São Miguel Highlights — Azores – Miradouro da Boca do Inferno

After Terceira — the island with more cows than inhabitants — and the charming island pair of Pico and Faial, we concluded our week-long Azores island hopping with the “green island” on our schedule. At 62 kilometers long and almost 16 kilometers wide at its widest point, São Miguel is the largest island of the archipelago — and also the one with the highest influx of visitors. Understandably so, as São Miguel offers a “best of Azores” experience all on one island. Boiling hot springs, secluded waterfalls with a jungle feel, wild coastal stretches, and a greenery that can only be found at the very edge of Europe.

Dramatic Western Island – Miradouro da Boca do Inferno

Nature lovers can easily spend two weeks on São Miguel. There is no shortage of great hiking routes (18 tours are described in the Rother hiking guide alone), challenging bike trails, breathtaking viewpoints and fishing villages worth seeing. With a good 2.5 days available to us to explore the island, we had to prioritize. And that’s why it was clear from the beginning that the first thing we wanted to do was head for the undisputed highlight of São Miguel. The Baica de Sete Cidades nature reserve in the west of the island with the two lakes “Lagoa Verde” and “Lagoa Azul” is one of the “seven natural wonders of Portugal” and is depicted on every second Azores brochure. On the way from the island’s capital Ponta Delgada to the two picturesque lakes, there are old, overgrown aqueducts to discover on the way. Soon after, we reach the parking lot at Lagoa do Canario. From here, a hiking trail leads to the Miradouro da Boca do Inferno with a gigantic view over the crater landscape of the Sete Cidades. Not far from there is the Miradouro da Vista do Rei. “Ponta da Vista de Grande Interese” is the modest announcement of the road sign just before the vantage point. And lo and behold: The parking lot is packed to the brim and we are puzzled as to where all these people have suddenly come from. Apart from that, the guidebook didn’t promise too much – the view is magnificent. The whole thing is topped by an empty hotel ruin right next to it. The former luxury hotel “Monte Palace” is an exemplary “Lost Place” – spooky, but worth seeing. We then continue our road trip on side roads towards Mosterios. The friend has chosen the charming fishing village as a sunset photo location – but: On this day, the Azores high is just busy over the European mainland and brings a rather cloudy evening mood.

Surprising east of the island

The next morning, the alarm clock rings us out of bed at the crack of dawn. We want to watch the sunrise at the easternmost tip of the island at Farol do Arnel. Unfortunately, the weather continues to let us down, but the gloomy mood reminds me of pictures from the Faroe Islands. Even without golden morning light, the wild east coast impresses with its cliffs sloping several hundred meters. Green and blue as far as the eye can see. As if São Miguel wants to apologize for the modest weather performance, an unexpected highlight follows on the way to Provocao. I had already seen postcards with beautiful tree-lined avenues in Ponta Delgada. All the pictures are from the area around Furnas. But the avenues in Furnas are a piece of cardboard compared to what spontaneously caught my eye somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Across the green hilly landscape above Provocao, a kilometre-long, dreamlike avenue of trees lines a side road. It’s like something from another world! After a stroll through the alleys of Provocao and a coffee stop in a café at the main square, we follow the road back towards Ponta Delgada. Around noon, we stop above Lagoa at the “agriturismo” Paladares da Quinta, where we are served typical island dishes.

Brodelndes Sao Miguel

As a final bouquet we have saved the center of the island of São Miguel. Here, the volcanic origin of the archipelago is omnipresent. Be it the bubbling hot springs of Furnas, which smell of rotten eggs. The islanders place their casseroles in the hot holes in the ground and let the volcanic heat cook the dish. In addition to this culinary speciality, Furnas is a popular place for wellness tourists. It is very nice to relax in the Furnas Boutique Hotel Thermal Spa, which we pay a flying visit out of curiosity. A popular day trip destination for hikers and nature lovers is the highlands around the lake of fire “Lagoa do Fogo”. The natural crater was formed during a volcanic eruption in the 16th century. If you follow the road in a northerly direction, you will pass the Caldeira Velha – a waterfall with warm, iron-rich water in which you can bathe. We drove by twice, but each time the parking lot was so hopelessly overcrowded that we decided not to visit. Instead, we hiked a little further towards Ribeira Grande to an idyllically situated waterfall (with normal water temperatures) and then visited the tea farm Cha Gorreana. The tea plantations on São Miguel are among the largest tea plantations in Western Europe, where “real” tea is grown. By the way, if you want to try green and black tea here, you can help yourself free of charge.

Capital of the island, Ponta Delgada

The starting point for our tour criss-crossing São Miguel was the centrally located island capital Ponta Delgada, which surprised us positively. It is worth strolling through the alleys of the old town. There are pretty facades, magnificently decorated doors and archways to discover, as well as nice cafés and shops. On the northern outskirts of the city, the famous pineapple plantations of the Arruda Pineapple Plantation await you. The Azores pineapple, which sweetened us every morning (and which we also ate in combination with black pudding – another typical island specialty), is grown in greenhouses in São Miguel. Actually, I really wanted to try the famous pineapple ice cream. But what a bitter disappointment – this is only produced in the summer months (so we have to travel there again). Otherwise, Ponta Delgada surprised us in a very positive way. The city has some casual restaurants, such as the vegetarian Rotas Da Ilha Verde (Rua Pedro Homem 49, be sure to make a reservation!) or the Anfiteatro restaurant on the seafront. And for a drink afterwards, we recommend a detour to the hip rooftop bar das Azur Hotels. As you can see, the “Emerald Isle” easily meets all requirements!

[alert color=”FFFFFF” title=”Practical tips for São Miguel“]

• Arrival with TAP Portugal (daily connections from Zurich) via Lisbon to the Azores
• Central accommodation: Hotel Marina Atlantico or Azor Hotel
• Spend the night with a beach feeling: Santa Bárbara Eco-Beach Resort in Riberia Grande
• The island is easy to explore by rental car. We rented the car from Varela Rent a Car at the airport

Our trip to the Azores was made possible by Amin Travel GmbH. Amin Travel specialises in travelling to Portugal with the Azores and Madeira, the Cape Verde Islands, as well as Egypt and Jordan. The small team is happy to put together tailor-made programs. For us, they worked out a program for four islands in 9 days. If you want to follow our island hopping in a more leisurely 14 days, you can book it including TAP flights, hotel accommodation with breakfast and rental car from 1,725 CHF per person [/alert]