The Azores have been described as Europe’s version of Hawaii. After a week on the main Azores island of Sao Miguel, it’s not only hard to compare the Azores and Hawaii, but painful to admit that I think I liked the Azores nearly just as much! The days were filled hiking around the mountains, relaxing in hot spring pools, staring off at the endless viewpoints on the coastline, and eating some of the best seafood. If only we got to Scuba dive here on the Azores, then I would know for certain, that the Azores should take the top spot!
After a sleepless red-eye flight from Boston, my wife, her parents, and I, loaded into the rental car before the sun rose above the mountains on the eastern end of the island. Off we went to start exploring the island for ourselves and with the guidance of the meticulously crafted itinerary that my wife put together, we headed to the northern coast to Start our trip off at Parque Natural da Ribeira dos Caldeirões. With its massive waterfalls flowing down the valley into a river that still operates a 16th century water mill, it’s a marvel to wander through. A must-see, especially when this was a “throw-away” stop to kill time before the tea plantations opened, the use of the landscape to be a utility for the grain mills was impressive even with today’s technology.
Tea Plantations
Between stopping at the coastal view points that dotted the roads that circumnavigated the island, we made sure to stop in Europe’s only two tea plantations. Not much a tea drinker myself, but when in Rome, or in this case, the Azores. Kicking the morning off with the better of the two tea plantations, we stopped at the pictures Gorreana Tea Plantation. First, we passed through the very much, active factory on a self-guided tour, where we absolutely got in the way of a group of employees sifting and packing tea bags by hand, which was a shock to me how tedious the process appeared.
After sipping on a cups of tea at the end of the tour, we wandered into the tea fields for a hike. From the factory, the tea fields extended downhill over 1/2 mile where it met the cliffs at the ocean. Extending equally as far uphill, we chose to head up towards the hillside in hopes of a good view point and into the forest that dotted the tea fields. The best part of the hike was watching the four workers, straddling either side of the hedge row of tea, holding each side of the tea leaf plucking & pruning machines. With razor close precision, they only removed the top few inches of the bush to ensure the leaves below could still grow and produce.
The second plantation, Porto Formoso Tea Factory, though just as beautiful and as easy to access of the main loop road, did not have the same popularity as Gorreana Tea Plantation. Walking through the property, from the empty parking lot, we found ourselves in their tasting room with a private experience. The waitress, or maybe related to the owner, served us our choice of their three options of tea. The rest of the group seemed to love the piping hot beverage, meanwhile I waited for my tea to reach room temperature before tipping it back. I will say, this factory was much more suited to host a party or a wedding, with the way the walkways are lined with trees, pavilions overlooking the ocean, and ornate stonework in the tasting room. Either way, a unique experience to say we’ve been to the only two tea plantations in Europe.
Language, Money, and Navigating
Getting around Sao Miguel on the Azores was relatively easy, with most folks we encountered speaking great English, and the roads were easy to navigate. Every restaurant we visited had no problem ordering in, and when in doubt, we resort to pointing at the menu. This was more common in the smaller town cafes or when you’d pop into one of the countless neighborhood bars for a beer. Learning any amount of Portuguese will go far, even if it’s the simple greetings. Keeping up with the trend of the times throughout the rest of Europe, you can pay nearly everywhere with credit card. Of course, you’ll still be looked at like you have a second head if you try to pay for a €2 beer with a credit card.
For this trip, we rented a car, because to be honest, I’m not sure how you’d get around otherwise unless you were visiting with a tour group and they traveled via bus or shuttle. Downloading the maps ahead of time on Google Maps and Maps.Me, we had no issues plugging in all of our destinations and just following the road signs. Though I didn’t know Portuguese, once you learn the common names for street (Rue), avenue (Avenida), road (Estrada), etc, you can feel more confident looking for the turns off the main highway, EN1-1A, that circumnavigates the entire island.
The only major hurdle we had with a language barrier was checking into our last apartment AirBnb in the major city of Ponta Delgada. We never got the code to access the building and couldn’t reach the host. Eventually, we flagged down the cleaning lady who, after a frustrating amount of cherades and attempts in English, I resorted to Spanish. They highly recommend agains speaking Spanish to the Portuguese because it is disrespectful. Even though the woman did not speak Spanish, she could piece together enough of the words since they have a similar root language and finally got us situated in the apartment. Since this was the only time we had someone speak directly to us in Portuguese, I realized how far from Spanish it is, and that it sounds more like Russian than anything. Lucky for me, all the words are written very similar to Spanish which made the travel much easier.
Hiking to the Lakes
Whether it was a hike to a view point, down to a lake, or even to a swimming area on the rocky shoreline heated by a thermal vent, the experiences on this island by foot were remarkable. Being that the entire island is one volcanic system after another, the geography is defined by tall hills, rounded valleys, and lakes tucked away in the calderas of the dormant volcanoes. Unknowingly, from end to end, we made our way through all 6 of the volcanic zones on the island, but lucky for us, no volcanic activity to speak of, besides the many thermal pools, hot springs, and vents we were able to check out during our trip.
