Madeira airport to Funchal

Some links on this page are affiliate links: if you book through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. How this works

Travellers landing at Madeira often expect the airport to be in Funchal. It is not: it sits on the south-east coast near Santa Cruz, 18.6 km from the city centre, about 20 minutes by road. Getting from Madeira airport to Funchal is simple, though, and there are five ways to do it.

The Aerobus is the cheapest, €6.70 on board, from 08:30 to 22:00. A taxi is the quickest door to door, at a usual fixed fare of about €25 to €35 by day. A private or shared transfer booked ahead has a driver waiting at arrivals. The regular SAM buses stop at the airport on their way along the coast. And a hire car can be collected at the terminal.

Private transfers

The common mistake is to book the cheapest option for a late or tired arrival and then wait for it. A private transfer removes the wait.

Private transfers madeira drivers run meet you at arrivals, take you straight to the hotel and suit families with luggage, groups who would fill a taxi, and anyone arriving after the last Aerobus. The drive to central Funchal is about 20 minutes on the expressway; the booked products allow about 30 minutes for it.

A transfer also solves stays outside the city. Hotels in Calheta, Ponta do Sol or the north coast are a long way from any bus route, and a transfer booked to the address avoids a change in Funchal.

Book with the flight number, so the driver can follow a delay. That matters at Madeira more than at most airports: strong wind regularly cancels and diverts flights, and on 5 March 2026 seven were cancelled and five diverted. A driver who tracks the flight will be there when you land, whenever that is.

Strong wind regularly cancels or diverts flights so drivers track flight numbers to ensure timely pickup.

Pre-booked transfers

People often leave the choice until they land. Booking ahead takes the decision out of the arrival hall.

Madeira airport transfers are booked before you fly, at a fixed price, with a driver who has your name and your flight. Some are private, where the car is yours and the price is per vehicle, which makes them good value for three or four people; others price per seat. Read which one you are buying.

What they have in common is certainty. You know the price before you fly, and there is no queue at the taxi rank. Most of the airport transfers sold online offer free cancellation, which helps if the flight moves.

For a single traveller or a couple heading to central Funchal in the daytime, the Aerobus is usually the better value. For a family, a late arrival or a hotel outside the city, a transfer is the easier choice.

Taxi

Visitors often fear a taxi from an island airport will be a haggle. In Madeira the fares follow a table.

A madeira airport taxi to central Funchal usually costs about €25 to €35 at a fixed fare between 05:00 and midnight, and up to about €40 at night, by 2026 reference values. Madeira's taxis work to an official price table approved by the regional government and the taxi association, with fixed prices for set routes, so ask the fare before you set off if it is not shown.

The ride takes about 20 minutes on the expressway. For two to four people with luggage, a taxi can cost little more per person than the bus, and it goes to the door.

Taxis wait at the airport's rank. At night, when the Aerobus has stopped, they are the only option without a booking.

Step by step on arrival

The usual mistake is to decide at the exit, tired, with a queue behind you. Decide before the flight.

How to get from madeira airport to funchal comes down to the hour you land and where you are going. Landing between 08:30 and 22:00, heading to central Funchal, alone or as a couple: take the Aerobus, €6.70 on board or €5.55 on a pre-paid GIRO ticket, and get off at the stop nearest the hotel; the route has 25 stops and takes about 50 minutes to the end. Landing late, or with a family: take a taxi from the rank or have a transfer waiting. Staying outside Funchal: book a transfer to the address, or collect a car.

If the flight is diverted or delayed by wind, tell the hotel and any driver. A transfer booked with the flight number follows the change; a taxi from the rank needs no booking at all.

Before you land, check the airport's live arrivals if someone is collecting you, and have the hotel's address written down for the driver.

The buses

Travellers on a budget sometimes miss that there is more than one bus. The Aerobus is the direct one; the SAM lines are the local ones.

The madeira airport to funchal bus most visitors take is the Aerobus, which runs from the airport into the city from 08:30 until the last departure at 22:00, with 25 stops along the way. It costs €6.70 on board and €5.55 on a pre-paid GIRO ticket, and it takes about 50 minutes to the end of the route.

The regular SAM buses also stop at the airport on their routes along the east and south-east coast: line 113 about seven or eight times a day, line 20 about four times, and line 53 once or twice. They are slower and less frequent, but they are the way to Machico, Santa Cruz, Caniço or Caniçal without going into Funchal first.

For travel inside the city after you arrive, the Horários do Funchal buses cost €2.05 on board or €1.45 on a GIRO card; the guide to getting around Funchal covers them, and the 2026 fare table lists every price.

Common questions

How far is Madeira airport from Funchal?

18.6 km, about 20 minutes by road.

How much is the Aerobus?

€6.70 on board or €5.55 on a pre-paid GIRO ticket. It runs from the airport from 08:30 to 22:00.

How much is a taxi from the airport to Funchal?

Usually about €25 to €35 by day and up to about €40 at night, at a fixed fare.

What if I land after 22:00?

The Aerobus has stopped, so take a taxi from the rank or book a transfer in advance.