Hotel The Cliff Bay
Hotel The Cliff Bay is PortoBay's five-star flagship on the Portuguese island of Madeira, set on a clifftop above the Bay of Funchal with the Atlantic below. It steps down from the lobby and gardens to a sea-level pool terrace and a pontoon you can swim from, and it holds two Michelin stars at its Il Gallo d'Oro restaurant. Families come for the sea-level children's pool, the heated indoor pool you can use in winter and staff that guests rate as highly as any hotel in Funchal.
On this page
Is it worth it?
Who The Cliff Bay suits, what you pay extra for and the facts to skim first.
Hotel The Cliff Bay is one of the best-rated hotels in Funchal. It scores 9.2 out of 10 on Booking.com from more than a thousand reviews and sits among the top three or four hotels in the city on TripAdvisor, which named it Portugal's number one hotel in its 2025 Travellers' Choice Best of the Best awards, sixth in Europe, fifth in the Luxury category and 25th in the world. That award only goes to the top 1% of hotels on TripAdvisor over a full year of guest reviews. The thing families praise most is the service, followed by the shallow children's pool at sea level and the heated indoor pool.
It's a five-star hotel with serious food rather than a kids-club resort. There's no year-round supervised club, so if your holiday depends on organised childcare every day, VidaMar Resort Madeira across town runs one and may suit better. Standard rooms are a compact 30 m², so with one or two young children the 42 m² family rooms are the more comfortable choice. Set that against the clifftop setting and the sea-level pool complex, and it suits families who'd value the service and the food as much as a place for the children to swim.
Best for
You want five-star service, sea views and serious food, a heated pool you can use in winter and a shallow children's pool for small ones.
Maybe not for
You need a sandy beach, a daily supervised kids club, or lots of flat ground and space in a standard room.
Best ages
Babies and toddlers upwards. There's a children's pool, a playroom and a playground on site; older children have less laid on outside the seasonal programmes.
What stands out
The clifftop setting, the two-Michelin-star Il Gallo d'Oro and the service reputation that won it TripAdvisor's top hotel in Portugal for 2025.
What to check
Whether Il Gallo d'Oro is open for your dates, and whether a family room suits you better than a 30 m² standard.
Where is it?
On Estrada Monumental in western Funchal, on the south coast of Madeira, about 20 to 25 minutes from the airport.
Quick facts for families
The resort and its setting
Where The Cliff Bay sits, how it's laid out down the cliff and what that means with a pushchair.
The Cliff Bay sits on a natural promontory on Estrada Monumental, the main hotel road in western Funchal, in the Lido and São Martinho district on Madeira's south coast. It looks out over the Bay of Funchal, with the Atlantic to the south and east, and it drops down the cliff on three levels. The top level, at road height, holds the lobby, most of the rooms, the Rose Garden restaurant, the Cliff Bar, the spa, the gardens and the indoor and outdoor pool. Below that, at sea level, are the saltwater and children's pools, the Blue Lagoon restaurant, the playground and the pontoon where you get into the sea. It's a large hotel by Funchal standards, with 202 rooms and suites across the site, worth weighing against a smaller boutique hotel if you'd rather have fewer people at breakfast and around the pools.
An outdoor lift and a staircase link the clifftop to the sea-level terrace. The lift is the practical route with a pushchair, and guests single it out, because it puts the children's pool, the playground and the sea within reach without carrying a pram down steps. The lift reaches most floors, though the second and third floors are served by ramps rather than the lift; adapted rooms can be requested, and most of the hotel is described as wheelchair accessible.
The gardens are planted with tropical flowers and palms, with sun terraces and a quiet reading nook among them, and they're one of the things guests mention most. Next door, Les Suites at The Cliff Bay is a separate PortoBay hotel that shares all the facilities through an internal corridor, so Cliff Bay guests can reach the AVISTA restaurant and the Les Suites infinity pool that way. Funchal's centre is about 2km along the front, a walk past Santa Catarina Park and the marina, and the hotel runs a free minibus into the city several times a day. For the wider island, its beaches and when to go, see our Madeira guide.
Every restaurant and bar
The fine-dining room, the family restaurants, the poolside bars and how the board options work.
The hotel isn't all-inclusive. You book it on bed and breakfast, half board or full board, and drinks, the spa and most activities are charged on top. There are four places to eat across the hotel and its sister next door, from a two-Michelin-star tasting menu to a barbecue by the sea.
