A little bit about the home we stayed in, because it deserves it’s own page.
We stayed at an Alojamento Local that we found on AirBNB called Cantinho do Sol, which was represented by a local company called Stay Madeira Island. When we started researching where to stay, we didn’t know much about the island so we bookmarked a few homes all over Madeira but our research narrowed down our thinking to where we wanted to stay, which was Ponto do Sol – the sunniest part of the island. I am very glad we did. I loved everything about staying here.
Rita was incredibly responsive and was waiting to welcome us.
We arrived just before sunset in early January. Like all travels, it was an adventure. After being delayed an hour in Lisbon, we picked up our rental car at RentX in Machico and headed towards Ponto do Sol. The drive took us about 45 minutes as we had never driven in Madeira and were cautious but once we took the ramp into Ribero Brava, everything was fine.
Arriving in Ponto do Sol at the main roundabout, we headed north and upwards until we saw our host, Rita, waiting for us by the home. Rita was incredibly responsive during our arrival as things got a little anxious. Late plane, rental car shuttle, driving to Ponto do Sol, then finding the property but it all worked out and just as we unlocked the gate, we were greeted by an absolutely beautiful sunset, which made our first night very welcoming.
The next morning, we awoke to perfect blue skies and an incredible view over the Atlantic Ocean.
I fell in love with the local walkway almost immediately. Being able to wind my way through small patches of bananas made me smile coming or going and the extra exercise was something I loved being able to do three or four times daily. The only way to have a view like the one this home has is to be in a location that is perched high up along the side of a valley and that what Ponta do Sol is.
To illustrate our way up, Yim offered to model for a series of photographs below as we arrived home one afternoon.
I loved staying up here. The structure of the neighbourhoods absolutely fascinated me.
For example, our house was located a considerable way up the cliffside, which I’ve circled in a photo below. The valley below was dotted with houses, surrounded by lush gardens of banana, passion fruit, mango, guava and Pitanga trees, all of which were interconnected by a series of walkways and irrigation canals, providing water for all the residents properties and their terraced gardens.
I had never seen such an infrastructure and had to go exploring, so one sunny morning, I took the stairs all the way down in order to get a closer look at how the system worked.
Since the island is so hilly, most gardens are planted in terraces, which is what I got to wander through. Each terraced level was probably eight feet high and they weren’t level. They were old and well worn but they were tended to. Most had flowers tucked into every available inch of stone and zucchinni hung down the side of the stone walls. There were pipes and canals running down with steel traps on the levada’s to re-direct flow and taps to stop the flow of water.
To me, these are the experiences that make travelling such a wonderful experience. As a gardener, I was doubly fascinated. I know how we live and garden at home but I want to see how others live on our travels. What would their day to day be like. I also live in a constant state of wondering if I could live in a place that we are visiting. That’s part of my nature. I absorb the surroundings.
I read that if Hawaii and Ireland had a child, it would be Madeira. Pretty much everything is very happy to grow in Madeira – especially the sunnier, drier south side of the island, like Ponta do Sol, which is sheltered from the north side’s trade winds by central volcanic mountains that top out around 6,000 feet up.
The photos below take you through seven or eight of the neighbouring properties and through multiple layers of terraced planting to illustrate what I am referring to.
It was like being a kid again for me, or maybe I’ve never really grown up because coming up this pathway made me smile from ear to ear. Everything about it was quirky – crooked steps, mismatched cement work, rocks of various sizes, different types of traction stamped into the cement…
The home itself had everything we required.
It was well furnished, with a nice living room & dining area with streaming music or Netflix if we chose, which was nice. Rita had pre-set the music to a smooth station, which we enjoyed our entire stay. The bedroom was comfortable and the twin doors opened up onto a beautiful view in the morning and on warm nights, we left the door open and the metal blinds in place to allow the cool air in. The washroom was clean and had a nice separate shower. The kitchen had excellent appliances and pretty much everything we needed.
If you are considering renting a small home while visiting Madeira, we highly recommend Cantinho do Sol. We absolutely loved staying here.
Rita mentioned they didn’t have many people stay for three full weeks but we wanted a home base and although it took a little bit of getting used to how the different appliances functioned, Rita provided us with clear directions when required and was available on WhatsApp during our stay.
And then there was the balcony, with that spectacular view. Most mornings we would head out first thing to see what the day held in store for us before making some coffee. Later in the day, after some hiking, the bean bag chairs made plonking down to relax perfect.
If you are considering renting a small home while visiting Madeira, we highly recommend Cantinho do Sol.
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