Madeira Meeting May 2026

The Madeira meeting is a three-day event organized by Universidade da Madeira!

Overview of the agenda:

Detailed program:

Location & Venue

The following information is partially based upon information from the Official Madeira Tourism website.

The island of Madeira is located in the Atlantic Ocean, about 520km (320 miles) from the African coast and 1000km (620 miles) from the European continent (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCcoKK1K2Y8)

How to get here?

A flight to Madeira takes about 1h30 from mainland Portugal and just over 3h from the main European airports. Many airline companies, including ‘low cost’ airlines regularly fly to Madeira. Madeira Airport is located in Santa Cruz, 16km (10 miles) from the city of Funchal. It takes approximately 20 minutes to get to Funchal by car.

How to get from the airport to city center?

Conference Location

The conference site is in the University of Madeira historic building, Colégio dos Jesuítas, located in the heart of the city of Funchal, just steps away from several attractions such as tipical market (Mercado dos Lavradores), wine cellars, parks and gardens and museums (Museu de Arte Sacra, Madeira Story Centre, etc.).

The university’s campus dates back to a 16th-century Jesuit college. Its first higher education institution, a medical school, was founded in Funchal in the 18th century. In 1978, the University of Lisbon established a satellite campus in Madeira, and from 1983 to 1986, today’s campus began taking shape, offering courses in the areas of science and technology, arts, humanities, and social sciences. In 1985, the campus integrated a polytechnic school of nursing (Escola Superior de Enfermagem); in 1989, a polytechnic school of education (Escola Superior de Educação da Madeira). In 1996, the Portuguese government and the University of Lisbon formally established the University of Madeira as an independent institution. In 2008, the university celebrated its 20-year anniversary.

Local Information

The island of Madeira was discovered by Tristão Vaz Teixeira, Bartolomeu Perestrelo and João Gonçalves Zarco, two Portuguese explorers, in 1419, which dubbed the island ‘Madeira’ (“wood” in English) due to the abundance of this raw material. Noticing the potential of the islands, as well as its strategic importance, the colonization of the islands began in 1425.

At the beginning of its settlement, some agricultural crops, such as cane sugar, were introduced, which quickly afforded the Funchal metropolis frank economic prosperity. This meant that, in the second half of the fifteenth century, the city of Funchal became a mandatory port of call for European trade routes.

The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were marked by the emergence of a new culture that would boost the Madeira economy again: wine. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Madeira flourished for the birth of the tourism sector, quickly becoming a mandatory reference for the European aristocracy that has set temporary residence here, attracted by the natural therapeutic qualities of the island. In 1976, Madeira became an Autonomous Region of Portugal.

Accommodation

There are several hotels in Funchal, ranging from 5-star hotels to apartments and budget accommodation.

The conference venue is located in the city centre, so it is recommended to stay in the city centre or nearby areas.