Madeira, like Hawaii, is suddenly everywhere—at least in the travel press. The latest headline says what others have echoed: this island off the coast of Morocco is being called the Hawaii of Europe. Just under four hours from London, with its volcanic peaks, winding coastal roads, natural swimming pools, and eternal spring climate, the comparison with Hawaii is tempting. But is it valid?
And we can’t wait to find out for ourselves.
Beat of Hawaii is heading to Madeira in just a few weeks for on-the-ground reporting that no one else in Hawaii—or likely the U.S.—is doing. We’ll be contrasting the island, exploring what makes Madeira special, what Hawaii visitors might want to know, and whether this increasingly popular island has real parallels to the Aloha State or is just surfing the marketing wave.
We’re also asking the questions our readers would want answered. How easy is it to get around? Are the island’s best-kept secrets worth the hype? Is the food scene more hype or heart?
We’ll examine conservation efforts, local sentiment on tourism, and whether what happens behind the scenes matches what’s being sold upfront. There’s a deeper connection here, too—Madeira is part of Portugal, a country whose island immigrants from the Azores helped shape Hawaii’s population and culture in lasting ways. That shared heritage makes this exploration even more relevant and personal.
Why is the Hawaii of Europe making headlines now?
A new wave of international travelers—those from Europe and further afield—are discovering Madeira. Articles that caught our attention have continued to call it a volcanic paradise and a cheaper, equally wonderful, closer version of Hawaii. The coverage highlights the island’s unique geography, mild subtropical weather, spectacular hiking, and easy access from major airports.
From London and most of Europe, flights to Madeira take just under four hours. That’s just short of the distance flying from San Francisco to Hawaii. And the climate? Consistently springlike, with highs mainly in the 70s year-round. The similarities are getting harder to ignore—and that, together with its rising buzz among travelers looking for a Hawaii alternative, is part of what sparked our curiosity.
A plan for discovering the real story from $60 a night.
We’ll be based in Funchal, Madeira’s capital and central tourism hub. Our apartment, walking distance from the city center and Mercado dos Lavradores , costs around $60 per night. We booked our flights from London for a base fare that can sometimes run as low as $40 on EasyJet, though ours ended up being reasonable—but not cheap after seat assignments and checked bags. Renting a car came in at a price comparable to Hawaii or slightly higher.
So far, it’s an easy and affordable setup. But what we’re most curious about goes far beyond logistics. We’ve lined up a meeting with a travel consultant who was born and raised on the island and knows Madeira intimately. She’s helping us shape how we explore Madeira and compare it to Hawaii. We’ll also connect with Madeira’s tourism officials to better understand how the island is evolving and managing its growing visibility on the global stage.
What we’ll be looking at closely.
Madeira’s dramatic terrain evokes Hawaii’s Big Island, with lush ridges, volcanic black-sand beaches, and plunging coastal cliffs. But beaches aren’t the main draw here—Madeira’s coastline is mostly rugged, featuring natural lava pools and engineered ocean access. Instead of expansive sandy shores, many beach areas have been built up with concrete terraces, ladders, and platforms to create swimmable zones in rocky coves.
We’ll explore whether Madeira is a beach destination and whether its subtropical setting compensates for what it lacks in traditional sand and surf. We’ll also visit some of Madeira’s most talked-about coastal spots, including the black sand beach at Seixal, the artificial sandy stretch at Calheta, and the lava pools at Porto Moniz. These are not wide, open beaches like those in Hawaii—they’re compact, dramatic, and often designed for dipping rather than lounging.
Other areas we plan to dive into include:
Tourism challenges. Like Hawaii, Madeira is working to balance resident needs with increasing visitor demand. Once considered a hidden gem, that label no longer applies—overtourism is now a genuine concern. We’ll explore how that tension is playing out and whether there are takeaways for Hawaii’s tourism reset.
Dining and culture. Madeira has emerged as a food destination in recent years, not unlike Hawaii, with Michelin-starred restaurants and serious culinary ambition. We’re looking to experience both the high-end and the everyday dining scenes—including street food—and see how they compare to Hawaii’s blend of fine dining and casual comfort.
Natural preservation. With limited land and a fragile ecosystem, Madeira faces many of the same challenges as Hawaii. Some trails and natural areas already require booking or limit visitor numbers. We’ll see how these systems work—and whether they succeed where Hawaii’s sometimes falter.
