Madeira in November: Weather, Sea Temperature, Crowds and Levada Trail Fees

MADEIRA · NOVEMBER · THE MONTH GUIDE

Funchal averages a high of 73.0°F in November, and the sea off Madeira averages the same 73.0°F. On a trip, that means afternoons warm enough for a swim, cooler air for the mountain trails, and 7.3 days of measurable rain spread through the month. That comes to just under two wet days in an average week.

If you last walked the levadas before 2026, budget for a new step. Since January 1, 2026, every classified trail on the island charges an access fee of €4.50 per person and must be booked online in 30-minute entry slots that run from sunrise to sunset. On November 15 Madeira gets 10 hours 31 minutes of daylight, so a November day holds fewer slots than a summer one.

On this page

• Madeira weather in November73.0°F highs, 62.6°F lows and 7.3 wet days in Funchal
• Can you swim in Madeira in November?A 73.0°F sea, measured as daily maxima
• Crowds, bookings and tourist tax in NovemberCruise counts, trail booking and Funchal’s €2 nightly tax
• Things to do in Madeira in NovemberMonte cable car, Monte Palace, the sledges, Cabo Girão and Porto Moniz
• A two-day Madeira itinerary for NovemberMonte and Funchal on day one, PR1 on day two
• November, October or December?How the three months compare on heat, rain and sea
• Is November a good time to visit Madeira?Yes for walkers and garden visitors, no for a heat-first beach week

Where to sleep, how to get around and how the island fits a wider Portugal trip stay the same all year, and our Madeira guide, the Portugal getting-around guide and the year-round Portugal calendar cover them. For the flight, start with flights from the US and the entry rules. Pack with our Portugal packing list, then add a fleece for 62.6°F nights.

Madeira weather in November: average highs, lows and rain days

Every figure here comes from IPMA, Portugal’s national weather service, and its official 1991–2020 normals for station 522 in Funchal: a real thermometer 58 meters (190 feet) above sea level on the south coast, not a model grid cell. In November it records an average high of 73.0°F, an average low of 62.6°F and 3.16 inches of precipitation. The station does not speak for the whole island. High ground is colder and far wetter, and the other coasts keep their own weather, so a mountain day needs a mountain forecast.

IPMA counts 7.3 November days with at least 1 mm (0.04 inch) of rain, or measurable rain about one day in four. Only 2.3 of them reach 10 mm (0.39 inch), the level that washes out an outdoor plan, so most wet days fall below that line. Those thresholds belong to the Portuguese service. US tables count rain days from 0.10 inch, and the two tallies do not convert into each other.

Between the 73.0°F afternoon and the 62.6°F night sits a 10.4°F drop, enough to turn a T-shirt afternoon in Funchal into a sweater evening. Pack a light fleece and a rain shell for the wet days. Anyone booked on PR1, where the trail reaches 1,857 meters (6,093 feet), should carry warmer layers than a 58-meter station reading suggests.

On November 15, Madeira gets about 10 hours 31 minutes of daylight. The island keeps UTC in winter, so sunrise comes at 7:36 a.m. and sunset at 6:07 p.m. local time. For the uphill sights, the Funchal–Monte cable car stops at 5:45 p.m., and the Monte Palace garden closes at 6 p.m. on its October-to-March hours, seven minutes before the sun goes down.

Can you swim in Madeira in November? Sea temperature and what it feels like

The Open-Meteo Marine API puts the sea surface off Madeira at 73.0°F in November, averaged over 2015–2024. That figure is a mean of daily maxima, the warmest reading of each day, so it runs a shade warmer than a round-the-clock average. Tables built on all 24 hours will print a lower November number, and both describe the same water.

In practice the water matches Funchal’s average afternoon high of 73.0°F, so swim between late morning and mid-afternoon, while the air is at its warmest. Climb out after the 6:07 p.m. sunset and you step into air heading toward the 62.6°F low. Bring a towel and a dry layer to change into.

Our sources carry no wind or swell figures for November, so we give none and cannot say how often the sea turns too rough to swim. Check the marine forecast on the morning you plan to go in, and favor staffed spots such as the serviced pools at Porto Moniz, where a first-aid post stands by. The emergency number across Madeira is 112.

