ponta do Sol village. Calheta Beach and Saccharum are both positioned directly at the water in Calheta, covering a range of hotel styles — an all-inclusive beach resort and a 5-star design resort — within a 15-kilometre corridor of south-facing Atlantic coastline.

The south coast at Caniço de Baixo, where Sentido Galosol is positioned, provides the closest view-specific option to Funchal — 15 minutes east of the capital with cliff positions above the Garajau Marine Reserve.

Aqua Natura Madeira is the only property on this list built directly above the natural lava pools of Porto Moniz. The pools are 30 metres from the hotel entrance, and the hotel provides free daily access as part of the stay. They are listed among the most extraordinary natural swimming pools in the world — volcanic rock formations that create sheltered saltwater basins at the edge of the Atlantic.

Sentido Galosol in Caniço de Baixo has a different kind of sea access: a purpose-built lido complex carved into the volcanic rock at sea level, with saltwater pools and steps directly into the Atlantic. The bathing complex also provides direct access to the Garajau Marine Reserve for snorkelling and diving.

Hotel Quinta do Furão in Santana occupies the most exposed north coast position of any hotel on this page. The quinta sits on a clifftop plateau at Achada do Gramacho with three hectares of organic vineyard between the building and the cliff edge, facing the full extent of the northeast Atlantic coastline and the volcanic interior mountains in the same panorama. The property was fully renovated in 2020 and is the only vineyard hotel on this coastline.

Aqua Natura Madeira in Porto Moniz is on the northwest coast — the closest point to the open Atlantic of any hotel on the island — facing north over the ocean and the lava pool formations directly below. The two properties cover the most dramatic stretches of Madeira’s northern shoreline from different vantage points.

Calheta Beach is the all-inclusive option on this page, positioned directly on one of Madeira’s three natural sandy beaches. The resort includes three restaurants, three bars, and a full activity programme in the all-inclusive rate. Sea-facing rooms have balconies over the beach and the Atlantic; the pool terrace faces south with the marina jetty in the foreground.

The beach at Calheta is protected by a natural breakwater, making it the calmest open-water swimming beach on the island. The Calheta Marina is 100 metres from the hotel entrance. Saccharum, 1.5 kilometres west on the same coastline, is the 5-star design alternative at the same beach, with infinity pools above the shore rather than direct beach access.

Estalagem da Ponta do Sol is the most editorial choice on this page: a traditional quinta redesigned in minimalist black-and-white Portuguese contemporary architecture on a cliff above Ponta do Sol, and a member of Design Hotels. All 54 rooms have panoramic balconies facing either the Atlantic or the banana plantations and terraced village below. The infinity pool and jacuzzi are cantilevered over the cliff edge with the ocean on the horizon.

Saccharum in Calheta is the 5-star design alternative at a larger scale: 243 rooms, a hedonistic design aesthetic, and three outdoor infinity pools descending toward Calheta Beach. The Hedonistic Suites add private outdoor jacuzzis above the Atlantic. The two properties represent the clearest design positions among the hotels on this page.

Sentido Galosol in Caniço de Baixo is the closest property — 15 minutes east of Funchal along the south coast expressway. Estalagem da Ponta do Sol is 25 minutes west by the Via Rápida. Calheta Beach and Saccharum are on the west coast, roughly 50 minutes from Funchal by car.

Hotel Quinta do Furão in Santana is approximately 40 minutes north via the Faial–Santana expressway. Aqua Natura Madeira in Porto Moniz is the furthest: 45 kilometres north of Funchal, around 75 minutes by the coastal road. All six properties are served by car — public transport to the more remote locations is infrequent.