Madeira on a budget

Daily budget and trip cost

AMZBooking estimates per person in US dollars, excluding flights, reviewed October 2026. Accommodation is the biggest variable; prices rise in peak months.

Typical prices

Approximate prices in Madeira, October 2026. They change; use them for planning, not as quotes.

Money-saving tips

• Hiking levadas, swimming in the sea, and visiting Santa Catarina Park, the cathedral and the market cost nothing.
• Hotels and car hire cost much more over Christmas, New Year's Eve and the Flower Festival; book months ahead or travel at other times.
• Eat a 'prato do dia' (dish of the day) at lunchtime in local cafés for a filling meal at a low price.
• Hiring a car for a few days is usually cheaper than several guided tours for two or more people.
• Supermarkets sell Madeira wine and bolo de mel at lower prices than souvenir shops.

Free things to do

• Mercado dos Lavradores — Funchal's 1940 Art Deco market hall has azulejo tile panels at its entrance, a courtyard of flower sellers in traditional dress, stalls of tropical fruit such as custard apple and passion-fruit varieties, and a fish hall where black scabbardfish and tuna are laid out each morning.
• Pico do Arieiro to Pico Ruivo hike — The PR1 trail links Madeira's third-highest peak, Pico do Arieiro at 1,818 metres, with the highest, Pico Ruivo at 1,862 metres, along a dramatic ridge of stairs, tunnels and narrow ledges.
• Rua de Santa Maria and the Old Town — Funchal's oldest street runs through the Zona Velha, where the 'Arte de Portas Abertas' project turned hundreds of front doors into painted artworks.
• Funchal Cathedral — Completed in the early 16th century, the Sé is one of the few buildings in Funchal surviving from the island's early colonial era.
• Câmara de Lobos harbour — The harbour of colourful fishing boats is one of the most photographed scenes on Madeira; Churchill painted it in 1950, and a plaque marks his viewpoint.
• Levada do Caldeirão Verde — Starting from the Queimadas forest park above Santana, this popular levada path (PR9) follows an irrigation channel through the Laurisilva forest and several dark tunnels to the 'Green Cauldron', a waterfall dropping into a pool surrounded by moss-covered cliffs.

All free things to do in Madeira.

Where to stay on a budget

Eating well for less

• Bolo do caco — Snack bars, roadside stalls and restaurants across the island, often brought to the table as a starter.
• Milho frito — Traditional restaurants across Madeira serve it alongside grilled meat and fish.

Getting around for less

Madeira is about 57 km long and very mountainous, but a network of expressways and tunnels links the main towns: Funchal to the airport takes about 20 minutes and Funchal to Porto Moniz about an hour. There are no trains, so most visitors hire a car or combine buses, taxis and day tours.

Questions travellers ask