Guides
Year-Round vs Seasonal Flights to Madeira
Madeira flies all year round, but roughly two in five of its routes appear only for a single summer or winter season.
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Madeira flies year-round, but only its busiest corridors operate every month: Lisbon, Porto, London (Gatwick and Stansted), Manchester, Bristol, Amsterdam, Brussels, most German leisure routes, and the inter-island Funchal–Porto Santo hop. Roughly 40% of Funchal’s routes are seasonal — summer is weighted towards UK and German holiday flying, while winter adds Nordic “sun-escape” routes that disappear in summer. Whether a route runs depends on the IATA season, which switches in late March and late October.
Which flights to Madeira run all year round?
The all-year backbone is the high-frequency lifeline routes plus the busiest international leisure corridors. These operate through both IATA seasons, every week of the year.
The domestic trunk routes are the most reliable of all: Lisbon (Funchal’s busiest route by far, about 1.35 million passengers in 2023) and Porto, each flown year-round by TAP Air Portugal, easyJet and Ryanair with multiple daily departures. The international year-round core, according to FlightConnections and the airport’s published network, includes:
- London Gatwick (British Airways and easyJet) and London Stansted (Ryanair and Jet2.com)
- Manchester (Ryanair and Jet2 year-round; easyJet seasonal) and Bristol (easyJet)
- Amsterdam — easyJet, Transavia and TUI fly together run roughly two flights a day, one of Funchal’s busiest international corridors
- Brussels (Brussels Airlines and TUI fly Belgium) and Paris-Orly (Transavia, the robust year-round Paris link)
- Most German leisure routes (Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and others)
- The Canary Islands (Binter Canarias to Gran Canaria and Tenerife) and the inter-island Funchal–Porto Santo hop
What proportion of Madeira’s routes are seasonal?
Roughly 40% of Funchal’s routes are seasonal, meaning they run for only part of the year. The split is directional: summer skews towards UK and German leisure flying, while winter adds Nordic routes.
This is a reported approximation rather than an exact, audited figure, and the precise mix changes every IATA season as airlines re-plan their networks. The headline pattern, though, is stable — a dense year-round core plus a long tail of seasonal routes that switch on and off twice a year.
Which Madeira routes are summer-only?
Summer-seasonal routes (broadly running within the IATA summer window) are dominated by UK regional and continental leisure services. Typical examples for 2026 include:
| Route | Carrier | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Paris-Beauvais | Ryanair | Summer (≈ Jun–Oct) |
| Brussels-Charleroi | Ryanair | Summer (≈ Jun–Oct) |
| Milan-Malpensa | Ryanair | ~2/week, summer |
| Madrid | Iberia | Seasonal (reported Jun–Nov), ~2/week |
| London Luton | easyJet | New for summer 2026, twice weekly |
| Edinburgh | Ryanair | Seasonal |
| Shannon | Ryanair | Summer (launched 30 Mar 2025) |
| Bournemouth | Jet2.com | ~1/week at peak |
| Fuerteventura / Lanzarote | Binter Canarias | Summer (≈ Jul–Sep) |
Charter and leisure carriers such as TUI add further summer-weighted UK and German flying, though TUI trimmed some UK regional routes for 2026, making its exact map the most volatile.
Which Madeira routes are winter-only?
The winter-only additions are the Nordic “sun-escape” routes, which fly when Scandinavia is darkest and largely vanish in summer. The anchor is Copenhagen (SAS, Norwegian and Sunclass Airlines combining for around three flights a week, reported to run from early October 2026 through May 2027). Others include Stockholm-Arlanda (a single weekly SAS flight) and Helsinki (Finnair plus Sunclass, around twice weekly).
How do IATA seasons work — and why do they matter?
Airlines plan schedules around two IATA scheduling seasons, and which season you are in determines whether a seasonal route is flying at all.
- Summer (Northern Summer) season: from the last Sunday of March to the last Saturday of October. For 2026, that is 29 March – 24 October 2026.
- Winter (Northern Winter) season: from the last Sunday of October to the last Saturday of March. For 2026/27, that is 25 October 2026 – 28 March 2027.
The practical takeaway: a “summer route” typically appears from late March and disappears in late October, while a “winter route” runs from late October to late March. The two changeover weekends in spring and autumn are when Funchal’s route map looks most different from one week to the next.
Quick reference: year-round vs seasonal
| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| Year-round core | Lisbon, Porto, London Gatwick & Stansted, Manchester, Bristol, Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris-Orly, most German cities, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Funchal–Porto Santo |
| Summer-only | Paris-Beauvais, Brussels-Charleroi, Milan-Malpensa, Madrid, London Luton, Edinburgh, Shannon, Bournemouth, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, much TUI charter flying |
| Winter-only | Copenhagen, Helsinki, Stockholm-Arlanda (Oslo announced for winter 2026/27) |
Frequently asked questions
Which flights to Madeira run all year round?
The year-round core is Lisbon and Porto (TAP, easyJet, Ryanair), London Gatwick and Stansted, Manchester, Bristol, Amsterdam and Brussels, plus the inter-island Funchal–Porto Santo hop and the Canary Islands links. Most German leisure routes also run year-round.
What proportion of Madeira routes are seasonal?
Roughly 40% of Funchal's routes are seasonal, meaning they operate for only part of the year. Summer is skewed towards UK and German leisure flying; winter adds Nordic sun-escape routes. Treat the exact share as a reported approximation that shifts each IATA season.
When are the IATA summer and winter seasons?
The IATA summer season runs from the last Sunday of March to the last Saturday of October; winter fills the rest. For 2026 that is summer from 29 March to 24 October 2026, then winter 2026/27 from 25 October 2026.
Are there winter flights to Madeira?
Yes. Madeira is a year-round destination with a mild ~20°C climate, so its core network operates through winter — and winter actually adds Nordic routes such as Copenhagen, Helsinki and Stockholm that do not fly in summer.
Can I fly to Madeira from Scandinavia in summer?
Mostly no. The Nordic routes (Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, Helsinki) are overwhelmingly winter sun-escape services. In summer, Scandinavian travellers usually connect via a hub such as Copenhagen, Amsterdam or Lisbon.
Is the Funchal–Porto Santo flight year-round?
Yes. Binter Canarias operates the inter-island Funchal–Porto Santo hop year-round, typically twice daily on a 72-seat ATR 72-600. It is one of the shortest scheduled flights in Europe, with about 15 minutes airborne.