Several bus services operate around the island. The Funchal City has yellow buses that operate a reliable and frequent service from the early hours of the morning until late at night. You can pay as you get on the buses but, if you prefer, you can go to the main bus station, on the sea front road just past the market ("Mercado dos Lavradores"), to get return tickets to your destination which would be cheaper than the later ones.

There are other bus companies that serve the outlying villages, they mainly transfer people from the villages into the city for work and then back out to the villages. Therefore, this buses are not always so reliable and you can end in a small village for a long time waiting for the next bus.

Taxis are easily available throughout Funchal City and operate on a meter basis. For long distances, it is advisable to agree a price with the driver first.

In other localities, far from the city, you can also find a taxi station per village otherwise you must call and ask for a taxi.

The Aerobus service is a bus transfer from Madeira airport to Funchal city and vice-versa, offered for a fee of 5.00 EUR each way. Tickets are obtained in the bus and the service runs from Madeira Airport to Funchal (Praia Formosa) and return.

Departure times for the Aeobus transfers:

Airport -> to Funchal (Praia Formosa)
09h45 - 10h30 - 11h45 - 13h00 - 14h15 - 15h00 - 16h00 - 17h15 - 18h15 - 20h00 - 21h30

Funchal (Praia Formosa) -> to Airport
08h00 - 09h00 - 10h30 - 11h15 - 13h30 - 14h00 - 15h00 - 16h00 - 17h00 - 19h00 - 20h45

Itinerary: The aerobus departs from the airport, rides through the free way until Funchal where it passes through Campo da Barca, Rua do Anadia, Avenida do Mar, Rua Carvalho Araújo, Estrada Monumental and finishes at Praia Formosa, by the end of Estrada Monumental. The return is by the reverse way. You may check these roads on Funchal maps. Each trip takes about 45 minutes, from the aiport to Praia Formosa in Funchal or vice-versa.

Tickets are bought in the bus with the driver.

Note: Prices and schedule may change without prior notice. Information given by ANAM - Airport Authority with last update in August 2009

The taxis at Madeira International Airport do not have taximeter. These are approximate prices from the airport or to the airport

Airport – Funchal 22.00 EUR
Airport - Garajau 16.00 EUR
Airport - Caniço 15.88 EUR
Airport – Santa Cruz 5.63 EUR
Airport – Machico 9.05 EUR

Taxis with four seats:
Each kilometer 0.55 EUR and minimun charge of 2.78 EUR.

Note: From 22h till 07h each day, on Weekends or on a Public Holiday prices have a surcharge of 20%. Prices may change.