Enotel Lido
Enotel Lido is a 5-star, 24-hour all-inclusive hotel on the Lido seafront in Funchal, the capital of Madeira, Portugal's mild Atlantic island. It's a single modern block above the sea, renovated in 2021, with 348 ocean-view rooms, an outdoor infinity pool and an indoor heated pool, four restaurants and an EnoKids club. Families come for the all-inclusive ease, the sea-view balconies and Funchal a few minutes down the road.
On this page
Is it worth it?
Who Enotel Lido suits, what's folded into the all-inclusive price and the facts to skim before the detail.
Enotel Lido is a 24-hour all-inclusive, so the appeal is a simple, sorted holiday: your meals, snacks and drinks, the themed dinners and the children's club are all in one price, on a short flight from the UK to a mild island that's warm even in winter. It's a single block above the sea in Funchal, which makes it an easy base for exploring Madeira, and the indoor pool is heated year-round for the cooler months. The big thing to weigh is age: the EnoKids club is usually described as starting at 4, and there's no crèche or organised care for younger children, so under-4 families do the days themselves. There's also no sandy beach at the hotel or near Funchal. You'll get the most from it if you want the all-inclusive ease and Funchal on your doorstep, and you're not counting on a bucket-and-spade beach or childcare for a baby.
Best for
You want an easy 24-hour all-inclusive on a short flight, sea-view rooms, a base for exploring Funchal and Madeira and a heated indoor pool that works even in winter.
Maybe not for
You're travelling with a baby or toddler under 4 and want organised childcare, or you want a sandy beach to build sandcastles on, which Madeira barely has.
Best ages
Four and up, the age the EnoKids club is usually said to start, get the most. Under-4s are well fed and can use the pools, but there's no crèche or club for them.
What stands out
Everything's under one roof above the sea, the indoor pool is heated year-round, and the two-bedroom Family Suite sleeps up to eight.
What to check
The Suite's capacity if you're three to a room and whether the EnoKids club is running for your dates.
Where is it?
On the Lido seafront on the western edge of Funchal, Madeira, about 30 minutes from the island's airport.
Quick facts for families
What the resort is like
Where Enotel Lido sits, how it's laid out over its floors and what that means for getting around.
Enotel Lido sits on the Lido seafront on the western edge of Funchal, Madeira's capital, about 1.6 miles (2.6 km) from the city centre and a few minutes away by taxi or car. Run by the Portuguese group Enotel Hotels & Resorts, it's one large modern block above the sea rather than a spread of villas, so there's no site to walk across and nothing like the golf buggies bigger resorts run to shuttle guests about: you move between floors by lift, with ramps and handrails around the shared areas and rooms adapted for reduced mobility. Most of what you'll use sits on two levels, with the pools, pool bar, gym, spa and children's clubs on the first floor and the main buffet restaurant on the second, all under one roof or on connected terraces. The building was renovated in 2021, and while the rooms feel current, one guest found the common areas a touch dated. For the wider island, its beaches and when to go, see our Madeira guide.
Outside, the Lido promenade is a flat seafront walkway about five minutes away on foot, and it's easy going with a pushchair. The walk down towards the sea is gentle; the walk into Funchal city centre is downhill on the way there and uphill coming back, so most families take a taxi home, which is plentiful and cheap. Praia do Gorgulho, the nearest bathing spot, is about 50 metres from the door.
Every restaurant and bar
Where you'll eat and drink, how the all-inclusive dining works and the family fit at each one.
Everything you eat and drink is in the price, around the clock. The all-inclusive covers all meals, snacks, alcoholic and soft drinks, the themed restaurant dinners and the kids' club; spa treatments, hairdressing and laundry are the main things charged on top. There are four restaurants and four bars. The Atlântico buffet handles breakfast, lunch and dinner, three themed restaurants open in rotation on set nights rather than every night, and between meals the poolside café keeps going, with a light buffet late at night.
Atlântico is the main buffet, up on the second floor with indoor tables and an outdoor terrace over the pool and the sea. Breakfast runs 7:30 to 10:30, and lunch and dinner follow the all-inclusive pattern through the day, with the current times posted in the hotel app. Dinner rotates through themes, Madeiran, Asian and Portuguese nights among them, and there's a mini-buffet of gluten-free and lactose-free options within it. It's the easiest room with young children: no booking, a high chair for the table (standard at a 5-star all-inclusive, though not itemised on the hotel's own pages) and you eat when appetites arrive. Staff get a lot of praise for keeping an eye on whether children are happy and fed. On the odd evening the hotel brings in a performer, a mime artist or a musician, during dinner.
