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DESTINATIONS MADEIRA | GOLF & SPORTS TOURISM
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travelweekly.co.uk
he golf ball soars through the azure sky, a white dot framed against a blanket of blue, receding into the distance until it lands on a bed of bright green grass. It’s 230 yards away and I’m gobsmacked. I’ve never hit a golf ball so far. There will be those who ascribe the feat to luck, of course. I prefer to think that I was inspired by my surroundings, teeing off with one of the most breathtaking views I have ever beheld – the Madeiran capital city of Funchal lies several hundred metres below me, and I am surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. Perhaps the high altitude, far above sea level, also helped my ball to whistle through the air like a rocket.
All I know for sure is that, on
the fairway of the 16th hole at Palheiro Golf, I had found my new favourite place to play. I was made for Madeira, and Madeira was made for me.
RISING STAR At first glance, Madeira doesn’t seem made for golf. When you first arrive at the Cristiano Ronaldo international airport (you’ll never guess where he was born), the word that comes to mind is ‘hilly’. Born of volcanic activity many thousands of years ago, Madeira rises out of the Atlantic with its highest peak, Pico Ruivo, stretching up an impressive1,860 metres. Embedded in those hills are houses, churches and a cable car that stretches from the suburb of Monte down to Funchal. With space at a premium on an island that is just 35 miles long and 14 miles wide, it may seem like the last place you’d find a golf course, and the last place you’d come for a golf holiday. Not so. Slowly but surely, Madeira is becoming a serious destination for golfers who want world-class courses amid world-class surroundings.²
30 OCTOBER 2025
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