PRICE:
Frommer's Exceptional

One of the island's top lodgings, rivaled and surpassed only by Reid's , this nine-story hotel is dramatically located on a craggy bluff towering over wave-lashed rocks, 1.5km (1 mile) west of Funchal's center. A group favorite, the deluxe hotel stands on the site of a former banana plantation. All but a dozen or so rooms have great exposure to ocean or harbor views. Units are generally spacious, with such luxuries as sitting areas and roomy marble bathrooms with deluxe toiletries and tub/shower combos. The restaurants, from the Rose Garden to Il Gallo d'Oro to the Blue Lagoon (featuring Portuguese and international cuisine), are among the finest on the island, again surpassed only by the options at Reid's. Facilities: 3 restaurants; 3 bars; 2 pools (1 indoors); tennis court; health club; spa; sauna; watersports; game room; room service; massage; babysitting; kindergarten; laundry service; dry cleaning; nonsmoking rooms; 1 room for those w/limited mobility

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Portugal, 20th Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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