We stayed in the Pestana Miramar for 7 nights in February 2013. The Miramar and Pestana Village are next door each other and share the same facilities.

Facilities include 2 outdoor swimming pools, 1 indoor swimming pool with separate hot tub, spa facilities including jacuzzi, steam room, sauna and massage parlour, 2 pool tables and a table tennis table (both free of charge but you have to borrow the equipment from the reception, no deposit required) and free internet access both on Hotel desktop computer and wi-fi if you have your own laptop/I-pad etc. The swimming pools and area around the pools were immaculate and the staff were frequently seen cleaning out any leaves which had fallen into the pool from the trees.

Our room (room number 6504) featured a balcony with a beautiful view of the pool area and mountains in the distance, although the balcony did not get the sun it was warm enough to sit outside and enjoy the views even at night. The balcony is far back enough not to be bothered by the passing traffic (which is infrequent outside of rush-hour). The room itself was pleasant and included a fridge (not a mini-bar) and cooking area. Bathroom featured a bath/shower. Good choice of (international) TV stations on the TV. Room also featured air-con (which the Pestana village does not).

Location-wise, the Pestana Miramar is in a great location, although not located in the centre of Funchal itself, it is within walking distance (20 minutes or so) and the road outside the hotel has a bus stop with frequent services into town. The Hotel is also within walking distance of many excellent restaurants and bars.

Breakfast was good. Variety of cereals, breads, continental cheeses/hams etc, hot breakfast including all the usual 'fry-up' ingredients and freshly made pancakes.

Staff were friendly, especially Nicolau Correira who was fantastic.

The only negative aspect was that the (in-room) safe commanded a fee of €12 for the week, although not expensive, we feel you should not have to pay to protect your valuables.

Overall, a fantastic experience and we would definitely stay there again.

You must be specific about your room choice. The first time we stayed there we were given an apt on the pool level with a patio full of over grown shrubs which meant there was little in and the room was dark. However without the shrubs there would have been no privacy. On our last trip I asked for three rooms on a higher level overlooking the pool. I achieved 2 out of 3, a lovely penthouse on 7 and one directly below on 6 but the third was on 4 overlooking the road. As a family we spent a lot of times by the two pools and in the spa and got together for family times in 7 but we felt the ones in 4 lucked out compared to the rest. Christmas in Madeira is fabulous and the weather was great, low 20s and no rain. The Christmas evening buffet was excellent and very good value. Altogether we had a great time and everyone wants to go back.

We've just got back from a week in the Mirimar, staying in a Jnr Suite with side sea view.(Room No. 6601 on the 6th floor)
The complex is spotlessly clean and the staff, with only 2 exceptions (2 surly waiters in the Vila restaurant at breakfast time) were very pleasant, attentative and courteous.
The breakfasts were ok, not very hot. Very disappointed that the fruit on offer seemed, in the main, tinned and we only saw bananas on offer once!!! When we breakfasted early on 2 mornings, the fruit salad (which did seem to be made from fresh fruit) was a little jaded, it looked like the previous days put out again. Our meal in the Mediterranean Restaurent was excellent and not that much costly than the better restaurants in the Old Town.

We were disappointed with our room as the side sea view from the balcony was obliterated by a very big tree immediately in front which blocked the view completely, on one side we could look over the complex to the mountains and the other side to the solid white concrete wall of the adjacent hotel. Also at this time of year we had the sun for only a very short time in the morning and were unfortunate with the weather - it was so windy we could only open the bedroom window and balcony doors on 1 1/2 days out of our 7. The other disadvantage was the road noise and smell of traffic fumes. But that apart the Balcony was private and not overlooked.

The top sheet on one twin bed was badly torn, pressed perfectly into place, but nevertheless torn. We left the sheet in such a way that it could not be missed by the cleaning staff - it took 4 days for it to be changed. Not good enough in a 4* hotel. However the beds themselves were the most comfortable we have ever had in an hotel.

The gardens were beautiful and colourfull even in February but they were in desperate need of pruning. So many of the apartments must have been incredibly due to overgrown shrubs and trees.

We enjoyed our stay in Madeira immensly but if you want peace and quiet, don't stay in Funchal itself, it has become an very big bustling town.

Having stayed in Funchal several times previously we had often noticed the Miramar and commented on how nice it looked but worried about it's proximity to the main road.However this year we decided to stay and were very glad we did.The hotel is set up and back from the main road and turned out to be one of the quietest we had stayed in.The Miramar is the original hotel to which the Pestana Garden Village resort has been added.The foyer and public areas are fabulous with marble floors antique rugs and furniture exuding an air of bygone quality.The staff are exceedingly courteous and efficient and check in was swift with bags taken to our room.We travelled with our 2 teenage children and had 2 studio classic rooms on the 4th floor with lovely garden views overlooking the pool.The rooms included table and chairs,a balcony a small 2 ring hob and kitchenette a fridge and bathroom with shower over bath ,bidet and toilet.The TV was an old one but had a good selection of satellite channels.The rooms were cleaned daily with thick fresh towels and were kept spotlessly clean.The rooms were quiet and the beds comfortable.Air con units were in each room.There was always piping hot water and the shower pressure high.Breakfast was included and was a very good buffet in the main hotel restaurant used by both hotels (there are additional hotel restaurants available for evening meals).Breakfast included a wide selection of breads/pastries cold meats/cheese fresh fruit,yoghurt,full cooked breakfast and fresh pancakes made to order.Again staff service very efficient with used plates and cutlery removed almost as soon as you'd finished.Breakfast is served between 7am and 10am but a note of caution for late risers,if you arrive just before 10 make sure you stock up in one trip as the food was cleared away pretty rapidly after about 10.15 each day.
The hotel is ideally positioned almost equidistant between the centre of Funchal and the Lido area almost opposite the entrance of Reids Hotel.It is a very pleasant walk into Funchal or there are many local buses which stop outside the entrance.Immediately outside the hotel there is a spar shop and a very good local coffee shop and bakers with delicious breads and cakes.The hotel complex has 2 outdoor pools and a warm indoor pool.The grounds are beautiful and peaceful with palm trees and exotic looking flowers.If you follow the footpath through the garden village resort you will see some of the larger self catering units and also come across the hotel's own plant nursery which presumably they use to replenish the gardens with each year.There are a selection of restaurants in the hotel available for evening meals which looked nice although we didn't use them as they were much more expensive than nearby restaurants.There is a pool bar open for snacks and lunches during the day but again you pay a premium for it.Christmas is a wonderful time to visit Madeira and the hotel's reception areas were all beautifully decorated.All in all an excellent hotel and we would love to return again in the future.