How busy is Madeira in November? Crowds and prices

We found no hotel-rate or occupancy series for Madeira, so we rank no month as cheap or expensive. The monthly series we could read comes from APRAM, the Madeira port authority: in 2026, 113,210 cruise passengers came ashore in Funchal in January against 4,071 in July, with 41 ship calls in January and 3 in July. Its charts stop at August. We have no November count and cannot say whether the month sits nearer the winter peak or the summer lull.

Every levada walk must be booked online through SIMplifica, the regional government’s portal, and with 10 hours 31 minutes of daylight a November day holds about 21 half-hour entry slots. The cable car e-ticket stays valid for 60 days after purchase, so you can buy it about eight weeks ahead. Blandy’s asks visitors to book its tours in advance and allows free cancellation up to 24 hours before. Tickets for the Monte sledges are sold on site only, for the same day.

Funchal charges a municipal tourist tax, the Taxa Municipal Turística, of €2 per person per night, capped at seven consecutive nights, so €14 per guest at most. It applies to every paid overnight stay in the municipality whatever site you book through, and the count starts again after an interrupted stay. Children 12 and under are exempt with ID, as are people with a disability of 60 percent or more and Madeira residents.

A single classified trail costs €4.50, a day pass for two or more trails €9.00, a three-day pass €22.50 and a seven-day pass €52.50, which works out to €7.50 a day on either of the longer passes. In a month with 7.3 wet days, buying three days of walking instead of one means a single rainy morning does not cancel your only hike. PR1 sits outside the day pass and costs €10.50 on its own.

Things to do in Madeira in November

In November the sea off Madeira averages 73.0°F, 2.6°F below October and 2.7°F above December, while Funchal’s average high falls to 73.0°F from October’s 77.4°F. A mountain morning in cooler air and a swim the same afternoon fit into one day. The volcanic pools at Porto Moniz take the same Atlantic on the north coast, though the Funchal air readings do not apply there.

The Funchal–Monte cable car costs €22 return or €16 one way and runs 8:45 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. every day. At its top station, the Monte Palace Tropical Garden covers 70,000 square meters (about 17 acres) of exotic planting, tile panels and a sculpture museum, at €18 per adult. From Monte, the carros de cesto wicker sledges cost €30 for one rider, €40 for two and €60 for three, steered by two carreiros in white. In town, Blandy’s Wine Lodge on Avenida Arriaga ends its 45-minute, €23 Premium Tour with three Madeira wines. West of the city, the Cabo Girão glass skywalk charges €3, a fee to confirm on site.

The Monte Palace garden closes at 6 p.m. from October to March, an hour earlier than in summer, and its museum at 5 p.m. all year. Cabo Girão shuts at 7 p.m. from November to February instead of 8 p.m., 53 minutes after the November 15 sunset. The sledges run Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., the office can close early when the weather turns, and no three-person ride leaves in rain or on wet ground. At Porto Moniz, the €3 serviced pools keep 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in winter and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. in summer.

The Cachalote pools next to the Porto Moniz complex are free and open at all hours. Children collect most of the other free entries: under-15s visit Monte Palace free with an adult, children 12 and under walk onto Cabo Girão and PR1 for nothing, and under-7s ride the cable car free. We found no free-admission day for adults at the gardens or the wine lodge.

Madeira in November: a two-day itinerary

Put day one on a Monday to Saturday so the sledges run. Take the first cable car up at 8:45 a.m. and enter the Monte Palace garden at 9 a.m., seeing the museum well before its 5 p.m. close. Ride the sledges down in late morning, since the office can shut early if the weather turns. After lunch, join Blandy’s English Premium Tour at 2:00, 3:00 or 4:00 p.m. on a weekday. End at Cabo Girão for the 6:07 p.m. sunset, with the skywalk open until 7 p.m.

Book day two’s PR1 slot on SIMplifica before you fly. The crossing from Pico do Areeiro to Pico Ruivo runs 6.1 km (3.8 miles) in about three hours, and it was open when we checked on September 8, 2026. Past the Pedra Rija viewpoint the trail runs one way only, so take an early slot and arrange a pickup at Pico Ruivo. If the weather turns, check the trail’s status on Visit Madeira, settle for the €4.50 out-and-back to Pedra Rija, or stay in Funchal at the Mercado dos Lavradores (7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, until 2 p.m. Saturdays). On Sundays the Mercado da Penteada opens 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Madeira in November vs October and December

From October to November, Funchal’s average high drops 4.4°F, and from November to December another 3.2°F, from 77.4°F to 73.0°F to 69.8°F. November carries the least rain of the three at 3.16 inches, against 3.59 in October and 3.73 in December, though wet days still climb from 7.0 to 7.3 to 8.6. The sea cools from 75.6°F to 73.0°F to 70.3°F over the same stretch.

