Do-It-Yourself Ponta Delgada

[trubey]

Ponta Delgada, Saõ Miguel, Azores, Portugal

I’m going to start this "Do-It-Yourself" thread a little differently. Five years ago, my husband and I moved to this island from the United States. We’ve traveled all over the island and learned many of its secrets. Trust me: the tour bus won’t take you there.

The ship docks in the center of town at the end of a very long quay. If they offer a free shuttle, which I think they do, take it.

I looked over the excursions on the HAL site this morning, and if you are more comfortable taking a tour, I think the best-sounding one is 'Sete Cidades Crater Lake'. It's pretty short so you can have a few hours to prowl around Ponta Delgada when you get back, and the drive is very beautiful. We get our drinking water from a spring at the top. The pineapples are interesting too, not what you'd expect at all! I would not book this in advance. Because of thermals, the shape of the volcano, and even our position vis-a-vis the gulf stream, the island can be sunny or misty in different spots on a momentary basis -- in fact, when we go to Sete Cidades for a picnic or to play with our Rottweiler, Fluffy, we look up at the Cumeerias (the ridge of the volcano) first, and if it's clear we run for the car. The alternative, Vila Franco, is a nice place with some neat stuff but not worth $40 IMO.

In the next day or two, I will scan a map of the city of Ponta Delgada and mark the logical boundaries of tourist-type interest. ("Nothing much beyond here", etc.). Much of Ponta Delgada is rebuilt and rebuilding, but some very neat little places still exist, mostly serendipity even for us after 5 years of wandering around. No antiques or shopping worth mentioning. From the Matriz (mother church, a good one to look inside) just follow your nose. The Machado Museum is good and informative cultural museum (a 2 headed calf?) and used to be free, though I don't know now. There are two wonderful gardens.

I checked on the per-hour taxi hire rate yesterday. A driver, stopped at random, said it was 13 euros per hour for up to four people. Many of the drivers speak English and you’ll find a queue by the City Gates. If you wish to leave the city, this is my recommendation. We have local bus service which pretty much circles the island. It can be great for anyone coming here for several days, but I wouldn’t recommend it for one day.

Food-wise, there's not much of note. Azorean food is about 300 years behind modern cooking, with lots of overcooked dry oversalty meat, terrible sausage (chourice, or else blood sausage called morcela, served with pineapple). Fish can be wonderful, grilled or fried or roasted; but stay away from chicharros, which are crappy little whitebait that taste horrible. Steak will be very tough, as all the beef here is grass-fed. Shellfish is usually imported and expensive, though Polvo (octopus) or Lulas (squid) are local and usually good-to-great. Lulas Grelhadas (grilled squid) is my favorite. Bacalhau (dried codfish) is prepared in many wonderful ways, either 'com Natas' (with cream) or 'a Bras', with potatoes, and other ways 'en cassarole'. DON'T get it fried! Most cafes serve some sort of noontime food, and have a sandwich board outside with their selections.

For bathrooms, just use any cafe, though there are some public ones. Often the womens' is locked, if so ask for a key at the bar.

[robynp]

trubey - thank you so much for posting your 'in depth, on the ground' information :D

 

I will be visiting Ponta Delgada on 19 April aboard Aurora, and must say I haven't found a lot of info around on PD. Regretably the ship is not offering any shore excursions there, and I believe the sight to see is the Twin Lakes (one blue, other green)? Is it a tourist sight that is better viewed at certain times of the year? I'll be travelling on my own, so would it be wise to ask a taxi-drive to take me...or is it too far from the port? Time advertised for the port stay is 8am to 1pm.

 

Many thanks

[Francine]

trubey,

 

Thanks for the information. We will be there on May 16, arriving on Celebrity's Galaxy. I appreciate any help you can give us on discovering the Azores.

 

Fran

[Bev]

Hi

 

I researched tours in various ports for my family sailing on the Celebrity Galaxy Transatlantic cruise. For the Azores - I reserved a minibus for a half-day tour to Sete Cidades with Melo Tours for our group of 5. This company offers full and half day tours to Furnas or Sete Cidades similar to the cruise lines. Full day tours with lunch cost 50 Euros (approx. US$63) pp and half-day tours - lunch not included cost 25 Euros (approx. US$31.50) pp. Melo Tours offers a minibus for 8 persons with an English speaking driver/guide – the minibus would be waiting at the Ponta Delgada harbour and return us there. I dealt with Carla and Helena – they were very accommodating and even waived a customary pre-tour deposit. You can check them out at

http://www.melotravel.com carla@melo-lda.pt; helena@melo-lda.pt

 