Il Gallo d'Oro is the hotel's fine-dining restaurant and holds two Michelin stars, along with a Michelin Green Star for sustainability. Chef Benoît Sinthon has led the kitchen since 2004, cooking a tasting menu built around Madeiran produce, much of it from PortoBay's own organic garden in the hills above Funchal. It serves dinner only, Tuesday to Saturday from 7pm to 9:30pm, and the dress code is smart casual with no shorts or jeans. Reservations are essential, so book well ahead of your stay. It's an adult-leaning room, and children under around six are unlikely to be admitted, so confirm with the hotel if you're hoping to bring a younger child. The restaurant also closes for a few weeks each summer for renovation, and during that time an alternative dinner, Atlantic Tribute by Benoît Sinthon, runs in the sea-level Pier Lounge instead.
Rose Garden is the main restaurant and the one most families eat in. It serves international food with themed evenings through the week, Italian, Portuguese, a Thursday Latin night and a Friday fish night, with live music at dinner and a children's menu. It's where half-board and full-board dinners are served, from 7pm to 10pm, and where breakfast is laid on for the standard and family rooms, from 7am to 10:30am.
AVISTA sits next door in Les Suites and is open to Cliff Bay guests along the internal corridor. It's Michelin Recommended, a Mediterranean sharing menu cooked over a Josper charcoal grill, with à la carte plates, two tasting menus and Portuguese small plates; the menu is signed by Benoît Sinthon and run day to day by chef João Luz. There's a children's menu and no minimum age, so it's the more relaxed option for a special meal with young children in tow. It serves breakfast, lunch, snacks through the day and dinner.
Blue Lagoon is the casual restaurant and bar down on the sea-level pool terrace, doing barbecue, salads, fresh fish and seafood through the day. Full-board guests have lunch here, and its spot beside the children's pool makes it the easy lunch stop with small children. It opens for daytime drinks and lunch, with meals some evenings in the warmer months.
Among the bars, the Cliff Bar is the main lounge at clifftop level, open from mid-morning until after midnight, for cocktails, snacks and the daily afternoon tea, with live music some evenings. The Cactus Bar serves the indoor and outdoor pool with light meals, salads and juices, including juices for children. The Pier Lounge is a bar down at the pontoon, and it's the room that hosts the Atlantic Tribute dinner during the summer Il Gallo closure. Room service runs 24 hours.
| Board | What it adds | Where you eat |
|---|---|---|
| Bed and breakfast | Breakfast | Rose Garden, or Il Gallo d'Oro or AVISTA for the superior rooms |
| Half board | Breakfast and dinner | Dinner at the Rose Garden |
| Full board | Breakfast, lunch and dinner | Adds lunch at the Blue Lagoon by the sea-level pool |
A gala dinner supplement applies to stays that include Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve, when the Rose Garden galas carry a dark-suit or black-tie dress code.
Rooms and suites
Every category with its official size, and which suit a family with a baby or toddler.
There are eleven room and suite categories, and most look out to the sea or the bay. All of them have a private balcony, air conditioning, a smart TV, a minibar, a safe, tea and coffee and a marble bathroom with both a bath and a shower, plus robes and slippers. The superior rooms and the suites add extras: fresh flowers, fruit and wine on arrival, a refreshed minibar, a pillow menu and breakfast at Il Gallo d'Oro (moved to the Rose Garden or AVISTA while Il Gallo is closed). The table has every category with its size and how many it sleeps; the guidance below is which suit a family.
