SAO MIGUEL, AZORES ISLANDS, PORTUGAL
AUG 30 - SEPT 4, 2024
Day #1
Caylin and I off to Sao Miguel, Azores! Big business class people 💵🤭.
After red eye flight, we grabbed our car (on right side in photo) and headed into Ponta Delgada. Walked around the town and grabbed some coffee, of course. Very quiet since it was early Saturday morning but a good time to explore.
After Ponta Delgada, we headed out to Mosteiros beach on the east side of the island
It was so cool! Beautiful cove and black sand beach. The weather was amazing, it was the perfect energy boost from the red eye.
Check in time for the AirBnB!…
We stayed at Moinhos…in a town called Feteiras. It was such an awesome place! A lot more secluded than Caylin and I are used to but it was perfect. The balcony had a beautiful view of the ocean and coastline (and sunsets!!). After a dinner in Mosteiros, we finally crashed after an amazing first day 🥱 😴
Day #2
After a very refreshing sleep, we started out the morning with our daily basket breakfast…
…and then headed out to Lagoa do Fogo for a hike. Definitely one of the highlights of the trip, it was so beautiful. Had to take a bus to get to the trail due to the tight roads and high elevation but just wow…
😍🔥
Out and back hike straight down the mountain and then back up. It was so worth the strain. There was not a lot of people with us, it felt very wild and it was easy to forget we were on an island in the middle of the Atlantic.
After a strenuous hike, the best thing to do is relive the soreness in a natural hot spring.
The pools were a bit crowded and the nature sulfur makes the water stinky but was still a good experience. The town of Furnas, where the springs are concentrated, was very lively and picturesque. A very pretty lake and mountains surrounding the town made it one of the cooler towns on the island.
After the pools, might as well go to the nearby beach as well.
Praia Ribeira Quente
Wiped from the day, we snagged take-away at an Indian restaurant in Ponta Delgada and ate at home 😁.
Day #3
Sete Cidadas day! When you search Azores Islands, this is the spot that generally comes up. It a massive caldera with multiple lakes and we caught it on a beautiful day. (The weather changes very fast on the island).
This is from the iconic overlook point so the trail was a bit busy but it did not take away from the stunning view. We couldn’t stay long as we had to get down into the town to go kayaking! (We went in the big lake on the right side of the photo). We almost couldn’t go because it was too windy but the kayak company guy was nice and let us go
Captain Caylin 🫡
Turned in more of an exercise than a relaxing activity but it was a great time. We were literally the only ones on the lake. It was incredible. It felt so clean, it was so quiet.
After hiking and kayaking (and driving), it was time to let loose. We headed back to the house and I grabbed some beer from the local gas station…
We hung out at the place and sat on the porch as the sunset.
It was such a fun night! 70s weather, little to no insects, a few drinks, and a beautiful sunset *chefs kiss*.
Day #4
At this point, caylin and I are playing with house money. We’ve toured most of the island and seen just how beautiful it is. We decide to head back out to one of our favorite towns, Mosteiros. Grab some lunch and a locally grown pineapple for dessert…
…and yes it was a dessert. It was sweeter than the a typical pineapple and was very good. After lunch, we headed to some natural “pools” along the coast where low tide allows for some swimming among the volcanic rocks.
The tide was a bit higher than we would’ve liked but we still jumped in one of the bigger pools (not pictured).
We saved our best dinner for the last night. We went out to a Japanese cuisine restaurant in Ponta Delgada called Otaka.
All the small plates were sooo good. For the entrees, you picked with either fish or local Azorean beef. Caylin went beef, and I went fish. The “fish” turned out to be stingray…
It actually was pretty good, crushed it lol.
Day #5
Travel day 😢. We just walked around Ponta Delgada and had some lunch and gelato, then off to the airport.
The Azores Islands were amazing. The natural scenery is stunning. Hiking, and even driving, around the island were highlights and it felt like a truly relaxing vacation. Only con, was the interactions we had with the locals. Despite our efforts to speak Portuguese, most people seemed very uninterested in acknowledging us lol. It seems to be a much bigger vacation destination for Europeans than Americans. But I would 100%, without question, return for another visit and perhaps visit another one of the many islands that are part of the Azores chain.