If you’re interested in Whale Watching, I found the web site of Futurissimo, a company offering 3 hour trips for Dolphin & Whale Watching with daily departures, at 09.30 am and 13.30 pm, for US$70 pp, or US$50 pp if 4 or more family members. http://www.ciberacores.com/futurismo/

 

Bev

[GATKLT]

Trubey,

 

We're on the Galaxy with Francine! The Celebrity site shows a four wheel drive tour that supposedly takes in some spactacular views. This seems like a great way to see the island. Any thoughts on that tour? Is the weather a potential problem in mid-May for such a tour? I assume the four wheel drive vehicles are safe on the narrow roads, regardless of the weather . . .

Thanks for your help!

[trubey]

Hi all,

For a good taxi ride on the western ("our") end of the island, try this:

 

Have your driver take you on the Estrada Regional to Varzea. There's a little wooden coffee-and-sweets kiosk there with a really nice lady, and we often stop for a coffee or a galao, which is milky coffee served in a tall glass.

 

The road forks there, and have the driver go to the right, up to the Cumeerias. That's the ridge of the volcano. There's a nice Miradouro right at the top with a view over Mousteiros and the sea. Have him drive down into Sete Cidades, where he twin lakes are. If you turn left on a little road over the bridge (you'll know it when you get there) there’s a nice park at the end with spectacular views up the crater wall and all around the lake. Don't let him just take you to the peninsula!

 

Then go up the new curvy windy road from the lakes to the top, and don't forget to stop at the two miradouros on the way up. My favorite view on the island is along up there, majestic and eerie green mountains. Have your driver turn right to the Vista do Rei, then backtrack and take the northern route down the mountain.

 

The road climbs through the rocky parts of the volcano and winds its way down to the Estrada Regional again, near Ponta Delgada. After a few kilometers you’ll pass an old spring where we get our drinking water, clean and cold from the heart of the mountain. Stop and have a drink!

 

Remember, this ‘tour’ is only good when it isn’t misty or rainy. If you want an up-to-the-minute report on the conditions, call us (296 295 023) and we’ll look out our front door!!

 

Susan has scanned some maps and will put a link to them on the board.

 

-Lane

 

[trubey]

In answering the questions below, I really want to stress the caveat that your ship will not wait for you if you return late from a non cruiseline-sponsored tour. And that the hour for port arrival does not actually reflect when you will get off the ship. People without sponsored tours usually are the last to leave. In general, just remember that returning late to a hotel is one thing, missing a ship is another. Even on the best of days, our roads can be slow. You can get behind a donkey cart or a tractor or a herd of cows or all three and a 20-minute trip becomes an hour-long journey.

 

robynp:

 

My suggestion for you would be a taxi ride. See the section below regarding the western end of the island. My husband has posted a suggested itinerary.

 

Bev:

 

You mention Melo tours. One of their drivers/tour guides is my very good friend. Petra is a young German woman who has lived on the island for almost 10 years and will really let you experience the island.

 

Gatklt:

 

My friend who does the tours, also does the off-road trips. She says they are a lot of fun and we do have some wonderful dirt roads. I, myself, have a 4-wheel drive and love to go off exploring. My only consideration would be that of timing. If there is any problem, it could be a long back to a main road.

 

Central Ponta Delgada

 

See Map at:

 

http://www.geocities.com/s_trubey/cruisecritics/pdlmap.html

 

Most of the walking you do in Ponta Delgada should center around the area known as the "City Gates" (number 12). Just north of the gates is the Matriz, or Mother Church and a good cafe for sitting outside and ordering a café (like an expresso) or a galaõ (like a cappucino, served in a glass).

 

Follow your nose one more block north (away from the ocean) and you will come to the major shopping street. Although this map lists many "sites" to visit, they really are not particularly interesting. What is fun, is just enjoying the city. It’s small, friendly, and clean. Most people in the restaurants and stores will speak English and you will have no fear for your personal safety.

 

Another suggestion is to follow the Avenida (the main street parallel to the port) eastward. After several blocks, you’ll come to the sidewalk cafés outside of what the map refers to as the Shopping Centre. On the ground floor there is a place that sells island-made ceramics and on the second floor there is a decent handicraft souvenir shop. Just past the shopping center, you will find a small grocery store and souvenir shop. Unfortunately, many of the stores in the shopping center are closed because in the fall of 2003, a real mall opened in the area indicated on your map as "Modelo". I can’t really recommend it for tourists because it is so "hokey" compared to American malls. But if you realize that you should have brought new sneakers for the trip, need a Burger King fix, or simply want to see what a European mall is like, then explore.

