Old Town Tour
Hello Travellers! I'm Lisa, born and raised in Madeira and the founder of the Free Walking Tours in Funchal. I desired to be a guide since I was a teenager and finally achieved my goal in 2016, when I became a local mountain guide. In early 2018, some hikers, challenged me to guide Free Tours in Funchal. I was not familiar with the concept, but learned about it and fell in love with the Free Tours! I'm very to be able to share my home island with our visitors ! In Summer 2022, Romeu joined this project and is know sharing his passion for Funchal with our travellers. Romeu is a teacher, a musician, a traveller and a very enthusiastic guide! Join our tours!!
Pickup
Yellow umbrella with the company's Logo. The meeting point is inside Parque Santa Catarina, in front of the Chapel. If there's a stage, the Chapel is behind the stage.
Description
The Old Town of Funchal was the first Portuguese neighborhood outside the European Continent.
Right away, a community of fishermen and seafarers was created.
For centuries, this people lived in very precarious conditions. The Old Town of Funchal got to the beginning of the 21st Century as the area to avoid. Thanks to people with knowledge of other Old Towns in Europe and with a great vision, Zona Velha do Funchal has gained a new face, a new dynamic and today, it is a mandatory place to visit, not only for visitors, but also for locals.
Beautiful painted doors with art make Rua Santa Maria and the Old Town a unique outdoor gallery.
Before we get to the Old Town, we will show you the first fort built in Funchal and share with you the many changes it has seen over the centuries.
We will tell you the story of (possibly) the most popular drink in Madeira and recommend bars in Funchal where you can try it.
Floods are part of the Madeiran History, a force of nature feared by the locals. Many attempts have been made to try and minimize the consequences of these events.
Some of these events have been so catastrophic that people came up with supernatural explanations for it!
This tours ends in the Old Town, in Barreirinha, 5 minutes away from the cable car.
Thistour is not suitable for wheelchairs or baby strollers.
There are some up and downhill on this tour that might be challenging for some walkers.
We look forward to show you this amazing part of town!