Vela di Canale, on the first floor by the pools, is the Italian café and snack bar and the main daytime option. It serves pizza, burgers, salads and ice cream from about 10:30 in the morning to 6 in the evening, a light buffet from 10pm to midnight and a continental spread through the small hours until breakfast. Children tend to make straight for the pizzas here, and being right by the pool means no long walk with wet children. On some nights it turns into a full sit-down Italian dinner of four courses, and when it's on it fills up, so go early.
O Bailinho is the Madeiran restaurant, a set regional menu served in the evening on the nights it's open, which varies rather than running nightly. There's no separate children's menu here.
Kai is the Asian restaurant, with sushi, stir-fry and teppanyaki, seating from about half seven on the nights it runs. One family reported that you have to be 12 or older to eat here; it isn't on the hotel's own restaurant pages, so treat it as something to check rather than a firm rule.
Four bars fill in around the restaurants. The Piano Bar in the lobby is the main social hub, open from half nine in the morning to midnight for coffees by day and cocktails with piano music at night. The Pérola Lounge is the evening show bar, from half eight to midnight, with folklore shows, cabaret and music acts, and it's the main adult evening venue. Coral is the sports bar, open 10am to 10pm, with a pool table, big screens and nearby billiards and ping-pong tables, and families with older children and teens tend to gravitate here in the evenings. Calhau is the outdoor pool bar, serving drinks poolside from 10 to 6. The included drinks run from soft drinks, juices, coffees, water and non-alcoholic beer to regional beer, wine, sparkling wine, spirits including Johnnie Walker Red Label, liqueurs, caipirinhas and cocktails.
The buffet's allergen labelling comes up again and again in reviews as clear and thorough, and there's gluten-free food and lactose-free milk at the mini-buffet. The one recurring grumble is that on a longer stay, five nights or more, the buffet-led format can start to feel samey, with only so much à la carte within the all-inclusive.
How the all-inclusive dining works
None of the restaurants take bookings. The themed dinners at O Bailinho, Kai and the Italian nights at Vela di Canale run first-come on the nights they're open, so the way to get a table at the popular sittings is simply to turn up early. The Atlântico buffet is always open as the no-wait fallback, and a special baby menu can be arranged in advance through guest services.
Rooms and suites
Every room type with its official size and who it sleeps, then the pools and the beach below.
There are four room types, all with a private balcony and an ocean view, side-on in the cheaper rooms and full-frontal in the suites. The table lists each with its official size and how many it sleeps; the guidance after it is which suit a family with a baby or toddler.
| Room or suite | Size | Beds | Sleeps | View |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Room | 29 m² | 2 twin beds | Up to 3 (3 adults, or 2 adults and 1 child) | Side sea view |
| Family Room | 30 to 34 m² | 2 double beds | Up to 4 | Side sea view |
| Suite | 60 m² | 2 twin beds | 2 adults (room page) or 3 (hotel FAQ); confirm before booking for 3 | Frontal ocean view |
| Family Suite | 60 m² | 4 beds in 2 bedrooms | Up to 8, in 2 bedrooms | Frontal ocean view |
For a couple with one small child, the 29 m² Standard Room works if you're the only two adults, since a cot can go in only when the room holds two adults rather than three; the bathroom has both a separate shower and a bath, which helps at bath time, and the balcony runs 3.9 to 6.7 m², enough for a couple of chairs. The Family Room, 30 to 34 m², sleeps four on two double beds and suits two adults with two children, though some of these rooms have a shower only and no bath, and the room page doesn't confirm whether a cot will fit, so ask if you need one.
The 60 m² Suite adds a separate living room and a full frontal ocean view, and it's the pick for a couple with one baby. Its capacity is the one thing to pin down before booking: the hotel's room page says two adults with the option of a cot, while its own FAQ says three, and neither page explains the difference, so confirm directly if you need it for three. The Family Suite, also 60 m², is the standout for a larger or multi-generation group: two separate bedrooms and a living room sleeping up to eight, one bathroom with both a bath and a separate shower and a balcony with loungers. Being able to shut a door on sleeping children, and bath them after the pool while the adults shower, is what makes it work for young families.
Every room comes with a private balcony, a 48-inch TV, a safe, a minibar stocked on consumption, a hairdryer, pool towels, a robe and slippers, Wi-Fi and access to the indoor car park. The hotel doesn't list connecting rooms, so if you want two side by side, ask when you book. By nightly rate the Standard is the entry room, then the Family Room, then the Suite, with the Family Suite the dearest, all on the all-inclusive rate.
