Azores - Transport
Airports
There are good flight connections to Horta from Lisbon as well as frequent service from Boston to Sao Miguel and/or Terceira; all with Azores Airlines. Only Faial, Terceira and Sao Miguel handle international flights.
Travellers should be aware that due to rapidly changing weather patterns in the Azores, flights are often delayed or cancelled, even in mid-summer. Connecting flights via Lisbon often have very short turn-around times, so it is not uncommon for baggage to arrive on a different flight to the passenger.
Every island has an airport, and there are regular flights within the archipelago, as well as ferry services linking smaller groups of islands. There are plenty of options for crew changes in all parts of the Azores, but changing crew in Horta or Ponta Delgada may be simplest as it’s just a short taxi ride from the airport to the harbor.
SATA International: www.sata.pt (inter-island service)
TAP Air Portugal: www.flytap.com
Ryanair: www.ryanair.com/gb/en
Ferry
Atlanticoline serves all islands with an inter-linking ferry service. For ferry information see https://www.atlanticoline.pt/p/p/
Car Hire
- It’s possible to hire cars on all islands except Corvo. Roads can be varied in quality as can Azorean drivers. Watch out for wildlife and cattle on roads.
- National or International drivers licenses are accepted.
- Credit card needed for deposit.
Taxis
Available everywhere and many do island tours with English speaking drivers. Confirm the cost for your trip in advance (taxis don’t tend to work on meters).
Buses
Bus services run on all islands except Corvo and it’s a cheap way to get around. Timetables however operate for local people, so predominantly they run into town in the mornings and back out again in the afternoons. Ask at the marina or tourist office for timetables.
Hitchhiking
This is popular in the Azores and locals will gladly give you a lift.
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Related to following destinations: Azores
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The Island of Sao Jorge is having a seismic episode at the moment – some 20,000 tremors in the last two weeks. No-one really knows what, if anything, this portends – earthquake or lava effusion – however visiting yachts should be aware. The tremors are mostly in the Velas area where the main town and marina are.
You can come directly to Santa Maria – Vila do Porto !
We arrived in Horta June 17th. The COVID test is free and results back in 24 hours. All very organized and the marina, maritime police, and Peter Cafe Sport all doing an amazing job to support boats. With a negative test result document we went to Velas, São Jorge and Angra de Heroismo, Terceira; cleared in through the local marinas and anchored in both places free of charge. Ponta Delgada is not requiring COVID test for entry.
Please note – the above comment is not true. Horta and Ponta Delgada remain the only open ports of entry and at BOTH PORTS a SARS-Cov-2 test will be required on arrival, unless the regional health authority waives it in view of the non-stop travel time and the absence of symptoms. A passage time of more than 14 days is seen as voluntary quarantine. If test results are negative you will be given permission to go ashore.
s/v DellaMyra departs today, 22nd June, 2020, for Horta and Falmouth,UK
lone sailor . MMSI235102055
Hurricane Lorenzo struck the western Azores in October, destroying the breakwater at Lajes, Flores. Until repairs are complete, this port is unusable.
Ponta Delgada is a convenient place to enter the Azores : nice city, facilities for provisioning, skilled professionals if repairs are needed. But there are some issues :
– the local police considered me as highly suspect because I stopped in Ponta Delgada and not Horta like everybody ! So I had a complete police search, including drug search with dog.
– the professionals like the famous Thomas and JB Electronica don’t accept payment with credit cards, only cash or bank transfer. Cash is not possible beyond a small amount, so bank transfer is the only solution, which implies delays and possible errors on the bank apps. It is what happened to me and at my next stop in Gibraltar my mail box was full of complaining and threatening e-mails, saying I would be designed to all ports as a robber ! Visitors should make a strong pressure on these people for accepting credit cards like anywhere in the world (and in Sao Miguel by all shops and restaurants) to avoid such problems.
Just spent a fortnight here in ponta delgada marina in unsettled weather,in my opinion it is untenable in any strong south,south east or southwest winds.We had so many boats break lines and fenders.I bought a pump from Thomas through bank transfer,he put it on ferry to Santa Maria(€4.80) and the total time took 2 days.
I just watched a you tube video of a couple who were charged an engine tax based upon the weight and power of their engine. They had an electric engine which should have been exempt but were forced to pay upon threat of their boat being impounded. They were also charred a lighthouse tax. Neither are mentioned in the formalities section. Report here:-
https://youtu.be/PSm5SbcBHUQ
The old page was perfect, This is useless
couln not agree more
Must do’s if you have time on Terceira:
1. Go to the local town where there is a “running of the bulls” that particular evening (they move them from town to town). The reason to go is more to observe the way the locals commune around this event than to see the bulls themselves, who are given stimulants and then downers when they are still in their bright red boxes before being released to put on their show.
2. Terceira has several interesting caves that are worth visiting, donning the requisite hard hats, and exploring on a guided tour.
3. Lastly, driving across the island and enjoying the miles of hydrangeas lining the roads is another not-to-miss experience on Terceira in the spring/summer.