Funchal City Guide
Monte Church
Monte Church Funchal, formally the Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Monte, sits at the top of a long stone staircase in Monte and costs nothing to visit. It opens Monday to Saturday 09:00-19:00 and Sunday 08:30-18:00. Inside, past the pilgrimage altar that draws Madeira's biggest annual religious festival every 15 August, lies the tomb of Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria-Hungary, who died in exile in Funchal in 1922. This page covers the hours, the history and how the church fits with the cable car and the toboggan, both a short walk away. The full Funchal city guide has the rest of the city.
Quick answer Free entry, hours, the emperor's tomb, in three lines
Monte Church is free to visit, open Monday to Saturday 09:00-19:00 and Sunday 08:30-18:00. Inside is the tomb of Karl I of Austria, the last Habsburg emperor, who died in exile in Funchal on 1 April 1922.
Key takeaways
- The Funchal cable car upper station is a short walk from the church, and the Monte toboggan departs right beside its steps
- Monte Palace Tropical Garden is a few minutes from the church on the same square
- A 2-hour tuk-tuk tour with cable car finale reaches Monte and its church without arranging the climb or the descent yourself
Key facts
Opening hours
| Monday-Saturday | 09:00–19:00 |
|---|---|
| Sunday | 08:30–18:00 |
Closed None published for visiting the church itself; Mass times take priority over sightseeing during services.
Admission
- Free
- No entry fee. It is a working parish church, not a paid museum.
Planning it
- Time needed
- Not stated. Our routing: 20-30 minutes for the church and the view from the steps, longer on 15 August
- Book ahead
- Optional — walk-up usually fine
- Address
- Rampa da Sacristia 1, 9050-208 Funchal
The church sells no ticket of its own. The tour below reaches Monte and its square as part of a longer route, priced from the platform.
There is nothing to buy here. The only choice is walking in alone or arriving on a tour that reaches Monte for you.
| Option | Price | Includes | Cancel | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Church entry, on your ownAnyone. Walk in during the posted hours, no ticket needed. | Free | The nave and the tomb during posted hours | Not applicable | Official site |
| 2-hour tuk-tuk tour with cable car finaleVisitors who want Monte reached for them rather than arranging the cable car and the climb separately. | $91.89 as listed by the operator | A tuk-tuk route ending with the cable car up to Monte, church included on foot | Free up to 24 hours before | Check Availability |
No platform sells entry to the church, because the church charges none. Figures current for Q3 2026.
Tours That Reach Monte and the Church
These tours include the ride up to Monte, where the church sits a short walk from the cable car or the tuk-tuk stop. Prices are the platform's own listed US dollar figures.
from $91.89
Funchal 2-Hour Tuk-Tuk Tour with Cable Car Finale
A 2 hour small-group Funchal tuk-tuk tour ending with a ride on the Monte cable car, with a local driver-guide and fuel included.
Check Availability
from $37.90
Guided Tuk Tuk Tour to Toboggan Rides & Old Town
A 90 minute tuk-tuk ride to Miradouro dos Marmeleiros and Monte with a driver-guide, the toboggan ride down paid separately on the day.
Check Availability
from $45.94
Funchal Monte Toboggan and Old Town Tour by Tuk-Tuk
A private tuk-tuk tour of Monte and Funchal's Old Town with the classic wicker basket toboggan ride and hotel pickup included.
Check AvailabilityPrices, ratings and details are the platform's own. dollar figures are the listed prices — the platform bills in your account's currency.
The Church at the Top of the Steps
The church facade at the top of the climb from Largo da Fonte. Photo: Gerda Arendt, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Monte Church stands at the head of a long straight run of stone steps rising from Largo da Fonte, its white facade and twin black-and-white baroque bell towers visible from well below in the square. The church was consecrated on 20 December 1818, though the site had held earlier chapels since the pilgrimage tradition began, and it remains Madeira's most important place of Catholic pilgrimage: every 15 August, the feast of Nossa Senhora do Monte, the Virgin's image is carried in a torchlit procession down through Funchal, drawing crowds far beyond a normal visiting day. The climb up the steps is the same one many pilgrims still make on their knees on the feast day, a detail that gives the plain stone staircase its weight beyond being simply a photo stop.
The Last Emperor's Tomb
The stone staircase down from the church, the same climb pilgrims make on the 15 August feast day. Photo: Vvlasenko, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Karl I of Austria, the last reigning Emperor of Austria-Hungary, arrived in exile on Madeira in November 1921 after the collapse of the Habsburg monarchy following the First World War. He settled in Monte with his family but caught a chill that developed into pneumonia, and he died in Funchal on 1 April 1922, aged 34. His body was buried inside Monte Church, where the tomb remains today near the side altars.