Visitor welcome and affordability. Hawaii has experienced waves of tension surrounding tourism, with rising costs and shifting visitor sentiment. We’ll explore how Madeira’s residents feel about tourism and whether the welcome feels genuine or strained. We’ll also track real-time dining costs, activities, attractions, parking, and more.
Why this destination deserves your attention.
For many Hawaii travelers, especially repeat visitors, discovering a place with familiar elements but a different vibe is appealing. That’s part of why our Tahiti vs. Hawaii article continues to perform so well. Madeira will not be a direct substitute for Hawaii—but it could offer an alternative perspective on how island travel is evolving globally.
There’s also something energizing about exploring a place that still feels fresh. Madeira isn’t overloaded with U.S. visitors yet. It doesn’t have direct flights from the West Coast. And it isn’t showing up in most Hawaii vacation searches. That makes it a bit of a blank canvas for us—and for Beat of Hawaii readers.
As one of the few U.S.-based travel outlets exploring Madeira, we’ll bring you insights you won’t find anywhere else.
What do you want to know about Madeira?
We’d love to hear from you as we prepare for this reporting trip. Are you curious about island hospitality in this part of Europe? Do you want objective comparisons on cost, weather, food, or the visitor experience? Would you ever consider swapping Hawaii for Madeira?
Share your questions on Madeira, and we’ll address them in our on-the-ground reporting in April.
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We’re going to Madeira in November. We want to know the best part of Funchal to stay in to be close to bakeries and restaurants.
Would like to know more on places to stay, restaurants, tours, flights from U.S.
Thanks very much!
Cultural life also all about “fado” & Amalia R.
Society, intelligentsia, entertainment, etc
Ports, at sea life, tie up fees, maintenance for small, medium
Crafts.
Wine, spirits, fragrances, fashion commerce; complete info audio visual production.
Mahalo nui loa, CC
As someone who has lived on the BI and visited Madeira recently, I get it but don’t think the comparison is a great one, at least not for the reasons why most people vacation to Hawai’i. Loved both, but enjoy the more wild aspects of Hawai’i, that’s why chose to live on BI. Madeira is more like if you took the most rugged parts of Kaua’i, Maui, and the BI, but without the resorts and sandy beaches, then added small historic European seaside towns. The hiking, viewpoints, gardens, seafood meals, and road network of tunnels were amazing, but the airport landing in Funchal was scary! Would like to go back in apr/may or sep/oct, crowds at some trailheads in August were beyond busy. Enjoy your trip!
I appreciate your wanting up compare Madeira to Hawaii. But please stop these types of articles. We would like to keep Madeira as far away as possible of what has been done in the name of tourism. Us locals dont want our home to be exploited. Our cost of living to become to expensive for us to live simple. And it land to be treated with disrespect. I’ve been to Hawaii several times. Sadly when I compare it to the first time I went there 30 years ago to the last time I went 3 years ago I’m appalled and the sad conditions the island have become. With the homelessness, trash, traffic, expense in Hawaii. Can you just please stop these types of articles and leave us alone. We don’t want to be compared to Hawaii. We don’t want to be exploited like Hawaii.
Please consider us locals.
Why wouldn’t you want to share your culture with the world? Your perspective on Hawaii is insulting. I’m looking forward to visiting Madeira in November.
How many times have you visited Hawaii? For how long? Which islands? Have you talked to any locals about their living conditions before and after being exploited? We don’t mind sharing our culture as long as it’s fine with respect for our people and land. But sadly it’s not. And when you have a small island like ours, it gets very spoiled very quickly. Yes you come for a week and “spend” money thinking it’s helping out community with tourism. But it’s not helping the locals… Its helping the rich get richer because it’s not the locals who own the tourists locations that you all go to.
We have made two trips to Madeira, the first time for five days with three more in the Azores. We returned for a 10 day stay last year. Both trips were based in the capital of Funchal. We love the island. I recommend renting a car to explore the amazing scenery. The main roads are very good, with a system of tunnels that get you from one point to another very efficiently. Funeral is a very manageable and welcoming small city. There was never a time when I felt unsafe or unwelcome. We are not foodies, but we ate and drank well for a very reasonable price.
Forgot to mention that we are from the U.S. Most people we met were surprised to see us……mostly the visitors are from Europe.
Best wishes BOH for a great trip. We will eagerly await your comprehensive review and report upon your return. Hope that you’ll give us a few paragraphs about the landing/approach/take-off from their famously challenging Madeira airport, and it’s runway extension over the Atlantic Ocean.
Aloha.
