I can change my plans but I’ve got about a week scheduled in San Miguel at the end of the month and just injured my leg. I’ll be on crutches but I’m fine on crutches. Should I still go? Is there some island that’s flatter or easier walking?

Hello !

We’re arriving (my girlfriend and I) in the Azores on Sunday at around midnight in São Miguel and leaving for Flores Island the next morning at around 8 am (we consider to arrive around 6:30am).

We’ve booked a night in an Airbnb near the airport (about a 30-minute walk, 6min by car).

However, I’d prefer; if possible, to avoid the walk and take a taxi instead.

• I guess it’s possible to get a taxi from the airport to the Airbnb at around midnight without any problems. Am I right?
• What about the return journey to the airport the next morning (end of the night/early morning) ? What are the options for booking or calling a taxi to pick us up from our Airbnb ? Do we need to book the taxi in advance ? Will we have to walk? Is it safe to walk during the night ?

Thank you 😄

Olá a todos, pela primeira vez comprei em separado uma viagem ida e outra volta. Já recebi o reembolso da primeira viagem e estou a submeter agora a segunda (compradas em separado mesmo), mas não me aparece nenhuma opção de emparelhamento, aparecendo sempre o co pagamento habitual. Sabem como prosseguir? O que faço? Obrigado a todos!

Hello, we are traveling soon to Sao Miguel with 2 kids, who require car seats, and 3 adults. We will have one large suitcase, 2 carry ons, a compact travel stroller, and 3-4 backpacks/ small bags. Trying to figure out which car to rent for us, so its comfortable but also manageable in terms of roads and street parking. Would Docia Jogger extreme work? Do we need a mini van? If anyone has a similar experience, I would greatly appreciate your input.

Any issue with travelling to azores over the next couple of weeks? Been reading about the norovirus news and a little anxious. If anyone’s there and can let us know what the situation is there, it’d be great, thank you!

We are planning our first trip to the Azores in Mid May. We are in our 60’s and enjoy hiking and being outside. Looking at a 5 days on Sao Miguel and 3 days on Flores. Is Flores a good second island to choose, or should we consider another island option?

Planning a trip to Azores soon and was wondering if you lovely people had a recommendation for the most useful weather apps? Windy? MeteoBlue?

Thanks in advance! 🙏

Hello Everybody:

I am planning a second trip to the Azores, because on the first one, I only visited Sao Miguel, and this time around I wanted to see the other islands. I had a great time on Sao Miguel, and my friends did too (we stayed a week on the island). However, something strange has come up. I put together an itinerary for myself for the rest of the islands, got ferry tickets and plane tickets, hotels and guest houses, tours and all that. However, something strange has come up. My first inter-island flight (from Sao Miguel to Santa Maria) has vanished. Everything else is still there....the flights to the central islands, the ferries within them, the flight to Flores, and day tour of Corvo. It's just the first leg (Sao Miguel to Santa Maria) that has vanished.

Vanished?

Yeah, really. I was showing the itinerary to a friend who was thinking of coming so we started to search for seats on the Sao Miguel to Santa Maria flight, and that flight no longer exists. It's just gone. I checked online with the airline, and my ticket has been moved to a similar flight some 8 hours later, so I am arriving at night instead of the morning. There's no trace of that flight ever existing, on Google or any other flight aggregator. It doesn't even exist on SATAs own website anymore.

Why would SATA do this? There can't be any weather concerns as this is too far in the future to predict good or bad weather. The flight had been on the search engines for months, but now it's just gone. It's a good thing we checked!

Is there any other way to get from Sao Miguel to Santa Maria? I understand the ferry has restarted, but it apparently takes a very long time to get there (5 to 6 hours). Are there water taxis or other options to get there? I can't seem to find any other airlines or flights.

Thanks in Advance!

São Miguel can smell strongly of cow manure. When you leave the plane at the airport, this smell is often a reminder, that you have reached your destination. As a recreational sailor, I was often able to make out São Miguel at night simply from the smell, before I could even see the island. In addition, cattle farming has been affecting the environment significantly:

• beaches being temporarily closed because of poor water quality (e.g. Monte Verde beach and recently Praia dos Pelames in Povoação)
• waterfalls and streams where the water can smell strongly of cow waste (e.g. Cascata do Salto do Prego)
• eutrophication of the lakes (the famous blue and green lakes of Sete Cidades are both green now)
• sudden, extremely strong manure smells across the island, especially at night...

