The ultimate football fan's travel guide to Madeira, Cristiano Ronaldo's hometown and Portuguese island hotspot

Madeira has just one airport, and it's named after—you guessed it—Cristiano Ronaldo.

Located in the civil parish of Santa Cruz, Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport is accessible via direct flights from most major European airports. The only direct flight from the United States, however, is from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, meaning you'll have to get a transfer should you fly from anywhere else stateside.

Once landed, the airport is just a 22-minute drive to the center of Funchal. The island's regular and cheap bus services make this journey stress-free.

For getting around Funchal, you'll want to walk so you can take in the sea views, colonial architecture, and Ronaldo-themed artwork. For visiting Madeira's other coastal cities, such as the rural Santana, you'll want to catch a bus or a taxi, or you could hire car for around $150 per day.

One site any tourist to Madeira cannot miss is Monte, which encompasses the lush foothills of the island. Catch the cable car from Funchal and you'll be treated to a stunning panoramic view you'll never forget.

There is no shortage of five-star resorts on Madeira, namely the Savoy Palace, The Cliff Bay, or The Vine.

But for fans of Cristiano Ronaldo, there is only one place to stay — his own hotel.

Part of the Pestana Hotel Group, the CR7 Lifestyle Hotel sits next to the harbour in Funchal on a square named after the Manchester United forward, Praça CR7. The hotel is not large, but has clean and comfortable rooms, a friendly staff, a great bar, a pool, and spectacular views of the city, making for a thoroughly enjoyable stay.

The four-star property is laden with tributes to Ronaldo, which are dotted everywhere around the building. There are newspaper clippings, signed shirts, and other pieces of memorabilia on the walls, while above the beds you can find illuminated sketches of the Manchester United and Portugal forward.

Most impressively, just outside the hotel's entrance is a three meter tall, solid bronze statue of the man himself.

Stay four nights and the hotel will send you home with an official autographed ball, and all guests get complimentary admission to the CR7 museum.

Museum

Attached to the CR7 Pestana is the Museu CR7. Opened in 2013 by Ronaldo's brother, Hugo, the museum is home to all of Ronaldo's team and individual trophies, some original and some replicas.

Among the 200-plus displays of hardware are his five Ballons d'Or, all five of his Champions League trophies, and the Euro 2016 trophy.

Inside you'll also find signed jerseys from his various clubs, a wall of hat-trick balls, and even a statue made entirely of chocolate.

Art

As well as the bronze statue of Ronaldo outside his hotel and the chocolate one inside his museum, there is also a bust of the 37-year-old at the airport. The one you can see is a replacement of the original, which became the subject of international mockery when it was first unveiled in 2017.

Elsewhere on the island, there's a small graffiti mural of Ronaldo near Funchal's fruit market and a giant wall painting of him in Santo Antonio.

Soccer

Tucked away high in the mountains of the Choupana district is the home of Ronaldo's boyhood soccer team, C.D. Nacional.

There, not only can you watch the team play, fixtures permitting, for as little as $11, but you can also visit another museum with numerous pieces of Ronaldo memorabilia inside, as well as the club's academy, the Cristiano Ronaldo Campus Futebol.

Ronaldo's favorite dish is a traditional Portuguese stew, consisting of salt cod and eggs, called Bacalhau, which is served at almost all of the local restaurants.

Not your cup of tea? Try The Snug in Funchal's Old Town, for other tasty traditional Madeiran food; Kampo by Julio Pereira, for the finest dining experience the island has to offer; or Three House, for rooftop food and cocktails with ocean views.

If you want to eat at Ronaldo's favorite Madeira restaurant, you'll have to get a near three-hour ferry to Porto Santo Island, the northernmost island of the Madeira archipelago, for a table at the Casa do Velho Dragoeiro Restaurante.