FUNCHAL, MADEIRA – NEW YEAR’S EVE
Today, we arrived at our final port-of-call; Funchal, Madeira. Our arrival was much earlier than originally expected, meaning that I didn’t have to provide an art class, and that we could enjoy a bit of a lie-in… bliss!
The first stage of our visit to Funchal (we’re here for two days) was at anchor, just outside the harbour walls. All the berths in the port had already been taken, but that was fine, and expected. We were here for the New Year’s Eve celebrations, and the best place to be in Funchal, on New Year’s Eve, is anchored out to sea… the absolute best location from which to view the island’s famous New Year firework display.
From the top deck, we could already see other ships arriving for the spectacle, including the Spirit of Adventure’s sister ship, The Spirit of Discovery. P&O’s Aurora soon joined the gathering, which also included Fred Olsen’s Borealis, and two large German ships (one, an Aida ship and the other, a Tui ‘Mein Shiffe’). A total of 12 cruise ships were expected to be in the sea just off Funchal by midnight.
After a leisurely breakfast, we took a tender boat ashore, where the atmosphere was absolutely fantastic. We’d been warned that it could be busy with so many ships being in the vicinity – certainly around the tender quay – but it is also to be remembered that 90% or so of all the hotels in Funchal would also be full of visitors, this being their biggest night of the year.

We walked through throngs of people, soaking up the New Year vibe. Funchal goes to town on decorating the streets and providing visitors with lots to see and do – not to mention lots of different ways to spend their money too, of course.

For lunch, we enjoyed a local wrap (mine was with bacon and cheese), from one of the many food cabins, and ice cream. It was so good not having to do anything but be a tourist. Our afternoon concluded back on board the ship, with beer and peanuts in the Britannia Lounge.
As is traditional for New Years Eve, it was Formal night. Our understanding was that the New Years Day dinner, similar to Christmas Day dinner, would be on New Years Day, so we headed up to the Grill at just past 7 o’clock. It wasn’t until the waitress asked us for our table number that we knew we’d made a terrible mistake. We were supposed to have been in the dining room at 6.45pm to join the same table as at Christmas.
Needless to say, we were mortified, and dashed down stairs towards the dinings room in the hope of salvaging the situation… but the damage had already been done. We knew one couple had sais that they wouldn’t be joining the table at all, but with us not turning up to join the other two ladies would have out then into a bit of a situation, whereby the waiters wouldn’t begin taking their orders until everyone was present and seated at the table (ie. us).
Us being 20 minutes late meant that the couple had to be moved to another table, where they would be served, and when we finally did turn up, the same rule applied. We sat there for some time before a kindly waiter suggested we might prefer to move to another table too, where we would be dutifully waited upon. It was all a bit of a dog’s dinner – not the food, which was lovely of course, even though I didn’t feel very hungry, since it was now my turn to come own with the dreaded lurgy.

At which point, I’m going to cut to the chase and say that we did get fed, and we chilled out in our cabin afterwards, until the midnight hour loomed. The atmosphere up on deck was electric with anticipation; many of the guests – including ourselves – had witnessed the fireworks before, and knew what to expect. For many others, however, this would be their first time… and you can only ever see the Madeira New Year Fireworks for the first time… once.
I’m pleased to say that they didn’t disappoint. This was the fourth time I’ve seen them, and they still blow me away. For almost ten minutes, from the moment the clock strikes 12, and the gathering of ships blow their horns, from the first burst of multiple rockets, through to the final barrage of earth-shattering, bone-jangling explosions that feel like a cross between a deadly salvo in a war zone and something out of a science fiction movie, the fireworks, stretching from one end of the island to the other, worked its spectacular magic.



