We stayed at the begining of December when the hotel was very quiet but we got the impression that it never felt overcrowded as there is so much space. The view of Funchal from our balcony was outstanding. The staff were extremely friendly and happy to help without being remotely over bearing. The breakfasts were amazing and well worth getting up for. We used the free shuttle to Funchal several times over a week but some days totally happy not to leave the hotel. On a rainy day we spent the day in the Spa which was lovely. If you want a relaxing break its perfect.

If you are looking to escape the winter and enjoy incredibly beautiful nature in a setting of good taste, fantastic but discreet infrastructure and excellent service - this is the place! It has 2 heated pools, one indoors, one outdoors - full spa facilities, excellent restaurant, a view to die for ....from everywhere! (including most of the deluxe chalets which have a generous terrace with lay-down chairs for sunbathing). The location is high on the mountain overlooking Funchal (the hotel offers regular shuttle service several times a day) and it is surrounded by a fragrant eucalyptus forest. It was perfect for exercising and detoxing after the Christmas season excesses.
I would not dream to go anywhere else in Madeira. Here the experience takes a totally different level. The service was excellent, and truly caring, if you are in doubt ask Diana Moura, but in general everyone in the hotel wants to make sure you have a great time, and they really work as a team. Can't recommend more full-heartedly. If you go, by all means try to do a boat tour - I did "la rota dos cetaceos" and it was excellent - the best way to look at the island - from the sea and enjoy the amazing marine life. And also don't miss the hotel's wine tasting - it's also very good.

Sorry its taken me a few month to write this review - I meant to write it as soon as we got back to share what an amazing time we had. This is a fabulous retreat set high up in the hills - you really feel that you could be in Thailand or somewhere equally exotic and remote. The staff are really wonderful and can not do enough for you (but without being too over the top!). The resort is very modern, but not uncomfortably hip - not everyone there is super-trendy. Its a really nice relaxed crowd. We visited in November and it was very quiet indeed so it may be different in the hotter months.

Upon arrival you are taken into the reception and greeted by the staff and then you have a tour of the resort whilst your luggage is taken on the golf-cart to your room.

The resort is quite steep and hilly with lots of steps - we wouldn't recommend this resort to people with kids, its not practical and there really aren't many facilities for the kids too. I would say its best suited to couples or groups of friends or people on their own looking for a bit of an escape.

The rooms are bungalows set on stilts - they are semi detached although none of them are over-looked. Most of them face the ocean and as all the other reviews have suggested, this is really worth the small amount of extra money. To be honest, the best part of the place for us was the verandah's over looking the ocean and the city of Funchal - both at day and night. There are two fantastic loungers on the verandah with lovely leather cushion covers and lovely warm blankets are provided along with plenty of cushions. We spent many an afternoon wrapped up here with tea and a book looking out on the amazing view. It was so lovely and peaceful!

The rooms have everything you need and are very large with a sitting area. Everything is focused around looking out at the view - including the way the super-large bed is positioned. The windows are floor-to-ceiling on the view side. We used to keep the blinds open all day and night - it was lovely to fall asleep with the stars above and city lights below. One annoying thing every morning the cleaners put all the blinds down again - I guess its part of their routine but every day it took quite a while to pull them all up again - we should have left a note for them but just didn't get around to it.

The bathroom is nice but I do agree with one other review - it would have been lovely to see the view also from the bathroom. The products provided are lovely and you get lovely robes/slippers.

You can order anything to your room - we did plan to have dinner on the balcony but we didn't for some reason. We did very much enjoy our welcome Madeira wine and cake though - lovely little touch!

There is no turn-down service unless you request it - but this isn't exactly something essential unless you've thrown a party during the day and totally messed up your room! I think this might have been because it was out of season and only handful of rooms were occupied.

You even get a large umbrella in the room - which was needed in November when we were there. One thing they could have done with was a torch - luckily my husband has one on his phone but it is tricky getting back to the room at night up all the steps etc. I think you can have the golf-cart take you back but this felt a bit lazy.

The grounds are all very lush with lots of trees and greenery around and the outdoor pool is large and lovely looking although the weather was too cold to use it. The outdoor sun loungers looked lovely too and I'm sure in the spring/summer this area is great. Again the views are amazing.

