Madeira is the main island of an archipelago more than 400 miles off the coast of North Africa, a place so green that one of the first Portuguese sailors to see it exclaimed that it was just “one large garden”. And a garden it has remained, through nearly six centuries of human habitation, through slavery and sugarcane, through extinctions and evolution and the current cultural rebirth. Your hosts on this one-of-a-kind journey at the best time to visit will be the Portuguese culinary icon André Magalhães and renowned PokPok chef and frequent League host Andy Ricker.
We’ll take on Madeira in one Very Big Week on the impossibly verdant main island, one of the few places on earth, as Andy is fond of pointing out, where bananas and wine grapes grow together. There will be traditional cookouts, tuna feasts, seaside resorts, and insider access to the island’s vibrant culinary scene. And there will be drinks. Lots and lots of drinks, from the ever-present rum-and-juice poncha to the namesake fortified Madeira wine, making a comeback of its own.
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Portugal
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April 13-20, 2025
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from $11,250
Mighty Madeira: The World in One Island
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Day
1
Welcome to Madeira
- Private transfer from Madeira airport to our hotel
- Welcome cocktails with your hosts André and Andy
- Private first-night dinner curated by Chef André, our trip guide, at the private barrel house dining space Adega do Pomar, featuring Madeira produce, award-winning ciders and rare Madeira wines
Day
2
Cheese, Wheat, Crowbars
- Leisurely breakfast at Barceló Funchal Oldtown
- Head to Camacha, center of Madeira’s basketweaving traditions
- Optional: kick off the day with a breakfast(?) cocktail called Pé de Cabra. Yes, that also means crowbar so be warned.
- Visit Santo Quejio cheese maker for a cheese tasting and cider pairing
- Traditional Madeiran lunch with, as one does, some old-fashioned wheat threshing
- Dinner at Kampo featuring “Fish from the Market” with lemon sauce, tasty braised tuna and marvelous fermented artisan bread
Day
3
Your First Poncha
- Early morning market tour followed by our first poncha (the ubiquitous fruit and aguardente cocktail of the island) of the trip and dentinho (small bites) at an old school taberna in Sāo Joāo
- Visit the tuna pier and tuna drying spot with chef Eusebio Nunes, followed by poncha and dentinho of dry tuna in escabeche at fisherman’s tavern
- Lunch at chef O Recante, Eusebio and his father’s restaurant, for a taste of Bucho de Atum (tuna stomach) escabeche in the village of Caniçal
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Walk to a madeira tasting at Blandy’s Wine Lodge , a 7-generation family-run winery that ages Madeira wines following the traditional canteiro method, with winemaker Francisco Albuquerque
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9-course dinner at Gazebo with the dynamic couple Filipe Janeiro and Adrienne Zino in the historic house where they live
Day
4
The Mad Diversity of Madeira
- Today we are with Professor Manuel Neto to explore the wild biodiversity of Madeira
- Drive to Jardim da Serra, where island’s native flora, including 200-year-old trees, are preserved
- Tour of biodynamic farms where native wheats and yams are grown, with a stop at the coastal Faja Dos Padres farm via cable car
- Taste Marco’s cider accompanied by an island lunch
- Boat ride (weather permitting) from Faja to the Ribeira Brava fishing village
- Check into the oceanfront Saccharum Hotel
- Conclude the day with dinner at Razão por Chef Octavio Freitas
Day
5
Onward to the Shore
- Start the day with coffee and pastry at the Saccharum Hotel
- A day on the sea, a day on the shore (weather depending). Local fisherman Emanuel Freitas dives for one of the treasures of the Atlantic here: sweet, briny limpets.
