Visited Madeira for six days during July 2012. The hotel was very easy to reach by bus from the airport. It's centrally located near the vegetable market and the city center. The street in front of the residencial is very busy and you have lots of little cafe's nearby and a shopping center with a large grocery store. It's also just few minutes walk from the bus station.

At first we got a room on the upper floor, facing the street which turned out to be horrible at night because it was extremely noisy all night long. The room was also very dark. The next morning we asked the staff if it's possible to change the room and luckily they had an available room. Otherwise we would have left this hotel. We really didn't get any sleep.

The rest of the stay was much better. The hotel is dated, most of the furniture is very old etc. but for this price you really get what you pay for and we honestly think that it's a real good value. You get a decent bed, good cleaning every day, clean linens, functioning shower and very nice staff. The staff doesn't speak much english but they are extremely nice. Note that there isn't an elevator in this building.

All in all, very decent value for your money. The only thing we were missing was air-con.

I got a triple room with my friends and, overall, apart from a few minor things, we had little to complain about.
The beds were fairly comfortable, there was cable TV and a remote, a phone, a small desk, chairs, a nice balcony for you to smoke, in case you want to, or just rest, if the weather is nice.
The bathroom had all the basics. Towels were changed every day, as well as all the linen in the beds. The rooms were always clean, which is always a nice thing!
A wireless connection to the Internet is also available, and there is no need for an extra fee, you just have to ask for the username and password at the reception desk.
To get to the Residencial, though, you have to go up a considerable flight of stairs, since there is no elevator (so this is not an option for the disabled or if you have any problems going up and down stairs).
The Residencial is located near the market, and though we were told there would be a lot of noise early in the morning, it wasn't really that much of a problem (maybe we were lucky). It is also in the centre of the "Old Town", which is not particularly beautiful, but just a walk away you have plenty of nice places to see and visit.
No breakfast was included, which is a shame, but you have plenty of cafés nearby.
The people at the reception were nice, though not exceedingly nice, just enough.
Overall, it is a nice and simple place to stay if you are on a budget and just want a clean place with no particular luxuries.

Arrived much later than expected as our flight was diverted to Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, on account of bad weather. Finally landed in Funchal about four hours late and arrived at the Residencial at midnight, very tired.

Greeted with the news that the Residential was overbooked and they had made arrangements for me to stay somewhere else: upgraded room, two minutes away. They were apologetic and seemed rather embarrassed, but I wasn´t too bothered. This kind of thing does happen. The place I did stay (Residential Parque) was very nice and very close. All staff at both places were very friendly and welcoming.

Very cheap and ideal location. Rooms nice and spotless although we did struggle to use the shower without getting water on the bathroom floor. Service ok but don't expect to strike up a lasting friendship with the reception staff!