The Vidamar is a stunning hotel but lacks soul. It's an architects dream but from our point of view had no heart. The rooms though were great and the views spectacular, however the tea tray was sparse with two tea bags and two coffee sachets per day and they wanted us to pay for milk but we just claimed we were English and they gave us some! The facilities were very good with pools, spas and games. The restaurant lacked atmosphere and the buffet was "samey" but the staff were brilliant and so friendly. The hotel run a "Dine Around" scheme which entitles each guest to a meal "out" at one of their other 4 restaurants once during their stay. We found this hard to take advantage of as you can only book early in the morning for the following night. There are limited places and we only managed two in our week. If you get the opportunity though Mamma Mia's is a must. There is lounge area but the sofas would sit about 10 people and there were no intimate areas. We seldom saw anyone in there which was a shame as they did provide a pianist and soloist one evening which sounded nice. After dinner most people went out and we went to a neighbouring hotel or the Irish Bar across the road for coffee and drinks which were both packed. I sound very negative about this hotel but our room was great, the bed was very comfortable, the views were stunning and it suited all our needs. It was a 20 min walk into Funchal and I was very happy there and on the deal we got was good value for money.
