This island is an example of how there is always a plan B. The best way to describe the weather in the Azores is to say that on one day the 4 seasons of the year can happen simultaneously. However, this does not automatically mean that your vacation may be impaired, quite the contrary.
If it weren’t for this weather condition, the Azores wouldn’t be able to provide its unique greenery, its monumental waterfalls and its lagoons that are able to take your breath away and fill the soul of those who visits us.
Stay tuned and see what we have in store for you on days when the sun hides behind the clouds and rain predominates.
Baths in Thermal Waters – Bathing in hot waters with thermal characteristics, with temperatures at 39º degrees, is always an excellent option, don’t you think? Our waters have substances of iron origin that are able to rejuvenate and hydrate the skin and are located around paradisiacal surroundings. Visit the Poça Dona Beja, the tank of the Terra Nostra Park, the Caldeira Velha, the Termas das Caldeiras and the Termas da Ferraria.
Liqueur Factory “Mulher do Capote” – Located in the city of Ribeira Grande, you can follow closely in this factory the production of some of the most famous liqueurs of the region, which are exported to the Portuguese Continent, USA, Canada, South Africa, Spain, France, among others. During a guided tour of the plant, you can also taste the liqueurs with a commercial area surrounded by souvenirs of regional production.
Gorreana Tea Factory – This tea factory is the oldest and only tea production in Europe. It cultivates exclusively black and green tea since 1883, tea that derives from the plant “Camellia Sinensis”, and that is totally produced without the addition of chemical products. You can also enjoy the enchanting landscape of the tea plantations.
Queijadas Morgado Factory – A recipe from the hands of the former nuns of the Convent of Santo André, in the sixteenth century, and then passed to the hands of the family of Eduíno Morgado Medeiros, who managed to maintain their authenticity. Today these cheeses are one of our best known and most exported tourist products, and they are completely produced using the freshest ingredients that our region offers. You can also take a closer look at the production of these cheeses, one of the true symbols of Azorean sweets, located in Vila Franca do Campo.
Taste the lêvedos cakes – It’s a typical candy from our region and it doesn’t go unnoticed by those who pass by. Typically produced in Vale das Furnas, it’s a cake equivalent to bread, but it’s sweet. It came from the time of the first settlers and was used in the base of their diet, but later began to be used in restoration and even as a dessert. The only consequence you will feel after tasting this cake is that you will want to repeat it.
Pineapple Plantations – Pineapple is one of the former gastronomic landmarks of the Azores and was introduced at the time of the discoveries in Brazil, and its plantation was reproduced in the Azores. It is produced in glass greenhouses, with high temperatures and each plant only produces one pineapple, production that lasts on average 2 years per fruit. You can visit the plantations and still consume all the products from this fruit, you will feel indescribable sensations in your palate fruit of the magnificent taste that this fruit presents.
Graça Market – Famous market in Ponta Delgada built-in 1848, used in the XIX century, due to the lack of proper places to sell agricultural products or cattle. It offers a variety of regional products for sale, such as pineapple, cheese, fresh and seasonal vegetables. Every year there are several cooking workshops and tasting of typical products on the market. Don’t hesitate and stop by to know our products.
Carvão Cave – Located in Ponta Delgada, it has an extension of 1912 meters. It is an area of fissural volcanism where you can find slag cones and lava flows of basaltic nature. The age of this cave, is between 5000-12000 years, being thus attributed to a holocene age. It is classified as a Regional Natural Monument.
Tasting Regional Gastronomy – With bad weather, magnificent gastronomic programs come to life, even more so with Azorean gastronomy. There are countless restaurants in São Miguel to enjoy extraordinary regional dishes, enjoy and taste our stew, which is produced underground, where the heat of volcanic origin heats and cooks the food. Taste our meat from our cattle raised in total freedom and also taste our fish and seafood, with the seal of quality of our immense sea.
Carlos Machado Museum – Developed from the old Azorean Museum in 1876, it is the oldest museum in the Azores Archipelago. It includes a vast collection of natural history, art history, ethnography and religious history.
São Brás Fort | Military Museum – Located in Ponta Delgada, the Military Museum is located inside the São Brás Fort. There, you will find a wide range of historical-military heritage of the Portuguese army related to the crashes in the region.
Ethnographic Museum of the 40s – Founded in 1998, it is a museum of crafts/arts and crafts of the Chapels, thus preserving the past memories. It has one of the largest collections of instruments at risk of extinction and pieces that have undergone major changes with the passage of time that various activities developed in the Azores in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.