Monte is probably the most visited place in Madeira, next to Funchal, for three reasons. First, it's easily reached from Funchal, even by those who only have a day off a cruise liner. Second, it has two interesting means of transportation, the cablecar from the waterfront at Funchal and the 'toboggan,' a thing like an over-sized laundry basket that is hurtled down a track to a suburb of Funchal.
The third, and it should be sufficient, reason is hte sheer beauty and grandeur of the tropical gardens. This is a stunning area of forest groves and fabulous flowers. Amongother interesting vegetation is an olive tree that produced oil for the Romans as early as 300 AD. There are tile displays of Portuguese history all down the main path, a museum currently [2007] exhibiting great sculptures from Zimbabwe as well as its permanent impressive display of gem stones.
Outside the gardens, the church is reckoned to be one of Madeira's best. [edit text][editors]