- Coastal picnic lunch with Emanuel featuring local wines, grilled fish and fresh limpets
- Relax at the hotel with optional spa treatments including halotherapy, ice fountain and Turkish bath
- Epic dinner at the local favorite restaurant Moreia for octopus stew and other local specialities
Day
6
Rum, Cod and Other Coastal Beauties
- Leisurely breakfast at our hotel
- Explore the stunning coastline to Ponta do Pargo along the historical Levada waterways and the coast to Vinhas do Tico
- Late lunch at Vinhas do Tico’s cliffside vineyard
- Sesta!
- Sunset rum tasting at one of the two remaining original sugarcane processing plants in Madeira, where agricole rum and treacle are made
- Dinner at O Parque for grilled cod
Day
7
One Last Big Sip
- After breakfast, drive to Canhas, where we’ll have a bread tasting at Orlando Paulo’s old school bakery, where a new generation is introducing some modern, delicious techniques
- Lunch of espetada—typical Madeiran kebabs—at Lavrador Sao Vicente
- Check in Casa Velha Do Palheiro, originally constructed in 1804 as a hunting lodge and gardens by the esteemed Conde de Carvalhal
- Rest, sip madeira at the lodge, repeat
- Final dinner at the spectacular Casa dos Salgados featuring Espetada, Cozido à Portuguesa and a deep selection of regional and Portuguese wines
Day
8
Farewell to Madeira
- Farewell breakfast at our hotel
- Private transfer to Madeira Airport for your onward travels
What’s Included
- All breakfasts, lunches, dinners, as well as snacks and beverages between meals
- Expertise and services of our experienced trip leaders: at least one guide and one host per trip
- Additional guides and experts from the region
- Transfers to and from the airport or wherever you are on the day the trip starts and ends
- Daily Roads & Kingdoms gifts related to the themes, activities and narratives of each trip
- All gratuities for accommodations, meals, guiding or transport
What’s Not Included
- International airfare to and from the journey (note: some trips begin and end at different airports)
- Personal bar tabs (when not with the group)
- Personal laundry or spa services
- Personal travel insurance
Andy Ricker is an award-winning chef and best-selling author widely credited with introducing Northern Thai cuisine to the United States through his Pok Pok Restaurants. Formed in Portland in 2005, Pok Pok later operated in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and New York, where it earned a Michelin Star. The two-time James Beard Award winner has worked as a pumpkin picker, DJ, house painter and construction contractor, ship’s cook, busboy, waiter, bartender, musician, commercial fisherman, outdoor store salesperson, maintenance man and short order cook.
André Magalhães is the legendary chef behind Lisbon’s phenomenal Taberna da Rua das Flores and Quiosque de São Paulo, the city’s oldest food kiosk. A significant figure in the Slow Food movement, Magalhães developed the sustainable food program at Omali Lodge, an eco-resort on the island of São Tomé in Africa, and is a celebrated writer, public speaker, and jury member at culinary events across the globe.
Overlooking the ocean in Funchal’s charming old town, Barceló Funchal Oldtown is a luxury boutique hotel that neighbors the Funchal Cathedral and cafe-lined Avenida do Mar promenade. Spread across six 16th-century buildings, the hotel is the result of an ambitious renovation project that preserved the original facades and their old interior slabs. Traditional touches within the interiors include references to the island’s embroidery and wicker basketry.
On the west coast of Madeira, Saccharum Hotel sits on a sandy beach between mountains and the dazzling ocean. Built on the site of an old sugar cane mill, the hotel is filled with design references to Madeira’s sugar cane heritage, as well as its mountainous surroundings. Spacious bedrooms overlook the sea. Facilities include an on-site spa, numerous outdoor and indoor swimming pools.
Originally constructed in 1804 as a hunting lodge by the Conde de Carvalhal, this historic building was transformed in 1997 into a luxury boutique hotel. Set within the 150-hectare Palheiro Nature Estate, it’s an ideal jumping-off point for our final explorations of this gorgeous, fascinating island.
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I had no idea what a deeply moving experience this trip would be—far beyond just a culinary tour.
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Really appreciated traveling alongside Andy. The history and context provided by him helped me pull together so much more understanding.
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