Pools and water features
There are two main pools, both on the first-floor terrace and both open 9am to 8pm. The outdoor infinity pool runs out towards the Atlantic with a big lounger terrace and panoramic sea views, and it has a shallower children's section. The second is an indoor, semi-covered pool under an overhang, and this is the one confirmed to be heated: it's how families keep swimming in the cooler months and the mornings, and it runs a daily aqua-aerobics session at half eleven using half the pool, with pool yoga on some days. A small children's play space sits between the two pools, near the snack bar and the sports bar.
Beyond the two, there may be an additional adults-only indoor pool, mentioned by one tour operator but not on the hotel's own pages, so treat it as a maybe rather than a certainty. There's no splash pad, water slides or play fountains anywhere; the children's section is simply a shallow area, not a water-play feature. The spa's wet area, a separate hydrotherapy zone on the first floor, is free for guests.
The beach
There's no sandy beach here, and next to none in the Funchal area, which is a Madeira-wide thing rather than a mark against the hotel. The nearest bathing spot is Praia do Gorgulho, about 50 metres from the door, a small rocky and pebbly cove with clear water. It's unsupervised, has no Blue Flag, and it's fine for a sea dip and some sun but not for toddlers with buckets and spades. A short walk west along the promenade brings you to the Lido bathing complex at Ponta Gorda, municipal saltwater pools with an entry fee, which is a useful extra water option. For actual sand you'll need to travel, and the days-out section below has the options.
Babies and toddlers
What the youngest children get, the clubs from age 4 up, and everything that fills a family day and the days out beyond it.
The most important thing for families with the very youngest children is what isn't here: the EnoKids club is usually described as taking children from age 4, and there's no crèche or organised care for babies and toddlers under that. If you're travelling with an under-4, plan on being hands-on through the day, with the pools, the baby menu and your own supervision covering it, and the outside babysitting team for the odd evening.
For children from 4, EnoKids is included and runs roughly 9am to 9pm with a break for lunch, though the exact hours sit in the hotel app and can change with the season; it's typically described as taking children up to about 12. The programme covers puppet-making, movie nights, karaoke, magic, crafts, an indoor trampoline, competitions and outdoor games. One thing to check before you rely on it: in quieter periods the club can run reduced hours or close, and it's been found both open and shut on different off-season visits, so confirm it's operating for your dates.
Older children from 13 to 17 have a Teens Club with video games, table sports and competitions, a relaxed space to hang out. For an evening to yourselves, babysitting is available through an outside team rather than hotel staff, charged separately and booked at reception.
Cots can go in the Standard Room (with two adults), the Suite and the Family Suite; the Family Room page doesn't confirm one, so ask if that's your room. The kitchen will prepare a special baby menu on request, and that's the point to confirm a high chair for the table too. For nappies, formula and the rest, there are convenience stores a short walk away and the Forum Madeira shopping centre for a fuller range, about 15 minutes on foot. If you're not staying but want to use the hotel for a day, there's a Day Use option from 9am to 9pm that covers the restaurants, bars, pools, gym, wet area, EnoKids and Teens Club, Wi-Fi, lockers and parking, though not a room, charged per adult and child.
Things to do
Beyond the pools, the first floor holds a gym, open 8 to 8, and Spa Moments, the treatment spa for massages, beauty and wellness, which is charged on top of the all-inclusive and worth booking ahead on +351 291 702 206. There's a unisex hairdressing salon too, also extra. A daily entertainment programme runs for all ages and is published on the hotel app, with live music, themed shows, pool activities, EnoKids sessions and cabaret changing night to night; the Pérola Lounge is where the adult evening shows happen, and the Coral sports bar is the spot for a game of pool. Aqua-aerobics runs daily in the pool. Enotel guests also get a discount at the Santo da Serra golf club, though that's about 30 km away in the hills and a day out rather than something on site.
The reception desk books a long list of third-party excursions, paid directly to the operator: island tours to Santana and its triangular houses or to Porto Moniz for the volcanic pools, viewpoint trips to Pico dos Barcelos, Eira do Serrado and the Cristo Rei statue, whale and dolphin speedboat trips, levada and vereda walks of varying difficulty, a ferry day out to Porto Santo, off-road buggy adventures, discounted car hire and golf.