 

There is a tourist train (like the Key West Conch Train) you can take around the city. But, unless it’s pouring, and you need a place to hide, you’d do better on your own. There are also three mini-bus routes you might come across in town (itineraries marked as A, B, or C). These are circular routes, and for 20 centimos—you just pay the driver--you can get a cheap tour for about 20 or 30 minutes.

 

 

Western end of the Island

 

See Map at:

 

http://www.geocities.com/s_trubey/cruisecritics/westmap.html

 

 

Most of the guide books and tours will send you to this area. In looking at the map, locate the town of Sete Cidades which is in the center of an extinct volcano. From the lakes (Lagoa Azul and Lagoa Verde), the crater sides go up about half of the distance from the town and then descend to the ocean. It looks like just a couple of kilometers on the map, but walking and driving distances are deceivingly long. The main circular route around the perimeter (identified as EN1-1a on the map) is the main road, but will provide you with wonderful views. If you drive on the main road, through Ginetes, look for my house Number 9.

 

 

Eastern end of the Island

 

See Map at:

 

http://www.geocities.com/s_trubey/cruisecritics/eastmap.html

 

For a one day visit to the island, the best thing to do on the eastern end of the island is a round-trip from Ponta Delgada, to Ribeira Grande, following along the north side of the island stopping at all the miradouros (viewing points). Then to Furnas where you stop both in town and at the lake to see the hot springs. And then back to Ponta Delgada along the south coast. If time permits, a good side trip is visiting the Lagoa do Fogo (access from the north side of the island with a stop at the Caldeiras).

 

 

 

That’s it for now.

 

Susan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Francine]

Susan and Lane,

 

Thank you so very much for all of your information. You are wonderful.

 

Fran

[GATKLT]

Trubey,

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer our questions! We're really looking forward to the stop in the Azores!

 

Karen and Alex

[TexEm]

Just booked yesterday for our May Prinsendam cruise and found this thread today. Great info! Have also looked at the other "do-it-yourself" threads and have already copied some great ideas into Word documents (another idea I found on Trubey's poll thread). We'll also be in Horta, Azores, and Almeria and Valencia, Spain, so will look for threads for those or start some. Thanks!

[Rotterdam]

Thank you so muchfor the information on your island home. I too am on the Prinsemdam arriving Sunday 19 May 2005!

[TexEm]

Trubey--is there any way of finding out which ships are in when we are? I saw on an earlier post that the Celebrity Galaxy is also due in May 16, which is the date the Prinsendam itinerary shows (a Monday). Do all the ships tender? How many ships can land at Ponta Delgada at the same time? How crowded does the island get? I've done more research on both Melo Travel and another company called Amazing Tours (Ricardo Amarim--they do a tour for 130 Euros per 4 person car). Do you know anything about Amazing Tours? The website has some wonderful pictures of the island.

 

My 87 year old mom is traveling with me and would like to see some of the island. She uses a cane for longer walks. She wouldn't be interesting in walking around the city or shopping much. I read your recommendation about waiting to check out the weather before going on the ship's tour to the twin lakes. It sounds like she'd enjoy the tour you recommended, but not its alternative if the weather's bad (Villa de Franco?) If 2 ships are indeed in port that day, do you think there'll be enough taxis to take people around? Or would we be better off booking with Melo Tours or Amazing Tours, knowing that they might be able to come up with other options if the weather's bad?

 

If you've been on Faial, do you have any recommendations for what to do on that island? HAL only lists a few tours there. The Prinsendam goes there first, the day before reaching Ponta Delgada.

 

Again, thanks for the info. I've seen your posts on Grumpy and Slinkie's WC thread, so am hoping you're still reading this thread.

 

Hey, Rotterdam--glad to see you over here! Have you made any progress on shore excursions yet? Talk to you on roll call.

 

Mary

[Francine]

TexEm,

 

Yes, it is true. Galaxy will be in Ponta Delgada on May 16. We will be on board. Our stay will be from 9:00am to 6:00pm.

This site will show you which ships will be with you in all of your ports.

 

http://www.cruisecal.com/dnn/default.aspx

 

Have a great cruise!

 

Fran

[trubey]

TexEm,

 

We saw your post and are debating what we want to recommend. Just give me a day or two to think about it. susan.

 

p.s. I just wanted to make sure you know that we saw your question.