The landing and takeoff is very scary. Many flights are redirected or sent back to original destinations several times a week. I would not recommend if anyone is afraid of flying and or have scheduled vacations as you may be delayed several hours or days awaiting for flights to get you here
We’ve been to Hawaii a dozen times, just got back from our fourth trip to Madeira. Both lovely places , culturally different. English is very widely spoken in Madeira, as it is a favorite destination for UK visitors. Biggest problem is getting there. We take TAP from Chicago to Lisbon, then it’s a short hop to Funchal. We stay at the 5 star Cliff Bay. It’s considerably more expensive than an apartment, but it’s very nice.
We would consider swapping Hawaii for Madeira.We went to HNL last March, for 6 of us our trip cost $40K, (all CDN $) $17K for a Air bnb on the north shore, $6K for 3 rooms / 4 nights at Hilton Waikiki, 2 rooms 2 nights at AuLani, food, transportation, entertainment seemed reasonable overall.
So we are considering where our next destination will be, especially in light of trump tariffs/entrance fee?? As we are in western Canada, maybe Belize, Costa Rica. Both our parents have been to Madeira.
We are heading to Madeira in early October and are really looking forward to it!! We do Hawaii 1-2 times a year, but are also now hitting Costa Rica at least once a year now too. We just looked at booking Hawaii for another trip in mid-November and the Airfares and Hotels have gone up in prices again!!! So we are about to scrap it and do Costa Rica again at 60% the cost of the trip to Hawaii…….
We have again have chosen the Southern Pacific Coast in and around a town called Ojochal at a super nice place called Hotel Threesixty!! It has 12 Villas, an infinity pool to die for, lots of wildlife, a wonderful restaurant and sunsets to Die for!! Better than Hawaii!
And the people of Costa Rica are so very nice.
Hawaii’s changing, and not always in ways visitors or residents are ready for. I love the idea of exploring another island through that lens—what’s still sacred, what’s been lost, and what might still be protected in Madeira.
I’d be curious to understand the degree to which Madeira locals are starting to feel the same fatigue many in Hawaii do—when the place you love starts to feel like a product. It’s not just about beauty. It’s about belonging.
We are feeling exactly like the natives of Hawaii. Exploited! Please keep going to Hawaii.
I live on the mainland now but grew up on Maui. The Portuguese-Hawaii connection is real and deep, and I’m so glad you’re touching on it. I think there’s a lot to explore there—more than people realize.
A little surprised to see you guys cover a place like Madeira, but this is why I keep reading. Now let’s see if this “Hawaii of Europe” can actually hold up to the name.
The comparison to Hawaii feels a little hard to believe. I’ve been going to the islands for decades. But if Madeira really offers even a piece of that spirit, especially without the price tag and pressure, I’d love to know more and put it on our bucket list.
I’m looking forward to reading about your experiences! I’m surprised you didn’t mention any concerns regarding language barrier. I would imagine the younger generations may have learned English, maybe not so for the older generations, especially as Madeira isn’t exactly a destination for U.S. tourists (yet!). I mention this as a frequent visitor to the Piedmont region of Italy, also an area not typically visited by English-speaking tourists and where many locals over the age of 40 don’t speak English. Have a great trip!
I’ve always wanted to visit there, so I can’t wait for your review! Don’t forget to do some Madeira wine tasting while you’rethere too!
Hawaii is a tricky place for outdoor sports if one is not a relatively high level ocean athlete. There is some fairly easy surfing and ocean swimming and road cycling. Most of the canoe clubs will take a visiting paddler out on an OC-6. Mainland style trails are very rare on my experience, so trail running and mountain biking are limited.
Madeira promises to have far more extensive options for trail based activities, maybe more better and safer road cycling plus canyoning. And, the ocean stuff is still in play.
Maybe precovid you would be able to have safe road cycling and tail running opportunities, but since then we have had a dramatic influx of tourism which has caused all of our trails to be overrun with people that shouldn’t be in the trails. Sadly the tourists have started to use all the trails as a privy, so human waste is found everywhere in our mountains. Cycling was great but now tourists are finding all the back roads where we used to enjoy. Our roads are very tiny and we’re originally for walking. So cycling had become very unsafe.
I will be very interested in what you discover on Medeira. The Azore archipelago is on our list to explore as well. The familial linkage with Hawaii ,our Ohana in particular ,will be so exciting to see where they all came from. Our families are from Sao Miguel ( Ponta DelGada), Pico and Madeira in general.
Mahalo and Happy Travels