Christmas lights in Funchal

On 1 December the Christmas lights are switched on in downtown Funchal, and the official Christmas and New Year season begins. The programme runs until 10 January. Last season the lights were on every evening from 18:00 to 01:00, and all night on the busiest nights around Christmas and New Year.

For the next six weeks the city centre is the place to be in the evening. Walk from the cathedral down to the seafront and through the side streets, and you will find nativity scenes, music stages and stalls.

What else is on in the city centre

• Christmas Village in Praça do Município, aimed at children and families, from 4 December.
• Christmas workshops on the Avenida Arriaga stage, free, from 2 December.
• Ethnographic Village with crafts, food, folklore and traditional nativity scenes.
• Christmas market with regional crafts, plants, fruit and honey products.

Good to know

• The centre gets busy on weekend evenings and in the last days before Christmas. Walking or the bus is easier than driving.
• Some towns light up earlier: Santa Cruz usually switches on its lights in the second half of November. Our Christmas in Madeira guide covers the traditions and the key dates.