Moving four weeks earlier, to Madeira in October, adds 4.4°F to the afternoon high and 2.6°F to the sea, with 0.3 fewer wet days but 0.43 inch more rain. Moving four weeks later, to Madeira in December, costs 3.2°F on the high and 2.7°F in the sea and adds 1.3 wet days. December also brings Christmas Day closures: no Aerobus, no cable car and no Monte Palace on December 25.

Is November a good time to visit Madeira?

Yes for walkers, garden visitors and wine drinkers, and for anyone happy to swim in a 73.0°F sea under a 73.0°F afternoon. No if the trip is a beach week built on heat, with rain on about one day in four. Families come out well too, with under-15s free at Monte Palace and children 12 and under exempt from Funchal’s tourist tax.

If the answer is no, pick October: 77.4°F afternoons, a 75.6°F sea and 7.0 wet days, from the same IPMA station and the same marine series. Our October guide has its hours and bookings.

Of the three months we compare, November alone puts the sea and Funchal’s afternoon high at the same figure, 73.0°F.

The last word

Decide first whether the mountains matter to you, because in 2026 that choice comes with a booking: a SIMplifica slot, a €4.50 or €10.50 fee, and 10 hours 31 minutes of daylight to fit it into. Everything else in November can bend around the weather. When you land, the Aerobus leaves the airport between 8:30 a.m. and 10 p.m. and reaches Praia Formosa in 50 minutes, passing through central Funchal. Its fare is not printed on the official timetable, so call the operator on 291 201 151 before your flight, and skip stop 9, Terminal SAM: the timetable marks it disabled.

Sources & data for this guide

• October, November and December normals · IPMA 1991–2020, station 522 Funchal, 58 m · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Sea surface temperature, mean of daily maxima 2015–2024 · Open-Meteo Marine API · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Daylight, sunrise and sunset on Nov 15 · sunrise-sunset.org, converted from UTC · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Levada fees, SIMplifica booking and trail status · Visit Madeira (official), Hiking page · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Trail passes, PR1 distance, price and one-way rule, emergency number · Visit Madeira (official) · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Cable car fares and hours · Teleférico do Funchal (official) · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Monte sledge fares, days and rain rules · Carreiros do Monte (official) · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Monte Palace fees and seasonal hours · garden’s official site · checked Sep 24, 2026 · some aggregators print €12.50, the garden says €18
• Blandy’s Premium Tour · lodge’s official site · checked Sep 24, 2026 · some aggregators print €18, the lodge says €23
• Cabo Girão fee and seasonal hours · several concurring sources, no institutional page reached · checked Sep 24, 2026 · confirm on site
• Porto Moniz pools · Visit Madeira and concurring guides · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Funchal tourist tax · Câmara Municipal do Funchal, official FAQ · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Cruise passengers and ship calls, Jan–Aug · APRAM charts, 2026 series identified by the legend · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Market hours · Câmara Municipal do Funchal, Divisão de Mercados · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Aerobus route, hours and disabled stop · SIGA Madeira official timetable, no fare printed · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Our admission: we found no wind or swell data for November and no hotel-rate or occupancy series, so we quote none and rank no month on price.

To plan your stay

• Things to Do in Madeira: Trail Fees, Cable Car Prices and Opening Hours
• Where to Stay in Madeira: Funchal, Monte, the North Coast and the Levada Trailheads
• Madeira Airport to Funchal: Aerobus Stops, Timetable, Taxi Cases and When to Leave
• Things to Know Before Going to Madeira: Trail Bookings, Mountain Driving and Late Dinners

Nearby places

• Lagos, Algarve: The Walled Town, the Beaches and Getting Around Without a Car
• Ponta da Piedade: Cliff Walkways, Grotto Boats and the Best Time of Day
• Sagres, Portugal: Wind, the Beaches on Both Sides and Cabo de São Vicente