The best bars in Funchal

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Funchal's nightlife has three centres, two of them a short walk apart, rather than a single strip. The old town, the Zona Velha, is the heart of the island's nightlife, with some of its busiest bars in the cobbled lanes around Rua de Santa Maria and the painted doors. The centre, around Rua da Alfândega and Largo dos Varadouros, has the cocktail bars and small clubs. And the area around Rua da Favila, near the Casino Madeira, west of the centre, has the bigger nightclubs.

The drink of the night is poncha, the cane spirit with honey and lemon, served in almost every bar; the wine lodges of the centre cover the Madeira wine. There are pubs and a brewpub in the hotel zone, and a seafront terrace in the old town that goes from café to bar as the evening comes.

Most of it is walkable from the centre, and taxis cover the rest.

The old town: poncha and the lanes

The common mistake is to stay on the seafront for a drink. The bars are in the lanes behind it.

The Zona Velha is the centre of Funchal's nightlife: its narrow cobbled streets hold some of the busiest bars on the island, and the painted doors of the Arte Portas Abertas project line the way. On Rua de Santa Maria, Venda Velha recreates the vendas, the village shops and bars of the early 20th century where people met, and pours poncha made with fresh fruit and cane spirit.

Poncha is the old town's drink: aguardente de cana, honey, sugar and lemon, stirred with a wooden mexelhote, first made in Câmara de Lobos for the fishermen. Try the lemon original, then the passion fruit.

At the eastern end, the Barreirinha Bar Café, at Largo do Socorro right behind the Barreirinha bathing complex, opens in the morning as a café and restaurant and changes through the day, with a seafront terrace, snacks and occasional DJs; it is busiest at nightfall.

In the lanes, O Cantinho 100 Rolhas, a tapas and wine place on Rua de Santa Maria, is rated 4.7 from 35 reviews.

Cocktails and small bars in the centre

Visitors often assume the centre empties at night. Rua da Alfândega and the streets around it hold several of its bars.

On Rua da Alfândega, Dash Cocktail Bar, on the corner of the street, is the place to start a sophisticated evening, with an extensive cocktail list and good music. On the same street, the Mini Eco Bar is a microbar with a strong ecological side, from the paint on its walls to its LED lighting, and a starting point for a night out in the centre.

On Rua do Esmeraldo, Groovy mixes music, art and finger food: food through the week, and DJ sets, live music and art exhibitions at weekends.

At Largo dos Varadouros, Soirée is a small club for music lovers, with DJs and live music, in the building that once held the island's main sugar warehouse, where the sugar was stored for export.

For wine, Regiões House, a wine bar and tapas place on Rua Direita, is rated 4.8 from 295 reviews, and the lodges on Avenida Arriaga offer tastings of Madeira wine.

Pubs, beer and the hotel zone

People staying in the Lido often think the night means a taxi to the old town. The hotel zone has its own pubs.

On the Estrada Monumental, the Beer Garden restaurant, a brewpub, is rated 4.5 from 2,970 reviews. On Rua da Casa Branca, The White House, a pub in the €15 to €20 band, has 4.6 from 1,554, and on Rua Imperatriz Dona Amélia, Moynihan's Irish Bar 4.1 from 1,281.

FugaCidade, a pub on Rua do Conde de Canavial in the €10 to €15 band, is rated 4.8 from 1,038.

The island's own beer is Coral, a lager, and its soft drinks are worth a try as mixers or on their own: laranjada, made on Madeira since 1872, and Brisa Maracujá, with passion fruit. For something different, order a nikita: ice cream, pineapple, pineapple juice and pale beer.

The clubs and the casino

The mistake is to go to the clubs straight after dinner. Start in the bars.

The biggest cluster of clubs is around Rua da Favila, west of the centre, a lively part of the city near several other nightclubs and the Casino Madeira. There, Trap Music Bar has a live music room, a room for dancing and a terrace, and Dubai Club Madeira, near the seafront, offers mixed music and a shisha bar.

On Avenida Sá Carneiro, by the marina, the Vespas Club has been open since the 1980s and was for a time the island's only nightclub; it is still a landmark of Madeira's nights out. And the 23 Vintage Bar plays the hits of the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

The Casino Madeira itself, one of the city's main entertainment centres, is five minutes from the centre.

Music: fado and live nights

Visitors often look for fado and find it only in Lisbon guides. Funchal has live music most weekends.

The live music in Funchal is spread through the bars: Groovy has live music and DJs at weekends, Soirée hosts DJs and live bands in its old sugar warehouse, and Trap Music Bar has a room for live music. The Barreirinha Bar Café adds a DJ now and then on its terrace.

For fado, a Portuguese music with its own evenings, a live music and wine experience in Funchal combines a fado show with Madeira wine, bookable as a tour.

In summer, the festivals bring music outdoors: the Funchal Jazz Festival fills the Municipal Garden, free, and the Santa Catarina Park in early July, and the Atlantic Festival's fireworks light the bay on the June Saturdays. On New Year's Eve, the bay's fireworks end the year.

The Atlantic Festival's fireworks light up the bay on June Saturdays in Funchal.

Planning a night out

People often plan the night in the wrong order and end up waiting for the clubs to open. The evening has a rhythm.

Start with a glass of Madeira wine at a lodge on Avenida Arriaga or a poncha in the old town. Eat in the old town or the centre, where most of the restaurants are. Move to a cocktail bar on Rua da Alfândega or a small club in Largo dos Varadouros, and finish, late, in the clubs around Rua da Favila or on Avenida Sá Carneiro.

The old town and the centre are a walk from each other along the seafront, and the Rua da Favila area and the marina a short taxi ride. Plan a taxi for the way back to a hotel in the Lido or the hills late at night.

Keep an eye on the drinks: poncha is sweet and strong, and Madeira wine is 17% to 22% alcohol.

When the city is busiest

Visitors often arrive midweek in winter and wonder where everyone is. The nightlife follows the calendar.

Funchal's nightlife is lively all year round, helped by a mild climate that keeps the terraces open through the seasons. Weekends bring the DJs and live music at Groovy and elsewhere, and the festivals add more: Carnival in February, the Flower Festival in May, the Atlantic Festival in June, the jazz festival in July, the Wine Festival from late August, and the Christmas and New Year season, when the market night on 23 December and New Year's Eve.

Visit Madeira lists the bars and clubs, and the festivals guide has the dates; the Wine Festival page the programme for the late-summer nights.

Common questions

Where is the nightlife in Funchal?

In the old town around Rua de Santa Maria, in the centre around Rua da Alfândega and Largo dos Varadouros, and around Rua da Favila near the Casino for the clubs.

Where can I drink poncha in Funchal?

In almost any bar; Venda Velha on Rua de Santa Maria makes it with fresh fruit in a recreated old venda.

Is there a casino in Funchal?

Yes, the Casino Madeira, one of the city's main entertainment centres, five minutes from the centre.

Are there pubs in Funchal?

Yes: The White House and the Beer Garden brewpub in the hotel zone, and FugaCidade on Rua do Conde de Canavial, among others.