His heart was later removed and placed in Muri Abbey in Switzerland, the traditional Habsburg resting place for that relic. The tomb draws a steady trickle of visitors connected to the old Austro-Hungarian aristocracy alongside the pilgrims and sightseers who come for the church itself, and it is the one detail that turns Monte Church from a scenic stop into a specific historical site.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_I_of_Austria, read 2026-09-19.
Visiting Hours and What It Costs
There is no entry fee. The church posts visiting hours of Monday to Saturday 09:00-19:00 and Sunday 08:30-18:00, wider than almost any paid sight in this city guide, since it is a working parish church rather than a museum with a ticket desk. Mass times are separate from these sightseeing hours and take priority.
A visitor arriving during a service should expect to wait quietly at the back or return later rather than walk the aisles as during open visiting hours.
Source: visit.funchal.pt/item/igreja-de-nossa-senhora-do-monte, read 2026-09-19.
How Much Time to Give Monte Church
Three ways to work the church into a Monte visit, depending on how the rest of the day is built.
The church itself takes little time on its own. The choice is really how much of Monte you build around it.
| Routing | Time at Monte Church | What it skips | Door to door from the centre |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quick stop | 10-15 minutes, just the nave and the tomb | The garden, a slow look at the square | About 20 minutes each way by cable car |
| Full visit | 25-35 minutes, plus the steps and the square | Nothing at the church itself | Half a morning with the garden and toboggan |
| With a tour | Guided context on the tomb and the pilgrimage | Independent pacing | Set by the tuk-tuk and cable car tour |
The Church in Dated Lines
The church and its most-discussed occupant, in order.
-
before 1741
Earlier chapels on the site
A pilgrimage tradition to Our Lady of the Mount predates the current building.
-
10 June 1741
Construction of the present church begins
Per the church's own historical notice, cited on visit.funchal.pt.
-
20 December 1818
Consecration
The Archbishop of Meliapor consecrates the finished church.
-
November 1921
Karl I arrives in exile
The last Emperor of Austria-Hungary settles in Monte after the fall of the Habsburg monarchy.
-
1 April 1922
Karl I dies in Funchal
He dies of pneumonia at age 34 and is buried inside the church.
-
15 August, annually
The Nossa Senhora do Monte feast
Madeira's largest religious procession, the city's patronal feast day.
Sources: visit.funchal.pt/item/igreja-de-nossa-senhora-do-monte and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_I_of_Austria, both read 2026-09-19.
Dos and Don'ts at Monte Church
The church stays a working place of worship even on a busy sightseeing day.
Do
- Dress modestly; shoulders and knees covered, as at any active Catholic church
- Keep your voice down near the altars, especially close to the tomb
- Time a visit around a cable car arrival, since the upper station is a short walk away
- Check for a Mass in progress before walking the aisles
Don't
- Don't use flash photography near the altars or the tomb
- Don't treat the steps outside as just a photo backdrop on 15 August; they carry a real procession that day
- Don't plan a same-day return by toboggan without checking it runs that day, since it is closed Sundays
Monte Church Map: With the Toboggan Start and the Cable Car
The church sits on the same small square as the cable car's upper station, the toboggan departure and Monte Palace.
Coordinates from the church's street address and nearby pages' own published GPS pins.
Next Stop From the Church
Three places within a few minutes' walk on the same square.
Monte toboggan
Departs right beside the church steps, closed Sundays. See the toboggan guide.
Funchal cable car
The upper station is a short walk from the church. See the cable car guide.
Monte Palace Tropical Garden
A few minutes away on the same square. See the Monte Palace guide.
Monte Church Questions
Is Monte Church free to visit?
Yes. There is no entry fee. It is a working parish church, not a paid museum.
What are Monte Church's opening hours?
Monday to Saturday 09:00-19:00, Sunday 08:30-18:00. Mass times take priority over sightseeing during services.
Who is buried in Monte Church?
Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria-Hungary, who died in exile in Funchal on 1 April 1922. His heart was later moved to Muri Abbey in Switzerland.
How many steps lead up to Monte Church?
The church sits at the top of a long straight stone staircase from Largo da Fonte. This page does not print an exact step count, since no official source publishes one.
When is the Monte Church feast day?
15 August, Nossa Senhora do Monte, Funchal's patronal feast, marked by a torchlit procession carrying the Virgin's image down through the city.
Monte Church on Film: The Climb and the Tomb
Three looks at the church, the steps and Karl I's tomb inside.
Funchal Monte Church Sanctuary and Church - Funchal Portugal
A tour of the church interior and the sanctuary square outside.
Video: Eric Clark's Travel VideosChurch of Our Lady of the Mount Funchal Madeira
A walkthrough of the church, including the climb up the steps.
Video: Shiran De SilvaFesta de Nossa Senhora do Monte, padroeira da cidade e Diocese do Funchal
Footage of the annual 15 August feast and procession.
Video: Cancao Nova PortugalVideos load from YouTube only when you press play.
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