The crown jewel being the hiking around Lagoa do Fogo in the central part of the island. Due to the steepness of the road, and the fear of tourists driving off said road, you are required to pick up a bus shuttle from Caldeira Velha parking area in order to reach the lake and the viewpoints from the summit of the mountain. The bus makes a stop at each of the two view points for a few minutes before taking you back down to the trailhead for the hike down to the lake, with the plan of picking up the last bus for the day afterwards.
The hike down to the lake was steep, reminding me of a New England hike with steps that jolt your knees. Dropping down about 100m, you reach the shoreline of the lake. The four of us wandered around towards the east end of the lake where we hung out for a lunch with a view. The water, though much bluer from above when it reflects off the sky, was still crystal clear up close. The eastern face of Pico de Barrosa was covered in vegetation, moss, and rocky faces, meanwhile, the shoreline around us had tall pine trees. A wonderfully diverse microcosm on an island in the middle of the the Atlantic Ocean.
Other hikes to lakes on the west end of the island in Sete Cidade, where the aqua blue side meets the emerald green end. Driving up and over the volcano’s rim to enter the large caldera that has a small town inside is an absurd concept to someone who’s never been here before. But this gave us the opportunity to see the incredible views from both above and below. And lastly, because the road was under construction due to a rock slide, we had to hike down the 100m to reach Ponta da Ferraria. A natural swimming pool in the ocean, with a thermal vent feeding into it, keeping the water a comfortable 70-90 degrees compared to the brisk ocean temps outside the pool area. Needless to say, it was far less relaxing than the hot spring pools on the rest of the island like in Caldeira Velha or in Furnas. The waves were rolling right through the pool and sending all of us holding on for dear life to the ropes that crossed from one end to the other.
Food, Restaurants & Bars
I always make the distinction that I am no food blogger, but I will mention that the food here was incredible. When comparing a trip here to the Hawaii of Europe, I reflect on my trips to Hawaii where the food was great, but by no means culinary masterpieces. But, in the Azores, you get the European influences in their seafood, the amazing cuts of meat from the farming on the island, and most importantly, the delicious (and cheap) Portuguese wine. At one point, we even tried a dish that was essentially barnacles. Yes, the tiny rock like shells that stick to the bulkheads, reefs, ship hulls, and everything in between. While most people would throw these away, we had this little appetizer to go with the side of a delicious fish of the day. Not exactly my preference, but it was still unique.
Unlike a trip to Hawaii, the food and drinks were surprisingly cheap. Albeit, you have your choice of one to 2 beers on tap at most of the small cafes and neighborhood bars, but it will still only cost you €1-€3 for a beer. The decision comes when you have to decide the size, small, medium, or large, which inevitably turns into this small game of charades each time to indicate big or small when the bartender doesn’t speak English.
Besides the amazing tuna dishes, surprisingly delicious pizza, and all the small town cafes, I was most impressed with a stop at a small bar on the top of a hill in a small town outside of Ponta Delgada. This little bar, called the Gin Library, claims to have the worlds largest gin collection with over 2,000 bottles. And after visiting, I would have to agree. The small storefront has gin from, quite literally, every corner of the globe, and you can try anyone of them. The way it works is, if you show up with a bottle from your country or town, that they don’t already have, you get a free bottle of the gin that they make. A sort of gin swap, if you will. Thinking they had more then they could ever know, my in-laws explained they were from a town outside of Philadelphia, PA and the barkeep walked over to a wall, following his pointer finger as he scanned the bottles, and sure enough, he pulled a bottle from the middle of the shelf that was, indeed, from near Philly. Apparently, he could recall almost every single bottle they had in the shop.
Well, I know that’s only snapshot of all the things to see and do on in the Azores. I didn’t even touch on the the breweries, the meals you can get cooked in thermal vents, or even the pineapple plantations that you must visit to truly appreciate that delicious fruit. Is it the Hawaii of Europe, well, I’m not really sure about that. The water is a bit colder and a whole lot less clear, which is what most people dream about when they imagine Hawaii. But sure, a near tropical oasis in the middle of the northern Atlantic Ocean is hard to beat. Especially when you throw in the storied history of the Azores and the way of life there seems like it’s out of the French countryside. This place was fantastic and highly recommend a trip there if you get a chance.
Hi there, my name is Zachary Kenney and I’m an adventure filmmaker & photographer. My passion is to tell stories that will hopefully motivate you to go live a more adventurous life. Whether that is to experience the view from the summit of a mountain, or wandering through a new town on a road trip. Currently based in the Park City, Utah.
