Year: 2016

Best wishes to the ever-increasing number of blog readers as the fireworks display and 2017 approaches. Certainly this year has been eventful, both locally with the devastating fires, and on … Read more

Airport strike today.

Madeira Airport is experiencing a one day strike by baggage handlers today, Christmas Eve. The Diario reports that this has been called by the National Union of … Read more

Travel chaos over the weekend likely to continue

Those flying over the weekend experienced problems at both ends of their journey. If they were lucky enough to get off the … Read more

Ronaldo world’s best footballer again

Tonight Cristiano Ronaldo claimed his 4th Ballon d’Or as expected to confirm his position as one of the two best footballers of the last decade … Read more

Not a lot of news recently, so this is a bit of a mixed offering:

Ryanair

Something of a political war of words seems to have broken out over the … Read more

Christmas lights turned on

The Christmas lights have been going up in Funchal over the last few weeks and were duly turned on last night to welcome the many visitors … Read more

EU citizenship proposal could guarantee rights in Europe after Brexit

As Brexit takes shape, The Times reports this morning that Britons could pay to retain the benefits of European Union … Read more

Reid’s Palace

Another favourable review of Reid’s Palace in the Telegraph a few days ago.

The article recalls that the hotel was built by Scotsman William Reid in 1891 and … Read more

More than one million visitors in nine months

Tuesday’s Journal reported that the latest figures for the first nine months of this year show sustained growth in in tourism in … Read more

Fire prevention plan announced

The Journal reports that the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources of Madeira, Susana Prada announced yesterday in Regional Parliament that the Government will proceed with … Read more

Aerovip

Aerovip have resumed services between Madeira and Porto Santo after technical problems briefly led to the suspension of the service. This story is reported in the Diario, who have … Read more

Harmony of the Seas “medivac”

The world’s largest cruise ship made an unscheduled stop off the port of Funchal in the early hours of yesterday morning whilst Maritime Search and … Read more

More poor weather forecast

Following up on the last blog, which turned out to be remarkably accurate, I am afraid to say that the same sources predict a poor week … Read more

Poor weather forecast

As I write this early Sunday morning the bad weather that has been forecast for an unusually long time seems to have arrived, with a gusty wind … Read more

Monarch rescue goes down to the wire

Yesterday’s Telegraph reported that Monarch Airline’s multi-million pound rescue bid will go down to the wire this week, with a financial lifeline expected … Read more

Airlines continue to earn billions from added fees

The model of how we pay for air travel in Europe continues to change, but it seems that we have not developed … Read more

Tourists increasingly hounded by taxi drivers

Monday’s Diario carried quite a big feature with the headline “Tourists without Peace”, focusing on the stronger methods being used by taxi drivers to … Read more

easyJet pilots vote for strike action

Following up on the two previous blogs, the result of the easyJet pilots vote was announced yesterday and they have overwhelmingly voted in favour … Read more

The Diario reports that this weekend will see the annual “Festa da Piedade” fisherman’s festival in Caniçal. The feast of Our Lady of Mercy is marked by “procession at sea”, … Read more

Porto Santo record confirms tourism growth

Next week, with the Columbus Festival between the 15th and 17th of September, the island of Porto Santo expects to record an overall average … Read more

Last night’s World Travel Awards in Sardinia saw Madeira named Europe’s Leading Island Destination once again. Quite an achievement by all involved, not least all of those visitors who continue … Read more

Venezuelan protest on Funchal seafront

The Diario reports on a show of solidarity with Venezuela as protestors briefly interrupting the wine festival yesterday with a demonstration at Praça do Povo. … Read more

Madeira Wine Festival

The annual Madeira Wine Festival starts tomorrow with a performance in the Municipal Gardens at 9.00pm. The first few days seem to be themed “13th European Folklore … Read more

A one-off blog to promote the fund-raising for Jardim Orquídea. This seems to have become something of a focal point in the aftermath of the fires. If Jardim Orquídea could … Read more