Sao Miguel is the largest Azorean island and still small enough to drive across in two hours. The interior is craters and hydrangea, the coast is black rock, and the whole thing sits in the middle of the Atlantic with the weather that implies.
What to plan around
Cloud sits on the crater rims most mornings. Sete Cidades and Lagoa do Fogo are both worth a second attempt on a different day rather than a resigned photograph through fog.
Do not skip
- Furnas, for the geothermal cooking pits and the botanical garden
- Terra Nostra's iron rich thermal pool, which stains swimwear permanently
- A whale watching trip, which has a real chance of sightings between April and October
Flights from Lisbon take just over two hours. Rent a car, public transport is limited and the interior roads are the point.
