Açores
April 2018
3 Days
The Azores are a group of islands that are part of Portugal, but are really in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and still a 2.5 hour flight from mainland Portugal. Apart from a one-night stay in Lisbon, Ponta Delgada was actually the first place in Portugal I had ever visited. Although I've sometimes seen the Azores referred to as "the Hawaii of Europe", I don't think that's very accurate due to the fact that it doesn't ever get that warm in the Azores plus it rains more often than not over the course of a year.
Contents
Daily Itinerary
Enjoy the quiet capital of Ponta Delgada
Sample a number of local dishes at A Tasca
Drive up to the Miradouro da Vista do Rei to see the Sete Cidades caldera
Descend to the town of Sete Cidades
Take a dip at the geothermal pools of Termas da Ferraria
Seafood stew at Mariserra
Visit a pineapple plantation
Order ahead to try the local Cozido das Furnas in the town of Furnas
More thermal baths at Poça da Dona Beija
Flights
TAP Air Portugal Economy LIS-PDL-LIS-BLQ: Cash roundtrip with free stopover
Hotels
Azor Hotel: 75,000 Marriott points for 3 nights (no longer part of Marriott as of May 2019)
▸ One of two 5 star hotels on the island, centrally located near the city center. This hotel had some of the nicest and most helpful staff I've met.
Food (With Beli Ranking)
A Tasca (8.3) - Seemingly the most populat restaurant in Ponta Delgada as we could only get in with the hotel calling to make a reservation for us. Definitely worth it to taste the amazing local dishes.
Mariserra (7.8) - Located a little outside the main city center. Delicious seafood dishes.
Cozido das Furnas - A local dish in the town of Furnas cooked underground by the steam from the underground hot springs. Make sure to call ahead.
Full Itinerary
Day 1
Azor Hotel
After a 2.5 hour flight from Lisbon and a quick 15 minute ride from the airport, we arrived at the Azor Hotel, one of the two 5 star hotels on the island. With the SPG and Marriott merger, we were able to book this hotel for only 25,000 points per night (as of May 2019, this hotel is no longer part of Marriott). The most stand-out aspect of this hotel was how friendly everyone at the hotel was.
View From Our Room at Azor Hotel - Ponta Delgada, Portugal 2018
Ponta Delgada
Ponta Delgada is the largest city and capital of the Azores located on São Miguel Island. With a population of only about 70,000, the streets were quiet and mostly empty. Worth a quick visit since you'll probably be staying nearby, but you definitely don't need more than a couple hours.
The Quiet Streets of Ponta Delgada - Ponta Delgada, Portugal 2018
We sat at a cafe near the water and had afternoon Sangria and limpets. The most popular restaurant in the city is A Tasca, which features small plates (similar to tapas) and we had to try a couple times to successfully get a reservation through our hotel. However, it was definitely worth it - I forgot to take any pictures since I was too busy eating!
Day 2
Miradouro da Vista do Rei
From our hotel, we were able to rent a car for the day so we could drive to Sete Cidades and view the caldera. After a 30 minute drive west up the mountain from Ponta Delgada, we arrived at the Viewpoint of Vista do Rei which overlooks the Caldera and the town of Sete Cidades.
View of Sete Cidades From Miradouro da Vista do Rei - Ponta Delgada, Portugal 2018
Miradouro da Boca do Inferno
Just another 10 minute drive further is the Viewpoint of Boca do Inferno. Unlike Vista do Rei, there is more space to park here, but it is another 5-10 minute walk to get to the viewpoint.
View From Miradouro da Boca do Inferno - Ponta Delgada, Portugal 2018
Termas da Ferraria
After a brief stop in the small town of Sete Cidades, we continued driving another 20 minutes to the coast and arrived at Termas da Ferraria. You can go into the spa if you would like although we just came for the views and a quick dip.
Just on the other side of the spa is a walkway down to this small pool, but beware - the water is cold and waves are strong!
Termas da Ferraria - Ponta Delgada, Portugal 2018
Restaurante Mariserra was recommended to us by the hotel staff. It's located a bit outside the main city center, but still within walking distance. If you like seafood, this is definitely a place to try. We got this amazing seafood stew here.
Seafood Stew at Mariserra - Ponta Delgada, Portugal 2018
Day 3
Ananases A Arruda
Azorean pineapples are gown in greenhouses over the course of two years. Some say they are the best pineapples in the world, although I don't know the ones we tried were any better than others. Our trip to a pineapple plantation was a fun and quick activity.
Pineapples - Ponta Delgada, Portugal 2018
Poça da Dona Beija
A 45 minute drive to the east of Ponta Delgada is the town of Furnas, most well known for the Cozido das Furnas dish which is cooked underground using heat from the volcano. Staying on the geothermal theme, we visited the Poça da Dona Beija thermal baths. Just don't wear anything too fancy because the minerals in the water will stain your clothes brown!
Overall
Overall a few days on the island of Sao Miguel was plenty of time to see the most famous spots. I would compare it a bit to Iceland because of the volcanic geography, but much warmer and much less crowded.
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