Barceló Funchal Oldtown

Barceló Funchal Oldtown is a five-star hotel built behind the façades of six old town houses on Rua da Alfândega, a block back from the sea and two minutes' walk from the Sé, Funchal's cathedral. Barceló opened it in 2023 as its second hotel on Madeira. The street fronts, which the hotel dates to the seventeenth century, were held up while the buildings behind them were rebuilt, and old timber beams and floor slabs went back inside. One of the houses was the headquarters of an embroidery factory and another belonged to the Blandy family, the best-known name in Madeira wine. Finds from the dig are on display, and Madeiran embroidery and wicker run through the interiors.

There are 111 rooms in six categories. The entry Deluxe measures about 22 m², with a rainfall shower, a pillow menu and a 50-inch television. The Deluxe City View and the Deluxe Side Sea View are about 24 m², and the second is the only category that promises the sea. The Junior Suite is about 28 m² with a sofa bed, the Family room about 30 m² for up to four, and the Suite about 35 m² with a separate sitting room, placed, the hotel says, in the best position on each floor. These are compact rooms for a five-star, the price of sleeping behind an old town street front.

The reason to book is the address. From the door it is two minutes on foot to the Sé, five to the marina, nine to the Mercado dos Lavradores and ten to the Monte cable car station and Rua de Santa Maria in the Zona Velha, all on the level streets behind the waterfront, not up Funchal's hills. The roof holds a heated pool, a sun deck and the B-Heaven bar, looking over the bay and the city. Breakfast is included, with two restaurants, the A Bordadeira buffet and the à la carte Noz Café, and room service around the clock.

The trade is space. The rooftop pool is small, about 10 by 6 metres, and guests mention that it is shallow and that loungers run short on busy days. There is no beach at the door: the nearest sea swimming is the pebble Praia do Almirante Reis, 9 minutes' walk east, or the Barreirinha lido, 15 minutes. There is no hotel car park; drivers pay for a space in the Almirante Reis car park, 650 metres away. Book it for a city break with everything on foot, or as a base for days out on the island by tour or taxi; skip it if you want a resort pool, a big room or the sea from your bed.