I understand that cattle farming and dairy production are important to the Azorean economy, culture and landscape. I’m not arguing that cattle farming should disappear, even though it is becoming increasingly difficult to make a living out of these low milk prices. But the Azores are also investing heavily in tourism and presenting the islands internationally as a pristine, natural destination with clean oceans, clear lakes, beautiful waterfalls, green landscapes and unspoiled nature.

I’d genuinely like to hear from people who live here: Are the environmental problems associated with cattle farming being discussed openly enough in the Azores? Is it possible to find a balance between the cattle/dairy industry and the government’s ambition to develop the islands as a high-quality nature and tourism destination? If so, what could that balance look like in practice? Personally, I think the status quo is becoming increasingly difficult to sustain, especially on São Miguel.

Trabalho remotamente e estou a pensar em mudar-me para os Açores. Tenho andado a ver casas em Ponta Delgada e os preços estão tão maus ou piores do que aqui no continente. Nas pesquisas que tenho feito em busca de apartamentos, há duas zonas que aparecem com preços comportáveis: Os Arrifes que para mim estão fora de questão, e a zona das Laranjeiras. Relativamente a esta zona, existem alguns apartamentos na Rua Dr. José Maria Caetano Matos, mas, pelo que consigo ver online, a zona parece ter má fama. Algum local que me consiga dar feedback? Pontualmente aparecem também apartamentos na zona de são roque mas é menos comum.

Hey, i will be travelling to Azores next December . I want to enjoy the nature and mediate. Maybe do some hikes or dips in the Atlantic and the hot springs. I am interested to know if you recommend sth in particular, a must see or not to miss. I would be thankful for every piece of info :)

I want to grow peppers and make my own traditional pimenta moida sauce. This year I grew a hot pepper variety called “Hot Portugal Pepper” but I want to grow something similar to the traditional ”pimenta da terra” grown in the Azores. Does anyone know a particular variety or know where I can get seeds? I’m located in MA, USA. Thank you!

So, this might a bit of an odd question for this sub. This is one of the walls in our basement in our house in the Azores. Very humid and salty climate. There are a lot of cracks in between the natural stones that the walls are built from. Every week I'm sweeping up loads of debris from the plaster that's crumbling out. I'd like to cover up the gaps in between the stones with a grout that does not cause any new problems like growing mold, etc. What materials would you recommend I use for this?

Hi all,

Gf and I are visiting Sao Miguel 10-19 September and Santa Maria 19-24 September.

We have the accommodations and cars booked, also want to go diving. Should we just walk in at a dive center to check it out the day we arrive or is it required to pre-book? Usually don’t like to book dives in advance but I see Santa Maria is quite limited in terms of dive schools. And if people have tips for dive schools and dive sites also great.

Hi all, I've got a winter break/holiday scheduled in early December. Arriving and leaving PDL, Monday to Monday, so effectively six days total. Coming from a cold North European country so not too scared of the weather. My main question is: should I stick to Sao Miguel, should I try to get multiple islands/groups in, and if yes, what would be the best way to go around it? It looks like ferries are not really an option at this time of year for the long stretches - which airport should I aim for, and how many days on the other islands would make sense? Thanks!

Hi all,

I’m travelling to Sao Miguel in the coming day for a week and just concerned about the norovirus situation. Has it been dying down in the last few days or still at its peak?

Thanks!

Hi, does anyone have tips or experiences to share about their solo travel in Sao Miguel as a woman? I’m honestly most worried about the rental car as it’s a larger size (smaller ones were sold out). Trip is coming up and I’m getting quite nervous as it’s my first international trip alone. Thanks!!

We were told we sniped the best night you can on the top. Thanks Azores we'll be back.

This is an amazing place.

Hi all! Any recommendations for good restaurants in Furnas that serve half portions of cozido? I know Terra Nostra Restaurant serves single portions and highly recommended on here but I'm searching for a less costly alternative. There are two of us but I'm just not going to be able to eat that much meat. Thank you!