| Room | Size | Sleeps | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard (Land or Garden View) | 30 m² | 3 | Floors 4 to 7. Garden or landward views. |
| Side Sea View | 30 m² | 3 | Floors 1 to 4. Partial ocean view, wall-protected balcony. |
| Sea View | 30 m² | 3 | Floors 1 to 5. Full sea view to the south-southwest. |
| Funchal Bay View | 30 m² | 3 | Floors 1 to 5. Harbour and city views. |
| Superior Sea View (upper floors) | 30 m² | 3 | Floors 6 to 8. Sea view, plus the superior extras. |
| Superior Funchal Bay View (upper floors) | 30 m² | 3 | Floors 6 to 10. Bay views, plus the superior extras. |
| Family Room | 42 m² | 4 | Two king beds and a balcony. The standard family option. |
| Family Room Funchal Bay View | 42 m² | 4 | Two king beds, bay-facing balcony. |
| Junior Suite | ~40 m² | 3 | Separate seating area, queen beds, mostly third floor, bay view. |
| Executive Suite | Not stated | Not stated | Separate lounge, marble cloakroom with whirlpool, an extra guest bathroom, Atlantic or garden views. |
| Atlantic Suite | ~61 m² | 3 | The largest suite option. |
For a family the choice is mostly about space. The standard rooms are 30 m², which is fine for a couple with a cot but tight for two adults, a toddler and a cot together. The two family rooms are 42 m², sleep four and have two king beds, and they're the practical choice with one or two young children. Above them, the Junior Suite adds a separate seating area at around 40 m², and the larger Atlantic Suite runs to about 61 m². The Executive Suite has a separate lounge and an extra bathroom. A rollaway or extra bed can be added for a charge depending on the room, and baby cots are available on request. The hotel doesn't list interconnecting rooms, so if you need adjoining rooms ask directly.
Pools and sea access
The hotel has three pools across its two swimming levels. At sea level there's a heated saltwater pool at around 21°C and, right beside it, a separate shallow children's pool at a similar temperature, next to the playground and the Blue Lagoon; this is the pool families with small children rate most. Up at clifftop level there's a heated indoor and outdoor freshwater pool that stays around 27°C all year and extends out towards the harbour view, open from 7am to 8pm and next to the Cactus Bar; it's the one that makes a winter or spring visit work when the sea and the sea-level pools are cold. There are several jacuzzis around the pool levels too.
From the pontoon at sea level you can get into the Atlantic itself, down a ladder, with lifeguards on duty and access during daylight, depending on the sea conditions on the day. Snorkelling and diving taster lessons are offered free at reception in summer, and there's a diving school and kayak hire in season. The water around the pontoon is clear enough to see barracuda, octopus, moray eels and rays. The sea is coolest at about 18°C in February and warmest at around 23 to 24°C in September.
This matters because Madeira isn't a sandy-beach island. For most guests the hotel's own pontoon is the way to swim in the sea, and the outdoor lift down to it is what keeps the sea-level pools and the pontoon within reach of a pushchair.
Babies and toddlers
What there is for small children on site, and what to know before you rely on it.
The most important thing to know is that The Cliff Bay doesn't run a year-round supervised kids club. What it has instead is an indoor playroom, an outdoor playground, the shallow children's pool at sea level, and structured children's programmes at a few points in the year. If a daily club that takes the children off your hands is central to your holiday, this isn't the hotel for it.
The indoor playroom, which the hotel calls a kindergarten, has age-appropriate games for younger children and is open for a payable charge, so ask at reception. There's a separate games room for older children with snooker, also payable locally, and the outdoor playground sits at sea level by the children's pool and the Blue Lagoon. The seasonal programmes run at Easter, in October (a PortoBay Youth Week of workshops, cooking and painting) and at Christmas; the exact dates change year to year, and none of them is a standing club.
For the youngest guests, cots and high chairs can be requested, and reviewers mention a welcome gift for children and a small child-sized bathrobe and slippers. There are children's menus in the Rose Garden, the Cactus Bar and AVISTA. Babysitting can be arranged for a charge through the concierge, with at least 24 hours' notice, for an evening out without the children.
An ESPA spa for the grown-upsThe spa and wellness
The hotel's spa is a branded ESPA spa with eight treatment rooms. Its thermal area has a Turkish bath, a sauna, a steam bath, a jacuzzi and a relaxation room, and there's a private spa suite for two with a massage area, a jacuzzi and views over Funchal Bay. The treatment list runs from massage and facials to body wraps, aromatherapy, reflexology, hot-stone therapy and manicures and pedicures, with signature treatments that use local Madeira wine and honey. There's also a fitness room with cardio and weights machines, a beauty salon and a seasonal outdoor spa gazebo in the garden that's payable locally. The spa is aimed at adults, with nothing specifically for children, and its opening hours are worth checking with the hotel when you arrive.
Things to do at the resort
The sports, the tastings and the levada walks the hotel can set up, then the days out beyond the gate.
