Reid's Palace, A Belmond Hotel, Madeira

William Reid arrived in Madeira as a penniless Scot and spent thirty years working toward the hotel that opened on this promontory in 1891. It has been the island's landmark address ever since, drawing a guest list that ran from Churchill to George Bernard Shaw, and the ritual of afternoon tea on the terrace above Funchal bay remains stubbornly intact.

The setting is the point: ten acres of subtropical gardens tumbling down a cliff to the Atlantic, with saltwater pools cut into the rock at the bottom and a lift to save the climb back. Rooms in the original building keep their period proportions, while later wings offer more contemporary space, nearly all facing the sea.

Recent years have brought a reworked spa and gym, roughly doubled in size, and a refresh of the 1891 Bar with a cocktail list built around Madeiran fruit and flowers. Funchal is a short walk or taxi ride away, and the island's levada walks and the wine lodges are easily reached.