Short Scenic Walking Holiday Advice please

Eldi_Dos

@bex88

To put your mind at rest about flights just keep a eye on depatures and arrivals from your airport to Madeira that will give you reassurance, I personally found it a lovely airport to fly in and out of, nice and clean and no sense of rush that you can get in many airports.

With the present politcal situation in the Eastern Med and the Gulf, lots of people will be looking for alternatives for the October school holidays, so you might be advised to book now while there is still availability.

bex88

Thank you so much, I think I will pick Madeira, as there's a lot of things we can do. I had a look at 'Beyond Madeira' who do lots of activities, I'm thinking at least doing a Jeep tour (East? West? Which side is the most dramatic in mountain scenery?). Would like to visit a botanical gardens. They also do boats to watch dolphins, maybe that would be nice, weather depending.

Now I just need to pick a hotel… Jeez, all these decisions are not good for someone so, so indecisive lol!
I'll have a look through and post some of the ones I like the look of, maybe some people here have experience staying at them.

I will get one booked soon, I just need to wait till payday though. I also do not have a credit card.. will it be ok to use my debit card to book (deposit) if it's through either EasyJet / Jet2 / Tui? (What about Thomas cook?)

What about 'Hotel Quintinha São João & Spa' - The reviews are good for it and I think will be in quite a quiet area, but still not far from the centre?
Quinta da Casa Branca looks nice too! :D

Nebulous2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81927524#Comment_81927524

We liked Madeira. The Botanic Gardens are a bit tired and unloved - we found the Monte Palace gardens much better - we did both.

There is also a trip partly down the hill from near the entrance to the Monte Palace gardens in a wicker sledge with two people steering and braking for you. It's not everybody's cup of tea, but is an unusual local attraction and we found it quite fun.

elsien

I would suggest getting a credit card even if you only use it for things like this because it gives you that extra section 75 protection, for anything over £100.

You can just use it to pay the deposit or you can pay the whole lot on it and there is no interest if you pay it off as soon as you get the next statement. Also handy for emergencies while you’re away, because you never know.

I was on holiday in Mexico some years ago and did an organised trip to Mexico City. Unfortunately, the company meeting us at the airport had forgotten us and although I had the name of the hotel when we got there, they wanted a credit card before they would let us stay. All sorted out with no issue the morning, but it was a bit hairy when we arrive late at night.

bex88

I will look into it, but it's a bit beyond me. I wasn't going to pay for it all in one go, I'm on low income so may not be accepted either. I was going to pay deposit and save up to pay monthly or over time and wouldn't want to get charged interest :/

Thanks Nebulous, I'll definitely look to go to Monte Palace. I'm also going to watch a guy on YouTube called Joey who gives lots of advice on things to do there etc...

elsien

Use the eligibility checker on the main site.

Like I I said though, you can use it to just pay the deposit if you are accepted and then pay the rest over time whichever way works for you. It’s just a bit of extra protection if there’s any issues with supplier failure, for example.

For what its worth if I had a lovely holiday with my mother in Madeira although at a different time of year.

daveyjp

My parents visited Madeira for many years, usually around Easter. They only had a problem landing once which meant a trip back to Lisbon for a few hours until the weather improved. They were lucky as some flights were returning to the UK!

However it can get blustery weather making the landings quite 'interesting!'. On our two visits we had no issues.

Western Madeira has the Cabo Girao cliffs, the highest peak is in the east, but the centre is all mountains, so no real difference between east and west. Nuns Valley is not to be missed.

As regards hotels, Madeira is very hilly and cheaper hotels which can appear to be near the centre may be on the hillside, so budget for taxis. The lido area to the west of Funchal has all the hotels, but is very touristy and you need buses or taxis to visit Funchal. If all you need is a bed and basic facilitues look for somewhere close to or in the historic centre.

bex88

Thank you for your suggestions and advice. I really appreciate it!

So, I'm not coming up as eligible credit card wise on the eligibility checker (low income)... However... I do actually already have PayPal credit (the 0% for 4 months thing) that I have used numerous times. I tapped in to Google and it says that is covered by section 75. So, I could request the 'virtual card' and pay the deposit using that?

Could anyone confirm how late the buses run to, or I also heard something about 'bolt'? I'd rather have a quiet hotel with nice outlook / surroundings, and we can get a bus etc to and from Funchal for evening meals. The activities you can book the 'Beyond Madeira' company pick you up from your hotel so that would be ok.

daveyjp

Bolt is a taxi booking app, similar to Uber.

Bus app is useful to have.

https://madeirabus.com/

Grumpelstiltskin

This website has up to date information on weather, flights etc.

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