Beyond the pools and the sea, there's a tennis court, table tennis and a snooker room, with the tennis and snooker payable locally. In season there's a diving centre, kayak hire and the free introductory snorkelling lessons at reception. Golfers get preferential green fees at Palheiro Golf about 10km east, where the hotel is a founder member with a courtesy bus when it's running, and at Santo da Serra.
Around the hotel itself the pace is slower, with afternoon tea on the terrace, sometimes with a violinist, daily live music, garden tours led by the head gardener, Madeira wine tastings and a library with the reading nook out in the gardens. The concierge arranges the classic Madeira excursions, the levada walks (levadas are the island's old irrigation channels, with flat paths running alongside them), catamaran trips and jeep tours. The Cliff Bay is also the base for Inghams walking holidays, and guests booked through them get two guided walks around Funchal and Caniço included.
Funchal on the doorstepThe area and days out
Madeira isn't a beach destination in the sandy sense, and it's worth setting expectations there: the swimming is from sea pools, lava pools and pontoons rather than sand. The nearest sea swimming beyond the hotel's own pontoon is Praia Formosa, a pebble and shingle beach with calm water and basic facilities, about 20 to 25 minutes west by car or bus.
On foot from the hotel, the Lido promenade is about five minutes away, a flat seafront path with cafes that's easy with a pushchair. Santa Catarina Park, a large park with a lake, is around fifteen minutes, and Funchal's old town is about 2km, reached on the free hotel shuttle or a short taxi. Funchal's covered farmers' market, full of tropical fruit, is a short taxi ride and holds a toddler's attention without being a long outing.
For days out, Aquaparque Madeira near Santa Cruz, about 16km northeast, is a water park with a toddler paddling area, a wave pool and a lazy river. The cable car up to the Monte Palace Tropical Garden gives you koi ponds and shaded paths (the wicker toboggan ride down from Monte isn't one for young children). The Santa Maria de Colombo, a replica sailing ship, runs dolphin and whale-watching trips twice a day from the harbour, with a swimming stop in summer. Further out, the volcanic lava pools at Porto Moniz, about an hour and a half west, have a dedicated children's pool, and the São Vicente caves in the north are a rainy-day option with a museum and a short film. In Funchal itself the hop-on hop-off bus is an easy way round with children who can rest between stops.
Loves and gripes
What guests rate and what they flag, how it compares with the other Madeira hotels, the journey in and the weather by month.
What families love
- The service, the thing guests praise most, described again and again as attentive and warm.
- The shallow children's pool at sea level, a favourite with families.
- The heated indoor pool at around 27°C, especially out of high summer.
- Staff who go out of their way for children, with welcome gifts and small touches.
- The sea access from the pontoon, the marine life you can see from it and the gardens.
- The food, from Il Gallo d'Oro to the Rose Garden's themed nights.
- The clifftop position and the Atlantic views.
Common gripes
- No year-round kids club, the main gap for families who want daily childcare.
- Standard rooms at 30 m² can feel tight for a family.
- A minority find some decor a little dated, despite the 2021 refurbishment.
- The indoor pool area can feel small when the hotel is busy.
- Drinks, spa treatments and activities on top of the room add up, as at any five-star hotel.
- Il Gallo d'Oro closes for a few weeks each summer for refurbishment, so check the dates first if the two-Michelin-star meal is why you're booking.
How it compares
Within Madeira, The Cliff Bay is the most consistent performer at five-star level, and the differences with its rivals come down to what your family needs. VidaMar Resort Madeira runs a year-round Aquatica Kids Club from age three and has more pools, so for a holiday built around a daily club it's the stronger pick; The Cliff Bay leads on service, dining, the clifftop setting and its awards. Calheta Beach, part of Savoy Signature, is the one hotel in the Funchal area with a man-made sandy beach, an all-inclusive option and a kids club for fours to twelves, but it's 45 minutes from the city; The Cliff Bay is closer to Funchal and rates higher for service. Belmond Reid's Palace is the other five-star clifftop hotel, more sedate, with a kids club only in school holidays, and The Cliff Bay outranks it on TripAdvisor with a more family-active pool setup. On the same PortoBay strip, the four-star Eden Mar has larger rooms at a similar price and suits some families better, while The Cliff Bay stands apart on its sea access, its range of pools and its awards.
