We are visiting Sao Miguel Island right now, and I thought I'd post this for people who really want to go to Hawaii but can't stomach the current cost. The Azores are beautiful, and the similarities to Hawaii, particularly the Big Island, are stunning.
Getting here: It's a 5 hour flight on Sata/Azores airlines from either Boston or JFK (although the JFK flight may be seasonal). Our round trip tickets were $700-800 pp. We upgraded to business class on the way over for 160 euros pp, and it was totally worth it.
Flights out of JFK and BOS leave at 9 pm, so you have plenty of time to get there. JFK isn't the easiest from Houston, so we actually flew HOU to LGA, spent the day in Astoria (had donuts and lunch and went to the Museum of the Moving Image) before taking an Uber to JFK.
Flights home leave the island in the early evening (6-ish pm), so you will have to spend the night somewhere after you land in the US. We are spending the night in BOS and have an early am flight back to IAH the next day.
US domestic flights were all on SW -$160 pp to LGA and $108 pp from BOS.
United restarted a round trip out of Newark just a couple of weeks after I booked our tickets.
Accommodations: There are plenty of low-cost hotels on Sao Miguel. We are talking $100-ish per night. Higher-end is more limited, but we are at Sul Villas, and it's gorgeous. Our junior suite has a direct view of the ocean, a plunge pool, a huge bathroom and shower, plus an outdoor shower, and breakfast is included for about $350/night.
But, a lot of the hotels are small (ours only has 12 junior suites and prime suites). We met a couple who loved White Exclusive Suites and Villas, which is even smaller and more high-end (and was booked by the time I started looking). There are a couple of other resort-type options scattered over the island. Sensei and Santa Barbara Beach Resort are two more.
Weather: Humid, foggy/misty, and cool. The highs haven't gotten out of the 60s since we've been here. With the humidity, that does feel warmer, but if you are up at elevation or it's windy, it can be chilly. Definitely need rain jackets/wind breakers and layers. Leggings, waterproof pants, and hiking sandals/shoes are a must. I did not pack any of my cute summer dresses or shoes.
Getting around: We rented a car for just under $500 for 10 days. It's a manual because automatics are significantly more expensive. It's a small island with little traffic, so it's easy to get around. We went sightseeing the other day, and went about 100 km round trip and probably only hit two traffic lights.
What to do: The Azores is an outdoor activity destination. So far, we've done the following…
Jeep (actually Land Rover) tour of the Nordeste area with Green Zone. This wound up being pretty much a private tour (we had a travel agent from Belgium tag along) and it was amazing. There are so many off-road places that hiring a driver with an off-road vehicle for a day or two is an absolute must. Our guide was fantastic.
Whale watching with Terra Azul. This is supposed to be the best place in the world to whale watch because every species of whale travels past these islands. They weren't too active the day we went (we only saw a sperm whale), but the boat ride itself is also very scenic. We just missed the opening of the islet off of Vila Franca do Campo, which would have been a beautiful place to snorkel.
ATV/Buggy tour of Sete Cidades with ANC Azores Holidays. My 17 year old was able to drive the buggy (every place else we've done this, you have to be 18). Also gives you access to off-road trails and sites.
Today we are going canyoning (ie, repelling) over waterfalls with Fun Activities Azores Adventure.
Wine and cheese tasting with Hungry Wales (the islands have amazing cheeses!). We also have a walking food tour booked with them on Sunday.
Like I said, getting around is easy. We drove ourselves to a hike to a beautiful waterfall (Salto do Prego) as well as to some various overlooks/points of interest. We also visited Furnas and saw the Caldeiras.
The weather at Sete Cidades (probably the main attraction on Sao Miguel) yesterday was not good, so we may go back to revisit that view. We will also be headed to Lagoa do Fogo (Fire Lake) for those views and some hiking.
The Azores are volcanic islands. The big differences from Hawaii are mainly the presence of lots of farms/farmland (mostly cows) in the hills and countryside, as well as the large crater lakes in the center of the island (Lagoa Azul and Lagoa Verde at Sete Cidades and Lagoa do Fogo being the two most impressive). Waterfall viewing is plentiful and amazing.
Other highlights include a couple of pineapple plantations and tea plantations that you can tour.
Like I said, the islands aren't crowded. We are here in the early part of the season, and locals say it can get more crowded, particularly in August, with areas doubling in population. Almost everyone speaks English, and does so very well. Most of the tourists we've encountered have been American, German, and Dutch.
We opted to stay on Sao Miguel, but you can get flights to the other islands, which just like Hawaii, all have their own distinct "personalities".
Food: Delicious, fresh seafood of all kinds, fantastic cheeses, and local pineapple are the highlights. The Portuguese drink something called green wine, which is fabulous. Local restaurants are still very affordable, and some are downright cheap. We made ourselves a fantastic dinner of bread, cheese, and meat from the local grocery store last night for about 25 euros.
Total cost: flights probably worked out to about $1000 pp, hotel is $3500 (10 nights), rental car is $500 (10 days), activities range from $70-$150 pp, depending on the length (half day or full day). I'll probably end up spending another $500 in cash (meals and tips) and probably another $200-$300 in miscellaneous credit card charges. You could definitely save money on the accommodations. If your travel dates are flexible, you can probably find cheaper flights, too.
If you want to see pictures and video, feel free to visit my IG (singlemomphd). Too much good stuff to post here.
We've loved our visit and have felt so welcomed. The locals are pretty much over Covid. No one at the airline checked our tests before we boarded the flight here (the official policy is you only need a negative test to enter; vaccines are not required but can be used in lieu of a test if the most recent was within 270 days), and with the exception of the whale watching tour, no one expects you to wear a mask (don't get me started on that…it was an idiotic policy, and I probably would recommend a different tour company because of it).
