The numbers for February
Two stations, two periods, both named. Mixing them is how a levada walk goes wrong.
| Measure | Funchal | Areeiro |
|---|---|---|
| Mean daily maximum | 19.9 °C | 8.3 °C |
| Mean daily minimum | 13.9 °C | 2.8 °C |
| Precipitation | 72.4 mm | 378.0 mm |
| Days with 1 mm or more | 5.5 days | 16.1 days |
What the mountain is doing at the same time
In February Funchal reaches 19.9 °C by day. At Areeiro, on the central ridge, the same month averages 8.3 °C — a difference of 11.6 °C, and that is the daytime figure, not the night.
Rainfall separates them further: 72.4 mm in Funchal against 378.0 mm at Areeiro, 5.2 times as much.
People plan levada walks off the Funchal forecast. That is the mistake this section exists to prevent — the two stations are 25 km and 1500 m apart, and they are not describing the same day.
The sea
Off Funchal the monthly mean runs between 17.8 °C in March and 23.3 °C in September, averaging 20.2 °C over the year. IPMA has never printed a sea-temperature normal, so this is the closest honest figure there is.
IPMA’s 2011 bulletin carries no observed figure for this month, so none is given. We do not fill the gap from an aggregator.
What’s on in February
Carnival
Two weeks of parades and street parties in Funchal, ending with the mocking Trapalhão parade. The main allegorical parade closes the Avenida.
Porto Santo ferry layup
The Lobo Marinho comes out of service for its annual overhaul. While it is out, seats on the Porto Santo flights are reserved for residents — so the island is effectively closed to a day trip.
What February is actually like
February holds the year’s coolest Funchal daytime mean at 19.9 °C and its coolest nights at 13.9 °C — the closest this coast comes to winter, which is to say not very close. It rains on fewer days than January, 5.5 against 6.2, but harder: 72.4 mm. Up at Areeiro the same month averages three nights below freezing.
Three things worth checking before you book
“Madeira has no winter” is true at sea level and only there. Funchal records 0.0 days below 0 °C in every month of its normals. Areeiro’s February normal carries 3 nights below freezing, and that is the ground the levada walks cross.
The north really is wetter, by more than the guides say. Annual precipitation in the 1971–2000 normals: Funchal 596 mm, Santana on the north coast 1383 mm, Areeiro on the ridge 2620 mm.
The leste is real. It is an easterly off the Sahara, documented by IPMA, and it can push temperatures to about 35 °C and relative humidity down towards 5 % in the mountains. It usually lasts 3 days or fewer, and IPMA names February–April and August–October as its windows.