We hope you had a good trip and will start to relax as soon as you see the sea.

 

After you pick up your hire car (we strongly recommend an automatic, not shift gear), it will take you 30-40 minutes to drive to Ponta do Sol.

Once you arrive there (you come out of the tunnel and see the fountain on the roundabout straight in front of you at the entrance to Ponta do Sol), turn right at the roundabout and follow the map to our house.

Heads up: the road down to our house is one way, very narrow and very steep!

Our house is on the right-hand side – there are 2 big grey metal doors that are opened using the remote-control key. Turning right into the drive is a bit scary the first time – but you get used to it ☺

There is no front door as such – the kitchen (in the old part of the house) has 2 doors that function as the entrance – there are 2 keys for those doors and one key for the door to the road.

 

Once inside the house, most things are self-explanatory. 

 

• There are 2 bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms – feel free to sleep where you choose.

• You will find sheets, duvet & pillowcases and towels in the cupboards in the bedrooms and in the hall upstairs. Please help yourself.

• A couple of things in the kitchen: the hob is an induction hob. The saucepans have a major design fault: the handles get very hot when in use. There are silicon pads in the draw that we strongly recommend you use when touching them!

• Cleaning equipment, dishwasher tabs, washing powder etc. should all be in the kitchen cupboards under the sink. 

• For some reason, the oven only works when the timer is also turned on. 

• BBQ etc. is outside on the patio; charcoal etc. is either outside too, or in the kitchen.

 

Rubbish

On Madeira, rubbish is sorted by type but only the household waste gets picked up by the waste removal company each week. 

If you stand on the drive, with the kitchen behind you, you will see a flight of steps going down to the garden level on the left-hand side. At the bottom of those steps, there is a small door – please take all bags of household waste down and put them inside this door. 

 

Glass, plastics and paper are deposed of at collection points all over each town. We use the ones near the roundabout into town – marked on the map. 

 

In case of any problems whilst you’re staying in the house (or questions that we can’t help you with), please call Laura who works for the company that rents the house.
00351 963 218 475

 

There is a travel guide and a hiking guide in the kitchen. 

We have done all the hikes in the book – try them – some of them are spectacular!

If you need any specific information or recommendations, just let us know.

 

It takes about 10 minutes to walk down into town – we recommend taking the steps rather than the road (see 2nd map) – and about 15 minutes to walk back up. 

 

In Ponta do Sol there is a small supermarket and bakery in the petrol stations.

There is also a pharmacy opposite. Larger supermarkets are in Ribeira Brava, Calheta and Funchal.

The deep pan pizza in Sol Doce is good – it’s also a good local café for a Nata and a coffee in the morning. 

In the pedestrian area of town, there are a couple of restaurants – The Old Pharmacy does breakfast/brunch and in the evenings they have “tapas”. There is a bar next door and a fish/steak restaurant, Steak & Sun, that is good too. 

The hotel Estalagem da Ponto do Sol has a lovely garden with a bar and a restaurant which we like very much. 

And at the end of the “pier” there is a snack bar, Sol Poente, which is good for lunch etc. 

 

Otherwise, our favourite restaurants/bars are:

 

• Muralha Terrace in Ribeira Brava

• A Pipa in Porto da Cruz

• Design Centre Nini Andrada Silva in Funchal

• Kampo in Funchal

• Barreirinha Bar Café in Funchal

• Mercearia Dona Mécia Bar in Funchal

• Local Shop – small café at the top of the cable car in Monte

• The original Poncha bar on the road to San Vincente

 

We have lots and lots of favourite things to do and see – but check out the guide book and let us know if you need more information!

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How do you find the house by car? Here is a little map:

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And this it the best way if you want to walk to the beach or village centre:

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