We have been to Funchal, Madeira to see in the New Year. We first went in 2014/15 and have been several times since, although not every year. This was our seventh time. We did not go the previous year.
At home over the new year period we missed being in Funchal, especially as friends who also go were celebrating a big birthday. To combat our withdrawal symptoms, we booked our recent visit on 2 January 2025. Having looked forward to this holiday for essentially two years, we were disappointed to see the weather forecast for our week in Funchal was for rain everyday. It was fine but windy when we arrived, although the rain soon started. Our first evening was a wet walk to our chosen restaurant, which was not too far away.
Surprisingly we woke the next morning to blues sky and sun. Were the doom mongering forecasts wrong? That day stayed dry. By the next morning, December 31, the rain had set. Bad weather was forecast and worse was to come.
There were yellow and orange weather warnings for the next few days and there was talk of changing the timing of the New Year's Eve midnight fireworks. The decision was made to stick to the usual midnight timing. The last few hours of 2025 saw heavy showers. By midnight it was dry, but windy. The fireworks went ahead as planned. Some of the cruise ships scheduled to come into the bay to see the fireworks did not make it, because of the rough seas.
New Year's day was a wet and miserable day, which was spent trying to keep dry. The following day was pretty much the same. For our evening meal we had booked a restaurant down in Funchal which is a 40 minute walk away and a chance to see the Christmas lights.
Luckily it was dry for our walk down into Funchal, but for our walk back we were not so fortunate. We could have got taxi, but at the point where we walked past the taxi rank it wasn't raining and we felt that we could do with the exercise, having enjoyed a good meal.
The weather did improve and we hoped that it had turned a corner, but how wrong we were. Seven days after arriving we were enjoying what we thought would be our last Happy Hour drink, sitting outside as the sun set, when my husband received a text message from our tour operator Jet2, to say that our flight the following day had been postponed, because high winds were forecast for Funchal airport. We were to check out as normal the following day and would be taken to our accommodation for that night. This is not unusual for Madeira, but it had not happened to us before in nine visits.
On day eight, of a seven day holiday, we were taken by taxi to another hotel about a five minute drive away. Luckily we were amongst the first to arrive, so were spared the long queue that some endured to check in. This was not the sort of hotel that we would ever book ourselves. The reception area looked bare, dated and cheap. The bedroom was functional, but spartan by comparison with where we had been staying. Early evening a complimentary meal was provided. All I can say was that it was food. Breakfast the next morning was equally uninspiring.
Instead of being at Funchal airport we were busy watching its' website and were surprised to see that it was functioning normally, with flights landing and taking off as scheduled. Jet2 was the only airline to have cancelled flights that day. If the weather is bad - high winds or poor visibility- the airport is essentially closed and there are no flights. Why did Jet2 think that the weather was going to be so bad that they needed to cancel all their flights?
Mid morning of day nine we found ourselves in the hotel's reception area with scores of other disgruntled holiday makers jostling to board the coach to take us to the airport, where we arrived in what appeared to be plenty of time, which was just as well. The check in queue was snaking around the check in area, being about a mile long. It moved at a snail's pace and it took two hours to get to the front of the queue.
I have to say this was certainly different. It was the worst weather that we have had in seven New Year visits. Will we go again at New Year? No, but not because of the weather. Every time has cost a bit more, but next year would be a lot more. If we skip New Year and go at the beginning of January the price will be substantially less. The hotel will still be decorated for Christmas and the Christmas lights will still be on in Funchal. And if the weather isn't up to much we won't feel so hard done by.
