Travel
Fly to the Azores
If you don’t have your own
boat you need to fly to the Azores. Flying to the Azores
islands from most countries means an airport hub at Lisbon
on the mainland of Portugal. It takes about 2 hours to fly from
Lisbon to the Azores. From Lisbon there are several daily direct
flights to the Islands of São Miguel (Ponta Delgada), Terceira
(Lajes) and Faial (Horta), and weekly flights to Pico Island. Check out the website of TAP Portugal for more information. Homepage TAP Portugal PT
Flying to the Azores islands
from most countries means an airport hub at Lisbon on
the mainland of Portugal. It takes about 2 hours to fly from Lisbon
to the Azores. From Lisbon there are several daily direct flights
to the Islands of São Miguel (Ponta Delgada), Terceira (Lajes)
and Faial (Horta), and weekly flights to Pico Island.
But, there are direct flights available
from:
The USA (Boston, Oakland and Providence)
Canada (Toronto)
Germany (Frankfurt and Munich)
England (London)
Netherlands (Amsterdam)
Madeira (Funchal)
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Flying from Europe
In addition to the indirect flight through Lisbon, you
can fly directly to Sao Miguel island from the following cities:
Frankfurt and Munique, Germany
London, England
Amsterdam, Nederlands
Most flights from other European destinations connect through
Lisbon.
Flying from USA
In the Summer there are direct flights from Boston, Providence and
Toronto. We recommend you make your reservations early (possible
from 6 months in advance). Flights from the USA to Sao Miguel
depart from Boston on Tuesdays and Fridays all year around. In
the summer time there is an additional departure on Wednesday
and an additional return on Thursday. Also in the summer time,
there is an additional flight from Oakland, CA with departure
and return on Monday. An additional flight to Providence with
departure and return on Saturday and an additional flight to Terceira
with departure on Sunday and return on Tuesday.
Flying from Canada
The only commercial way of transportation to the Azores from Canada
is by airplane. There are two airlines servicing the Islands. Skyservice
and SATA Express. You may also fly Air Canada to Lisbon and connect
to the Azores.
Travel between the
islands
To travel between the islands
there are several possibilities. You can use the inter-islands
flights and ferries. The ferries are cheaper, but they operate
more rarely. On the islands itself you can use taxi transfers,
buses or rent a car. Also you might decide to walk or to bike.
In this section of the web portal you will find information about
the different alternatives.
Flights
Inter-island flights are assured
by SATA-Air Azores. A flight from Sao Miguel to Terceira only takes
40 minutes.For detailed information about
schedules and rates check the websites of the airlines:
http://www.flytap.com/
http://www.sata.pt/
http://www.azores-express.com
Ferry
An excellent and cheap alternative for inter-island travelling
instead of flying would be to take the ferries. There is a regular
ferry service between São Miguel and most other islands, as well
as between the islands of Faial, Pico, and São Jorge, and between
Terceira and Graciosa. Connections to Flores and Corvo in the
west's group are rare.
On
the main lines between the islands groups they is not always
an alternative. The ships are obviously more rarely and longer
on the way than the airplanes. In 2006 the ferry operator Transmacor
took over all the ferry transports. The former operator Acorline
is not operational anymore.
TRANSMACOR
Rua new facts, 29
9900-023 Horta
Tel: 00351 292 200380
Tel Horta: 00351 292 200381
Tel Madalena: 00351 292 623340
Tel Sao Roque DO pico: 00351 292 642954
Tel Velas: 00351 295 432225
Tel Calheta: 00351 295 416490
Fax: 00351 292 200385
email: transmacor@mail.telepac.pt
InterNet: www.transmacor.pt
Rent a car
Rented cars are not really
cheap (about €35 a day for a b category), but it’s a comfortable
way of moving around the islands. The roads are quite good and
there is not a lot of traffic. Only the highways on Sao Miguel
and Terceira always have (some) traffic. There are two ways to
rent a car: by kilometer (mile) or per day/week. Please pay attention
to the insurance against all risks (CDW or super-CDW) and register
damages before you rent the car.
Taxi
A taxi is a relatively cheap
alternative if you spend a few days at one spot or only travel
short distances. Many taxi drivers speak English and some of them
are excellent travel guides!!
There are taxis on nearly all islands. You can always find taxis in the larger
villages. The best way to keep you from surprises is to set a fixed price before
you depart. On shorter trips there are fixed prices, but for longer distances
or daily trips you can negotiate on the price. At night taxis are somewhat more
expensive.
Buses
All islands except Corvo have a bus network. The schedules
on most islands however are not designed for the tourists: most
buses do not drive frequently (only two or three times per day)
and on the weekends they might not even drive at all.
Only
on the islands Sao Miguel, Terceira and Pico it is interesting
to go by bus. Sao Miguel has good regular bus services with
extremely low prices. There are timetables in the local tourist
offices. To catch a bus you should give a clear sign to the
busdriver. You can buy your ticket from the busdriver.
Walking
The Azores are a true eldorado for walkers and can be explored
easily by foot. On all islands there are wonderful (marked) walking
tracks, where you feel yourself being part of the landscape. Before
you go to more remote regions you should inform about the condition
of the tracks. More information in our walking
section.
With the bicycle
Although the Azores
are not really suitable for riding a bike, you can have beautiful
trips. The Azores are rather hilly, so it is preferable to
use a Mountain Bike or an All Terrain Bike. There are no marked
routes and hardly any bicycle shops; you have to drive on auto
roads and small streets. So if you like adventure, go for it!! |