Special Places to Stay - More than a bed for the night

The honesty bar holds bottles of vintage Madeira: it's that sort of place. This new-but-traditional house was built on the family plot some years ago, and the feeling is one of understated privilege and cosy luxury. English, Indo-Portuguese and Madeiran antiques prevail: great grandfather's bed is dressed with monogrammed sheets, there are chestnut chairs, a lovely ceramic lamp over the dining table and wine glasses in a mahogany cabinet. Dona Graça, the delightful maid, looks after it all. Such is the grandeur you'd imagine families would not be welcome but no, there's a games room, an inflatable child's pool next to the big one, and the big one is fenced. Indeed, the whole garden is child-safe, and filled with unusual trees loved by birds; through their branches you can glimpse Ponta do Sol. There's a kitchen with an island worktop and a barbecue with a tiled table, and if you tire of cooking, scoot across the road to the pizzeria. In Madalena do Mar (6km) are fish restaurants lining the promenade, and pebble beaches; and the bustling village of Canhas is up the road.