Monte, Funchal: Cable Car, Monte Palace Garden and Toboggans

Monte is the old hill village above Funchal, some 560 metres above the harbour, and most visitors do it the same way: cable car up from the seafront, a few hours in the Monte Palace Tropical Garden, a look at the church, and down again in a wicker toboggan steered by two men in straw hats. It is touristy, it costs more than you expect, and it is still one of the best half days on the island. This is how to do it well.

In short

• Allow half a day. The garden alone deserves two to three hours.
• The cable car from the old town takes about 15 minutes: €16 one way, €22 return in 2026.
• Monte Palace garden: €18 in 2026, children up to 14 free with an adult.
• The toboggans run Monday to Saturday only, cost €30 to €60 a sledge, and stop at Livramento, not in town.
• Go early. Cruise-ship groups fill all three from mid-morning.

A half day in Monte, in order

The trick is to go up by cable car, walk everything at the top, and come down by toboggan. Buy a one-way cable car ticket if you plan to do that.

Getting up to Monte

The cable car

The Funchal to Monte cable car leaves from the eastern end of Avenida do Mar, next to the old town, and climbs about 560 metres over the rooftops and gardens of the city to Largo das Babosas, a few steps from the garden entrance. The cabins are small and enclosed, and the view back over the bay gets better the higher you go.

It runs every day except Christmas Day, 08:45 to 17:45 in 2026. It is not cheap for what it is: €16 one way and €22 return, half price for children aged 7 to 14, free under 7. A family can pay less for a taxi. But the ride is part of the day. Since the spring 2026 upgrade, five of the 44 cabins have glass floors, at €26 one way or €32 return if you want to see the rooftops under your feet.

On sunny mornings with ships in port, queues build from about 10:00. Arrive at opening time or after 15:00 and you often walk straight on.

For a full guide to the cable cars, including the one onward from Monte to the Botanical Garden, see our page on Funchal’s cable cars.

Bus, taxi or car

Horários do Funchal buses 20 and 21 go up to Monte from the stop at the start of Rua 31 de Janeiro, and the 22 goes to Babosas, by the cable car station. Pay the driver for an on-board ticket. It is the cheapest way up and the drivers are used to visitors. A taxi from the centre takes about 15 minutes.

Driving works but is not relaxing. The roads up are steep and narrow, and the small free car park near the garden is full by midday. If you drive, go early.

On foot, from the mountains

If you want to earn it, walk in from above. The Caminho Real do Monte, the old cobbled royal road, comes down from Ribeira das Cales to Monte under trees for 5.5 km. Join it with the Vereda do Burro from the Pico do Areeiro car park and you have a full day’s descent from 1,800 metres, ending with a coffee in Monte and the cable car down.

Monte Palace Tropical Garden

The main reason to come up. It is a former private estate turned into a large, steep, shaded garden on the side of a valley, with plants from several continents, ponds full of big koi carp, and paths that wind down through ferns and cycads to a lake at the bottom. It is far larger than it looks from the gate, and much quieter a hundred metres in.

What to look out for:

• The tile panels. Long runs of azulejos along the paths tell the history of Portugal and of Madeira in blue and white.
• The oriental gardens. Red lacquered bridges and gates, pagoda-style lanterns and the koi. Children like the fish more than anything else here, and there is an underwater viewing window.
• The museum. Two floors of contemporary African stone sculpture and a mineral collection in a vault underground, with large crystal geodes. Many people say the minerals alone are worth the ticket.
• The newer corners. An orchid house and a bonsai garden, and works by the Portuguese artist Vhils, were added by 2026.
• The wine. Older guides mention a free glass of Madeira wine with the ticket. The garden’s own ticket page lists no drink today, and wine tastings are sold separately.

Prices and hours for 2026: €18 for adults; children up to 14 free with an adult. Open every day except 25 December: 09:00 to 19:00 from April to September (last entry 18:15) and 09:00 to 18:00 from October to March (last entry 17:15). The museum closes at 17:30 all year, and the palace building itself is not open to visitors.

Be warned: the garden is on a slope, with a lot of steps. Some routes avoid them but not all. With a pushchair or limited mobility, ask at the entrance for the flattest route. There are cafés and plenty of toilets inside.

Dated note: closures

The garden sometimes closes at short notice after storms. On 14 and 15 December 2025 it shut after bad weather brought trees down inside, and reopened once the paths were cleared. If a big storm has just passed, especially in winter, check the garden’s website before you go up.

The church and the village

Up the stone steps from the square, the church of Nossa Senhora do Monte looks down over the whole city. Inside, in a side chapel, is the tomb of Charles I, the last emperor of Austria, who died in exile in Monte in 1922. On 15 August the church holds the island’s biggest pilgrimage, the feast of Nossa Senhora do Monte, and on the night of the 14th the village fills with stalls and music. Extra buses run up from the centre.

Below the church, the Largo da Fonte, a small square with a fountain and a couple of cafés, is a good place for a coffee before the ride down.

The toboggan ride down

The carros de cesto are the reason Monte is famous. They are wicker sledges on wooden runners, seating up to three, steered and braked by two carreiros in white with straw hats, who run alongside and use the rubber soles of their boots as brakes. They began in the 19th century as a way of getting down the hill fast. Today they are pure tourism, and still great fun.

• Where: from the bottom of the church steps, down about 2 km of steep road to Livramento.
• When: Monday to Saturday, 09:00 to 18:00. Not on Sundays. They can stop early in bad weather or when the queue is long.
• How long: about ten minutes.
• Price: per sledge, from 1 May 2026: €30 for one person, €40 for two, €60 for three. Tickets are sold at the start, on the day only, and in the wet they do not take three to a sledge.
• Photos: a photographer takes your picture halfway down and sells it to you at the bottom. You do not have to buy it.

It is not frightening. The road surface is polished by generations of sledges, and the speed is more fun than fast. Cars share the road, and the carreiros handle them.

The catch: the ride ends at Livramento, not in Funchal and not back at the cable car. From there it is a steep 20 to 30 minute walk down to the centre, or a taxi. Taxis wait at the bottom, and you are unlikely to be the only person looking for one.

When to go

Early. The cruise ships sell Monte as a package, and from about 10:00 on port days the cable car, the garden entrance and the toboggan queue fill up together. At 09:00 you have the garden almost to yourself. Late afternoon is the other quiet window, but the toboggans stop at 18:00. See beating the crowds for more.

Monte is higher than the seafront and often in cloud when the city is in sun. The garden is beautiful in mist, but the view from the cable car is not.

Back down in town, the Fisherman’s Quarter audio tour in the Tropi Guide app starts near the cable car station, and fills the rest of the afternoon.