The Azores

Mother Nature created a land full of natural beauty in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, ready to be explored. The Azores, an archipelago made up of 9 pristine islands, often referred to as “The Hawaii of Europe.” We spent a relaxing 8 days on the Island, São Miguel, which is known for it’s pristine nature, waterfalls, hydrangea lined roads, rich marine life and so much more!

Getting there
Getting between the islands
- By Air
- By Sea
Getting around
Where to stay
When to visit
Weather in the Azores
Itinerary to see São Miguel

Getting there: We flew nonstop from JFK, Azores Airlines offers this flight almost daily, it was a quick 5 hour flight, and very inexpensive. Azores Airlines, TAP Portugal and United are the only airlines flying from the US to the Azores, Boston and New York offer direct routes, almost daily.

There are several direct flights to Azores from Europe as well.

Getting between the islands: You have two options, by air or by sea.

By air: Sata Air Acores, is the regional carrier which has flights connecting all of the Islands in the Azores. The flights between the Islands are all short, the longest being just over an hour, but they can get pricey. Below is a map of flight connections in the Azores (Source: Azores Airlines)

By sea: Another more affordable option is to island hop by ferry, if you want to island hop by ferry Atlantico Line provides service between all 9 islands. The map below shows the inter-island ferry connections in the Azores (Source: Atlantico Line).

Getting around: There are three main ways of exploring the islands, Taxis, Tours and Rental Cars. Public transportation is not Azores’ strongest point.

Rental Cars: my advise is book early! They can be very pricy, especially since 2020, inventory is low and prices have gone through the roof.
Taxis: there is a great app for taxi service, however I found the best way is to have a connection for a taxi driver and use him for your rides, or to coordinate another driver for you if they are in service. Here is the WhatsApp number of our taxi driver Helder +351 914 924 466 he was a great local connection. Taxi’s were the more affordable option for us, as a rental car in July was $1,800+ for a week.
Tours: we used Green Zone Azores for all of our tours, they were a great local company, offering half day or full day tours. You had the option of a group tour, or a private tour. I couldn’t rave about the company more, they were very professional, catered each tour to us, my two kids (ages 4.5 and 1.5 loved the tours)! A great affordable option to see the Island.

Where to stay: Your options include Air BNB’s and hotels, but rest assured there is something for every price point.

When to visit: January through March, are the quietest time of year for visitors, also the cheapest time to visit. April through the end of May is the best time for Whale and Dolphin Watching. Being the driest and hottest months, July and August are seen as the best months to visit the Azores. There is no bad time to visit, the weather is mild all year long.

Weather in the Azores: The main characteristic of Azorean weather is its unpredictability. It can be sunny and hot, windy and rainy- all in the same day. The yearly average temperature is 17C/63F, don’t expect sunny tropical paradise weather. Rainfall is frequent, which is exactly why the greenery landscapes are so lush and vivid.

Itinerary to see São Miguel: I recommend at least 5 full days to explore the Island of São Miguel, click here to see my recommended itinerary & details!

Explore São Miguel

São Miguel is the largest island in the Portuguese Azores archipelago, and well worth a visit. São Miguel is known for it’s pristine nature, waterfalls, hydrangea lined roads, rich marine life, and so much more! We spent 8 days exploring the Island this July, and loved every moment of our stay.…