The area and days out
Enotel Lido's real draw is the location: you're a few minutes from Funchal, with the whole island to explore. The city centre is about five minutes by car. From there the Funchal cable car climbs to Monte, for the Monte Palace tropical garden, the village and the wicker toboggan rides down the hill; the CR7 Museum in the city, dedicated to Cristiano Ronaldo, who was born here, goes down well with football-mad older children; and the flat, pushchair-friendly Old Town, the Zona Velha, has its painted doors and cafés. A yellow open-top hop-on-hop-off bus tours Funchal and the fishing village of Câmara de Lobos, with a stop near the hotel, and the Botanical Garden has more than 2,000 plant species for older children. One family's 2023 visit priced the Monte cable car at around €12.50 an adult and €6.50 a child, the CR7 Museum at about €5 an adult and the yellow bus at roughly €34 for a family of four; treat those as a rough, dated steer rather than current prices, and check each operator's own site before you go.
For sand, you travel. Praia Formosa, about 10 to 15 minutes west, is the closest, a roughly 2 km stretch of dark pebble and black sand with lifeguards in season and a playground, though it isn't the white sand many families picture. Praia de Calheta, about 45 minutes away, is a man-made sandy beach and the only proper sandy one on Madeira. The therapeutic sandy beach on the island of Porto Santo is a ferry day trip. Câmara de Lobos, about 15 minutes away, is an easy stop for its colourful boats and seafront restaurants. Porto Moniz, roughly an hour and a half northwest, has natural volcanic swimming pools where children can swim safely in the lava rock. Madeira is one of Europe's best places for whale and dolphin watching, which the hotel can arrange by speedboat and independent operators run by catamaran, good for children of about 5 and up; the same 2023 account priced an independent operator, Magic Dolphin, at about €25 an adult and €12.50 a child, again a dated approximate guide rather than a current price. The island's famous levada walks follow the old water channels and range widely in difficulty; they generally don't suit pushchairs or toddlers but are fine for able school-age children. Forum Madeira, the nearest shopping centre with a supermarket and pharmacies, is about 15 minutes on foot or three by car.
Loves and gripes
What families rate and what frustrates them, how it compares to VidaMar, the journey in and the weather by month.
What families love
- The all-inclusive itself, which guests say takes the budgeting and the meal-planning out of the holiday.
- The heated indoor pool, a favourite with families visiting in the cooler months.
- The food, for its variety and its clear allergen labelling.
- The ocean-view balconies and sunsets from them.
- Attentive staff, quick check-ins and care with children at mealtimes.
- Cleanliness, which reviewers single out.
- The two-bedroom Family Suite for larger and multi-generation groups.
- The location for getting into Funchal and around the island, plus the promenade for walks.
Common gripes
- No crèche or club for under-4s (EnoKids is usually described as starting at 4), the biggest limitation for families with the youngest children.
- Kids' club hours and opening that can vary by season.
- The reported 12-and-over rule at the Asian restaurant, Kai.
- Whether the outdoor pool is heated is unclear; only the indoor pool is confirmed heated.
- No sandy beach at the hotel or in Funchal.
- Common areas that one guest found a little dated despite the 2021 renovation.
- Buffet fatigue on longer stays.
Across the booking sites it sits consistently among the higher-rated hotels in the Lido and Funchal area, and the hotel itself claims the title of best 5-star all-inclusive in Madeira, an award it says is voted by its own guests.
Against VidaMarHow it compares
The natural comparison in Funchal is VidaMar Resort Madeira, a similar large seafront hotel a short way along the coast. The main differences come down to two things. VidaMar runs a free kids' club from age 3, a year younger than EnoKids, and adds a thalasso spa and a sea-bathing platform, but it isn't all-inclusive, so meals and drinks are paid as you go. Enotel Lido's pull is the 24-hour all-inclusive and, for a bigger group, the two-bedroom Family Suite. If you want a younger kids' club and don't mind paying for meals, VidaMar is worth a look; if you'd rather have everything in one price, this is the one.
From the airport, and by carGetting there and when to go
Madeira's airport (FNC, also called Cristiano Ronaldo) is about 30 minutes from the hotel by road, and the flight from the UK is around 3 to 3.5 hours, with direct services year-round from several airports. There are three ways in from the airport: the Aerobus, which stops a few metres from the hotel and is the cheapest but least comfortable with luggage and a pushchair; a private transfer, booked at least 24 hours ahead and paid to the transfer company; or a metered taxi, about half an hour. There's free covered parking at the hotel. Many families hire a car to explore the island, which the reception desk arranges at a discount through a local company; an automatic is the easier choice on the steep roads, and you'll need to sort car seats for young children. There's no minimum stay, so short breaks and full weeks both work, and the hotel sells both direct and through UK operators like Jet2holidays, so it's worth comparing a package against booking direct.
