Guides
No Direct Flight to Madeira? The Best Connections
Most of the world reaches Madeira with one stop — and for the overwhelming majority of travellers that stop is Lisbon.
Last updated:
If there is no nonstop to Madeira from your city, connect through Lisbon on TAP Air Portugal — Funchal’s dominant gateway, with around 63 weekly flights and a single ~1h45 hop. Porto is the secondary Portuguese hub, and Madrid, London, Amsterdam and Paris also work. Madeira is fundamentally a short/medium-haul European airport: the entire US (bar a summer Newark nonstop), Canada, South America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East — plus EU cities such as Krakow — reach it with at least one stop, almost always via Lisbon.
What’s the best hub to connect through to Madeira?
For almost everyone, the answer is Lisbon (LIS). It is by a wide margin Funchal’s busiest route and the single gateway that funnels most of Madeira’s intercontinental traffic, with TAP Air Portugal operating around 63 weekly departures to FNC — roughly a fifth of all Funchal departures — on a quick ~1h45 hop.
Lisbon wins because it combines three things: the highest Funchal frequency (so a missed or delayed connection has the most recovery options), TAP’s broad intercontinental network feeding in from the Americas, Africa and beyond, and a single-airline transfer with bags usually checked through to Funchal. Porto (OPO) is the secondary Portuguese hub — year-round, multiple daily FNC flights on TAP, easyJet and Ryanair — and is often the better choice if your inbound flight already lands there.
Connecting hubs compared
| Hub | Best for | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Lisbon (LIS) | Almost everyone; the Americas, Africa, Asia, diaspora | TAP, ~63 weekly FNC flights, ~1h45; widest onward network |
| Porto (OPO) | Northern Portugal, some European arrivals | Year-round, TAP/easyJet/Ryanair, ~7 flights a day |
| Madrid (MAD) | Iberia/oneworld itineraries, Latin America | FNC link is seasonal (reported Jun–Nov); strong intercontinental hub |
| London (LGW/STN) | UK regional and transatlantic arrivals | Year-round FNC service; usually a self-connect between separate flights |
| Amsterdam (AMS) | Northern Europe, KLM/SkyTeam | ~2 daily FNC flights; convenient single-terminal transfers |
| Paris (ORY/CDG) | France and onward | Transavia/easyJet to FNC; Orly the more robust year-round link |
How do I reach Madeira from the US and Canada?
There is no widebody trunk route to Madeira; North American service is narrowbody and seasonal. You have three realistic options:
- United’s seasonal Newark (EWR) nonstop — a summer-only Boeing 737 MAX 8 service (around 3x/week), the first-ever scheduled nonstop US route to Funchal. Outside summer it does not operate.
- One-stop via a European hub — fly to Lisbon, Madrid, London, Amsterdam or Paris, then onward to FNC. Lisbon is the cleanest because TAP carries you the whole way.
- One-stop via Ponta Delgada — Azores Airlines connects several North American cities (such as Boston, New York-JFK and Toronto) to Funchal through its hub at Ponta Delgada (PDL) in the Azores.
How do I reach Madeira from South America?
Via Lisbon. Madeira has never had a scheduled nonstop to Brazil, and the historic Funchal–Caracas link is no longer a current direct route.
For decades TAP routed Lisbon–Funchal–Caracas as a tag-stop, specifically serving the very large Madeiran-Portuguese diaspora in Venezuela (estimated at hundreds of thousands of people of mostly Madeiran origin). Today that connection runs through Lisbon: TAP’s Venezuela service is a Lisbon–Caracas operation, and Madeirans or Venezuelans travelling between the two now connect at Lisbon. Brazil (São Paulo, Rio) is likewise reached via Lisbon on TAP, or via another European hub.
How do I reach Madeira from Africa, Asia and the Middle East?
With a connection — Madeira has zero nonstop scheduled flights to mainland Africa, the Middle East or Asia. The routings are:
- Africa (Casablanca, Cape Verde, sub-Saharan): one-stop via Lisbon (TAP) or Madrid (Iberia). The nearest nonstop “towards” Africa is Binter’s ~80-minute hop to the Canary Islands, but the Canaries are politically Spain/EU, not an intercontinental destination.
- Asia and the Middle East: connect via Lisbon, or via a major European hub (Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt, London, Madrid) and then onward to Funchal. Expect two connections from much of Asia.
What about EU cities with no nonstop, like Krakow?
Some European cities still have no direct Funchal flight and need a connection — Krakow is the headline example. As of mid-2026 there is no scheduled nonstop Krakow–Funchal service.
Wizz Air flies Funchal from Warsaw, Gdansk and Katowice, but not Krakow, so Krakow travellers either self-connect via another Polish city or — more simply — route through Lisbon on TAP, or via a western-European hub such as London or Amsterdam. The same one-stop-via-Lisbon logic covers most smaller European cities that lack a direct leisure route to Madeira.
Frequently asked questions
What's the best way to fly to Madeira if there's no direct flight?
Connect through Lisbon on TAP Air Portugal. It is Funchal's dominant gateway, with around 63 weekly flights, the widest onward network, and a single ~1h45 hop to Madeira — usually the smoothest one-stop option from anywhere in the world.
How do I get to Madeira from the United States?
Three ways. In summer, United flies a seasonal nonstop from Newark (EWR). Year-round, connect via a European hub — Lisbon (TAP), Madrid, London, Amsterdam or Paris — then onward to Funchal. Azores Airlines also offers one-stop routings via Ponta Delgada in the Azores.
Is there a direct flight from Krakow to Madeira?
No. Krakow has no scheduled nonstop to Funchal as of mid-2026. Connect via Lisbon (TAP) or another European hub; Wizz Air serves Funchal from Warsaw, Gdansk and Katowice, but not Krakow, so Polish travellers from Krakow must self-connect or fly via Lisbon.
How do people from Venezuela fly to Madeira?
Today via Lisbon on TAP. For decades TAP ran a Lisbon–Funchal–Caracas tag-stop for Madeira's large Venezuelan diaspora, but that direct Funchal–Caracas service is now historical; the Venezuela link runs through Lisbon.
Can I fly to Madeira from Africa, Asia or the Middle East?
Only with a connection — there is no nonstop service to any of these regions. Routings go via Lisbon (TAP) or Madrid (Iberia) for Africa, and via a major European hub for Asia and the Middle East. The nearest nonstop towards Africa is Binter's Canary Islands link, but the Canaries are politically EU.
Which hub gives the smoothest Madeira connection?
Lisbon, in most cases. It is a single TAP transfer onto the most frequent Funchal service, bags are usually checked through, and it carries the bulk of Madeira's intercontinental traffic — making it the lowest-risk connection point.