Madeira

With its subtropical climate warmed by the Gulf Stream, Madeira is Portugal’s own floating garden, where sea cliffs rise vertically from the seething Atlantic and carpets of green cover sharp basalt peaks and bottomless gorges. A great way to enjoy the greenery is to hike the island’s famous levadas – 2,500 kilometres of irrigation channels built to carry water from the mountains to the farms, fields and villages below. Alternatively, make the serpentine drive from Ribeira Brava in the south to São Vicente in the north over the razorback spine of the island, enjoying views along the way of Pico Ruivo, at 1,861 metres, Madeira’s highest mountain. The capital, Funchal, is a great place to base yourself, home to the island’s best markets, museums, restaurants, bars, gardens and galleries. Be sure to take the cable car from the Zona Velha up to Monte, Funchal’s aristocratic villa quarter, where visitors can participate in one of Portugal’s more peculiar traditions – skidding down the city’s steep streets in a wicker toboggan, steered by men in traditional straw boaters.