Mild all yearWeather
Funchal sits on Madeira's sheltered south coast, and it's mild the whole year round, above 20°C even in winter, with humidity that stays comfortable. The hotel and the island are open year-round. The warmest, driest and sunniest months are July to September, when the sea reaches 22 to 24°C, and May, June and October are good quieter shoulders. Winter is still warm by UK standards but wetter and cloudier, which is when the heated indoor pool matters most. One quirk: even in midsummer a morning cloud layer, the “capacete”, often forms over the island and thins through the warmest part of the day.
| Month | Daytime high | Overnight low | Rain | Wet days | Sea temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 20° | 14.5° | 99 mm | 9 | 19° |
| February | 20° | 14° | 95 mm | 8 | 19° |
| March | 20.5° | 14.5° | 83 mm | 10 | 19° |
| April | 21° | 15° | 62 mm | 7 | 19° |
| May | 22° | 16.5° | 44 mm | 5 | 20° |
| June | 24° | 18.5° | 17 mm | 2 | 21° |
| July | 25.5° | 20° | 4 mm | 1 | 23° |
| August | 27° | 21° | 4 mm | 1 | 24° |
| September | 26.5° | 20.5° | 45 mm | 5 | 24° |
| October | 25° | 19.5° | 118 mm | 10 | 24° |
| November | 22.5° | 17° | 112 mm | 10 | 22° |
| December | 21° | 15.5° | 135 mm | 12 | 21° |
Typical monthly averages from weather-station records. Sea temperature is the open-water figure, so a sheltered bay can feel a degree or two warmer. Enotel Lido and Madeira are open year-round.
Health and supplies
There's no infirmary in the hotel, though staff will help if you need it; the nearest hospital is the Hospital Dr. Nélio Mendonça in central Funchal. Madeira is part of Portugal and the EU, so a UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) covers state healthcare here, the free card that replaced the EHIC, and it's worth having travel insurance on top. For baby supplies, the convenience stores near the hotel carry the basics, and Forum Madeira, about 15 minutes' walk, has a fuller range along with pharmacies and a supermarket.
Questions
The things families ask most, the official pages worth a bookmark and when this guide was last refreshed.
Does it work with a baby or toddler if there’s no crèche?
It can, as long as you go in knowing you’ll be hands-on all day, since there’s no club or crèche for the under-4s (EnoKids is usually described as starting at 4). The baby menu and the two pools cover a lot, and the outside babysitting team can free up an evening if you book it at reception.
Can we get a cot in our room?
Cots go in the Standard Room (when it’s two adults), the Suite and the Family Suite. The Family Room’s page doesn’t mention one, so if that’s the room you want, email [email protected] to confirm a cot before you book.
Can younger children eat at Kai, the Asian restaurant?
One family reported a minimum age of 12 at Kai, though it isn’t on the hotel’s own restaurant pages. If an under-12 eating there matters to you, check directly before you count on it. The buffet and the poolside Italian café are open to all ages every day either way.
How does babysitting work?
It’s run by an outside team rather than hotel staff, and charged separately. Ask at reception to book, and do it a day or two ahead rather than on the night, and ask what’s involved when you book.
Can the kitchen do baby food?
Yes, if you arrange it in advance. Email the guest services team at [email protected] before you fly with what your baby eats, rather than expecting it on arrival.
Is there a sandy beach?
Not at the hotel, and next to none in Funchal at all. The Gorgulho spot next door is rock and pebble, good for a sea dip but not a bucket-and-spade day. For sand you drive: Praia Formosa is 10 to 15 minutes west, or the man-made beach at Calheta about 45 minutes.
How do we get in from the airport?
It’s about 30 minutes. The cheapest way is the Aerobus, which stops a few metres from the hotel but is less comfortable with a pushchair and cases; a private transfer booked at least a day ahead, or a metered taxi, are the easier options with young children.
How many people does the Suite sleep?
Treat it as a couple's suite. The two hotel pages don't agree on a third person, one listing two adults plus a cot and the other three, so if your third is a child who needs a bed rather than a cot, check with the hotel first. A bigger group is better off in the Family Suite, which sleeps up to eight across two bedrooms.
See more Enotel Lido photos
Open the Enotel Lido photo gallery →Useful links
- Enotel Lido: the hotel's own site for rooms, what's included and the children's clubs.
- GOV.UK Portugal travel advice: entry rules and safety updates before you travel.
- Madeira with little ones: our guide to the wider island, its beaches and when to go.
Last updated 13 July 2026.