Getting here: It's a 5 hour flight on Sata/Azores airlines from either Boston or JFK (although the JFK flight may be seasonal). Our round trip tickets were $700-800 pp. We upgraded to business class on the way over for 160 euros pp, and it was totally worth it.
Flights out of JFK and BOS leave at 9 pm, so you have plenty of time to get there. JFK isn't the easiest from Houston, so we actually flew HOU to LGA, spent the day in Astoria (had donuts and lunch and went to the Museum of the Moving Image) before taking an Uber to JFK.
Flights home leave the island in the early evening (6-ish pm), so you will have to spend the night somewhere after you land in the US. We are spending the night in BOS and have an early am flight back to IAH the next day.
US domestic flights were all on SW -$160 pp to LGA and $108 pp from BOS.
United restarted a round trip out of Newark just a couple of weeks after I booked our tickets.
Accommodations: There are plenty of low-cost hotels on Sao Miguel. We are talking $100-ish per night. Higher-end is more limited, but we are at Sul Villas, and it's gorgeous. Our junior suite has a direct view of the ocean, a plunge pool, a huge bathroom and shower, plus an outdoor shower, and breakfast is included for about $350/night.
But, a lot of the hotels are small (ours only has 12 junior suites and prime suites). We met a couple who loved White Exclusive Suites and Villas, which is even smaller and more high-end (and was booked by the time I started looking). There are a couple of other resort-type options scattered over the island. Sensei and Santa Barbara Beach Resort are two more.
Weather: Humid, foggy/misty, and cool. The highs haven't gotten out of the 60s since we've been here. With the humidity, that does feel warmer, but if you are up at elevation or it's windy, it can be chilly. Definitely need rain jackets/wind breakers and layers. Leggings, waterproof pants, and hiking sandals/shoes are a must. I did not pack any of my cute summer dresses or shoes.
Getting around: We rented a car for just under $500 for 10 days. It's a manual because automatics are significantly more expensive. It's a small island with little traffic, so it's easy to get around. We went sightseeing the other day, and went about 100 km round trip and probably only hit two traffic lights.
What to do: The Azores is an outdoor activity destination. So far, we've done the following…
Jeep (actually Land Rover) tour of the Nordeste area with Green Zone. This wound up being pretty much a private tour (we had a travel agent from Belgium tag along) and it was amazing. There are so many off-road places that hiring a driver with an off-road vehicle for a day or two is an absolute must. Our guide was fantastic.
Whale watching with Terra Azul. This is supposed to be the best place in the world to whale watch because every species of whale travels past these islands. They weren't too active the day we went (we only saw a sperm whale), but the boat ride itself is also very scenic. We just missed the opening of the islet off of Vila Franca do Campo, which would have been a beautiful place to snorkel.
ATV/Buggy tour of Sete Cidades with ANC Azores Holidays. My 17 year old was able to drive the buggy (every place else we've done this, you have to be 18). Also gives you access to off-road trails and sites.
Today we are going canyoning (ie, repelling) over waterfalls with Fun Activities Azores Adventure.
Wine and cheese tasting with Hungry Wales (the islands have amazing cheeses!). We also have a walking food tour booked with them on Sunday.
Like I said, getting around is easy. We drove ourselves to a hike to a beautiful waterfall (Salto do Prego) as well as to some various overlooks/points of interest. We also visited Furnas and saw the Caldeiras.
The weather at Sete Cidades (probably the main attraction on Sao Miguel) yesterday was not good, so we may go back to revisit that view. We will also be headed to Lagoa do Fogo (Fire Lake) for those views and some hiking.
The Azores are volcanic islands. The big differences from Hawaii are mainly the presence of lots of farms/farmland (mostly cows) in the hills and countryside, as well as the large crater lakes in the center of the island (Lagoa Azul and Lagoa Verde at Sete Cidades and Lagoa do Fogo being the two most impressive). Waterfall viewing is plentiful and amazing.
Other highlights include a couple of pineapple plantations and tea plantations that you can tour.
Like I said, the islands aren't crowded. We are here in the early part of the season, and locals say it can get more crowded, particularly in August, with areas doubling in population. Almost everyone speaks English, and does so very well. Most of the tourists we've encountered have been American, German, and Dutch.
We opted to stay on Sao Miguel, but you can get flights to the other islands, which just like Hawaii, all have their own distinct "personalities".
Food: Delicious, fresh seafood of all kinds, fantastic cheeses, and local pineapple are the highlights. The Portuguese drink something called green wine, which is fabulous. Local restaurants are still very affordable, and some are downright cheap. We made ourselves a fantastic dinner of bread, cheese, and meat from the local grocery store last night for about 25 euros.
Total cost: flights probably worked out to about $1000 pp, hotel is $3500 (10 nights), rental car is $500 (10 days), activities range from $70-$150 pp, depending on the length (half day or full day). I'll probably end up spending another $500 in cash (meals and tips) and probably another $200-$300 in miscellaneous credit card charges. You could definitely save money on the accommodations. If your travel dates are flexible, you can probably find cheaper flights, too.
If you want to see pictures and video, feel free to visit my IG (singlemomphd). Too much good stuff to post here.
We've loved our visit and have felt so welcomed. The locals are pretty much over Covid. No one at the airline checked our tests before we boarded the flight here (the official policy is you only need a negative test to enter; vaccines are not required but can be used in lieu of a test if the most recent was within 270 days), and with the exception of the whale watching tour, no one expects you to wear a mask (don't get me started on that…it was an idiotic policy, and I probably would recommend a different tour company because of it).