Savoy Gardens Hotel

This was a very comfortable quiet hotel with plenty of facilities. The staff were very friendly and most helpful when asked questions re. transport etc...
The food was exceptionally good and the bar, though small, was adequate for the number of guests. For more elderly guests the situation on the hillside might be a problem but we managed to walk down to the Lido end of Funchal quite easily and take a taxi back!
Taxis were very reasonable and we even had the services of a favourite driver who would come to the gate for us at a specified time and run us around the island. His English was very good and he was very well informed re. history, flora and fauna of the island. One outstanding trip was to the Nun’s Valley one Sunday, when the locals attended church - some of them walking miles on steep roads to go to church.
The cost compared very favourably with the organised tours and one could stop where and when one wished. A great advantage is the fact that residents can use the facilities of the more palatial Savoy Hotel in Funchal, which we did. However we loved the more homely ambiance of the Villa Rosa. Music was generally provided in the evenings in the bar and on one evening we had the Madeira folklore group in their lovely costumes.
We enjoyed an evening walk around the nearby private houses and gardens where the flowers were beautiful, even in November! There was a cute little cafe very close to the hotel where some of the residents gathered for a coffee or a nightcap. A bus stop is very close to the hotel if one wishes to go to Funchal town or to do the levadas.
We spent two holidays at this hotel and are contemplating a third.