Funchal is the capital of Madeira, a volcanic island floating in the Atlantic about 600 kilometers off the coast of Morocco. The city spills down steep green hillsides to the sea, with terracotta rooftops and banana plantations layered between the mountains and the harbor. It gets its name from fennel, which the Portuguese found growing in abundance when they settled here in the 15th century.
The old town has narrow cobbled streets lined with restaurants and bars, many with painted doors that have become an attraction of their own. Above the city, the Monte neighborhood offers botanical gardens and the famous toboggan ride down wicker sleds. The waterfront runs from the marina to a string of lido complexes where locals swim in seawater pools carved from volcanic rock.
Madeira's subtropical climate keeps Funchal mild year-round, rarely dipping below 15 degrees or rising above 26. The island produces its own wine, grows exotic fruit, and pulls extraordinary fish from deep Atlantic waters. Funchal is the kind of place where you can hike a mountain ridge in the morning and eat fresh-caught scabbard fish by the harbor at lunch.