We ate in the restaurant a few times and it is lovely - the food is very nice and not as expensive as you would think for a remote place like this. The wine list is also lovely and they are more than happy for you to taste a few wines to try the right one. Unfortunatley when we were there it was desserted so there wasn't really any atmosphere and especially at breakfast, we often heard the same music being played - although it was lovely relaxing music.

There is a nice bar/lounge area above the restaurant. The menu is lighter here and this is nice for lunch with some lovely sandwiches. As with the restaurant service is amazing with lovely touches such as nice bread to start with a different flavoured local olive oil every day. One thing we were a bit confused by - all of the lounge/bar is inside and quite a ''dark'' place - which is nice and relaxing but seems strange for a hot-climated sunny place with fantastic views. There is one very small outdoor area with just 2 small tables - luckily as it was so quiet we had this small area to ourselves every lunch time. I'm not sure what happens in the warmer months. Perhaps everyone just sits by the pool during the day but in the evening it would be nice to have somewhere open air/by the views to have cocktails.

The spa area is lovely and as it was cooler outside we used this every day. A very nice indoor swimming pool and lots of lovely loungers and a sauna/steam room. We didn't have any treatments as they seemed very expensive although we heard other people say they were very good. We often get massages and I don't mind spending money on them especially in nice hotels - but from looking at the price list we really felt they were much steaper than we would usually pay.

We went to Funchal twice and we didn't think that much of it. It seems quite old-fashioned and sort of basic. We had 2 meals out which were both poor (although very cheap) and we went to the Riad Palace for a cocktail which was extremely expensive although it was decadent in there (if not a little old fashioned!). To be honest, we were only away for 4 days and had come to relax - we felt Choupana Hills ticked all the boxes for what we needed on this trip and didn't feel much like exploring. Its a very different world up there in Choupana to down in Funchal and depending on what you are looking for on your break - I would really stay at Choupana and chill out with the amazing facilities!

We didn't do any of the hikes/walks as the ground was very wet and we didn't take proper walking shoes so the staff recommended us not trying this although they were very happy to make other recommendations of things to do - of which there are plenty if you can drag yourself away. The hotel is in a good location to do some of the walks.

Overall I think this is a fantastic place if you are looking to relax and be pampered in an amazing place - I would say its like a retreat in Thailand without the jet lag and expensive flight!

LOCATION: Winding way up in the beautifully lush hills, past the botanical gardens, up near the tops of the levadas, you find Choupana Hills. It's serenity and beauty are astounding. The view of downtown funchal is breathtaking and gives a new appreciation for the city center of the island. We loved the location. The shuttle service to the city center was easy and reliable.
DESIGN: The property is enchanting and fits perfectly nestled into the lush hill side. They maximized the view in the reception, dining, and pool areas. The place reeks of quality in all the surfaces, lighting, furniture, fresh flowers. The individual cabins are perfectly private with uninterrupted views. They are very well appointed, clean and luxuriously comfortable. Sipping Madeira from the lounge chair on the balcony at sunset is my new happy place!
SERVICE: Absolutely top notch. We don't speak a word of Portuguese, but the staff was incredibly impressive and went out of their way to help us with all kinds of extras (last minute car rental, booking a tour at Blandy's, changing money, arranging babysitting).
FOOD: We're in the restaurant business, so this is our true passion. We had excellently prepared food with excellent service. We're vegetarian, for what it's worth. We found plenty on the menus, and found all the ingredients to be very fresh and super high quality. The wines are Portuguese and Spanish, which is excatly what we wanted. Cocktails are fun and desserts are playful. We tried other restaurants as well, but were very pleased to have 1 lunch, 1 dinner and all our breakfasts there.
OVERALL: Whoever built this place poured a lot of love into it. It shows in the space itself and in how happy and attentive the staff is. My husband I stayed 3 nights while we were traveling with our 3 year old son. I wish we could have enjoyed it as a couple since it took some creativity to occupy our son in such a serene environment. But regardless, we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and feel that the experience at Choupana Hills helped us fall in love with Maderia.