From the airport, and when to comeGetting there and when to go
Madeira's Cristiano Ronaldo airport is about 22 to 25km from the hotel, roughly 20 to 25 minutes by taxi along the fast coastal road. A taxi is the simplest way in; the Aerobus runs into Funchal for a few euros a head (free with a TAP Air Portugal boarding pass), and the concierge can arrange a private transfer to be waiting. There's no minimum stay, though packages over Christmas and New Year are often sold as seven nights.
The warmest, driest months are June to September, with daytime highs in the mid to high twenties and the sea at its warmest, and that's the easiest window for swimming with small children. May and October are good in-between months, October bringing the Youth Week for children. March and April are mild but the sea is still cool. From November to February it's wetter and cooler, and while the heated indoor pool keeps a winter visit workable, it's not the season for the sea or the outdoor pools with little ones.
Warm winters, wet autumnsWeather
The Cliff Bay is on Madeira's sheltered south coast, the warm, dry side of the island, and it's open all year. Winters are mild rather than hot, summers are warm without the heat of mainland Portugal, and the wet stretch is the late autumn and winter.
| 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. The Cliff Bay is open year-round.
A hot, dry wind off the Sahara, the leste, can push temperatures up between June and October, and even in January nights rarely drop below about 13°C by the sea.
Good to know
Check-in, parking, health and entry and the questions families ask most.
Check-in is from 2pm and check-out is at midday, and Wi-Fi is free throughout. There's a tourist tax of about €2 per person a night, up to seven nights, for guests aged 13 and over, paid at the hotel. There's parking on site, and a daily charge may apply, so check when you book. There's a 24-hour concierge, laundry and dry-cleaning, and reviewers mention a small boutique selling resort wear, local crafts and travel basics. The currency is the euro; Portuguese is the language, with English widely spoken at the hotel and around Funchal.
Portugal is covered by the UK's Global Health Insurance Card, the GHIC (the replacement for the old EHIC), so carry yours. UK visitors can stay up to 90 days in any 180 without a visa, passports need at least three months' validity beyond your departure date and the EU's new biometric entry checks are being phased in. Madeira carries a raised wildfire risk from April to October, rarely in urban Funchal but worth noting for trips inland. Isolated dengue cases were reported on the island in early 2025, with no standing health warning since.
On sustainability, the hotel holds Green Key certification, Il Gallo d'Oro carries a Michelin Green Star, and much of its produce comes from PortoBay's own organic garden in the hills above Funchal, planted in 2016.
The questions parents askQuestions
Is there a kids club?
Not a supervised one that runs all year. You have a payable indoor playroom, a playground and the children's pool to use yourselves, plus organised programmes at Easter, in October and at Christmas. If a daily club is a must, VidaMar Resort Madeira has one.
Can we take a toddler to Il Gallo d'Oro?
Possibly not. Children under around six are unlikely to be admitted, so confirm with the hotel before you count on dinner there with a younger child. AVISTA, its Michelin-recommended sister restaurant, takes all ages and has a children's menu.
Is parking free?
There's parking on site, and a daily charge may apply, so confirm it when you book rather than assume either way.
Can we get a babysitter for an evening out?
Yes, for a charge, arranged through the concierge. Give at least 24 hours' notice, and more in busy weeks, so ask early in the stay rather than on the night.
Which room should we book with a baby or toddler?
A 42 m² family room if you can. The 30 m² standards take a cot but leave little floor space once a toddler is walking, and the hotel doesn't list interconnecting rooms, so ask directly if you need adjoining space.
Is Il Gallo d'Oro always open?
No. It shuts for a few weeks each summer for refurbishment, when a different dinner runs in the Pier Lounge instead. If the two-star meal is why you're going, check the dates before you book.
Is there a beach?
Not a sandy one. You swim from the hotel's sea-level pontoon by ladder, or from the pools; the nearest beach, Praia Formosa, is pebbly and about 20 to 25 minutes west. Pack water shoes.
How do we get there from the airport?
About 20 to 25 minutes by taxi. For a smoother arrival with a pushchair and car seats, ask the concierge to arrange a private transfer to meet you rather than joining the taxi queue.
See more Hotel The Cliff Bay photos
Open the Hotel The Cliff Bay photo gallery →Useful links
- Hotel The Cliff Bay: the hotel's own site for rooms, restaurants and what's included.
- GOV.UK Portugal travel advice: entry rules and safety updates before you travel.
- Madeira with little ones: our guide to the island, its swimming spots and when to go.
Last updated 16 July 2026.