[TexEm]

Francine--thanks for the website, I checked out all our ports and often we are the only ship in port--except for Ponta Delgada, of course! I figured even with the Galaxy and the Prinsendam in port, both combined are still smaller than some of the ships we've been on!! We had thought about taking the Galaxy, but my mom preferred an even smaller ship. Hope you have a great time!

 

Trubey--Thanks for replying and taking the time to make your recommendation. Traveling with my mom has made it a bit more complicated (DH and I usually travel with our 2 teenaged sons--but that's another story!).

I want to make sure she is able to have a great cruise--she has travelled quite a bit but not to the Azores, and is looking forward to it.

 

Mary

[AzoresW]

Hi!

 

You can see here a picture of Ponta Delgada, by air

 

http://www.azoresspotting.net/fotos/displayimage.php?album=13&pos=10

 

Two views of PDL port: ( until 2008 )

 

http://www.terra-mar.org/postais/imagem.php?id_post=1297

 

http://www.azoresspotting.net/fotos/displayimage.php?pos=-47

[TexEm]

AzoresW--thanks for the links to the photos. Ponta Delgada is much bigger than I was imagining (there aren't many photos from the air). I'm just glad I'm coming in on a cruiseship, that runway looks like it might be treacherous! Are those cliffs at the bottom of the picture? (Do you know how long the runway is? My husband used to fly in the Caribbean and the airport runway on Antigua, where we lived, was about 7500 ft. The runway on Barbuda, where he worked, was about 1500 ft. at most--much shorter if the cows and goats were there.)

 

Are you living in the Azores right now? Any info about Horta?

 

Thanks so much.

 

Mary

[AzoresW]

AzoresW--thanks for the links to the photos. Ponta Delgada is much bigger than I was imagining (there aren't many photos from the air). I'm just glad I'm coming in on a cruiseship, that runway looks like it might be treacherous! Are those cliffs at the bottom of the picture? (Do you know how long the runway is? My husband used to fly in the Caribbean and the airport runway on Antigua, where we lived, was about 7500 ft. The runway on Barbuda, where he worked, was about 1500 ft. at most--much shorter if the cows and goats were there.)

 

Are you living in the Azores right now? Any info about Horta?

 

Thanks so much.

 

Mary

 

 

The runway has 7700ft.

 

I am living in the Azores. I was born here.

 

Here a picture of Horta, a little town

 

http://jlebleu.free.fr/bran/site27/125-2531_IMG.JPG

 

Places to visit

 

Caldeira:

 

http://jlebleu.free.fr/bran/site27/125-2520_IMG.JPG

 

Capelinhos

 

http://www.geocities.jp/azores_inf2004/040513Faial_CapelinhosMuseum3.JPG

 

Capelinhos is a vulcano that erupted in de end of the 50´s

 

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/a.wielochowski/azores/Capelinhos.jpg

[trubey]

TexEm,

 

We saw your post and are debating what we want to recommend. Just give me a day or two to think about it. susan.QUOTE]

 

OK, to reply, we looked in the phone book and called our own TA about your tour 'company', and nobody's ever heard of it. We decided that it was probably a local taxi driver who runs a little illegal business on the side. The 130 figure -- is that dollars or euros? (30% difference, the wrong way!). This doesn't mean he's good OR bad -- if he's a local he knows all about the island and would be better than any organized tour.

 

This is not a tender port, as PDL has a huge commercial quay. I don't know the Galaxy or how many passengers she carries, but there are dozens of taxis and I doubt you'll have much trouble, what with organized tours and so forth. I believe there's a shuttle to the city gate.

 

There is one of those little trains (like the Conch Train in Key West) running now, stationed a few blocks west of the city gates on the main road.

There's a ticket stand right there. I THINK it's only a few euros or so and it goes all over town. It might be good if your ma doesn't like hills and cobblestone streets: they can be treacherous.

 

The consensus is that you hire a taxi with an English-speaking driver at the regular taxi rank (or go with your guy) at the ciy gate and follow one of the routes Susan posted. Discuss the fare with him: remember, you MUST take the weather into consideration if you visit the twin lakes: if it's foggy or misty you'll have wasted your money. Go to Furnas and look at the bubbling mud if the weather is nasty. It's REALLY cool! They dig big holes in the ground and use the geothermal heat to cook a stew, called Cozida Portuguesa.

 

If you want a local instant weather report of Sete Cidades (the twin lakes) call us at 296-295-023 and we'll look out the front door. :) just drop 40 centimos in a phone and dial.

 

Lane

[trubey]

The runway has 7700ft.

 

I am living in the Azores. I was born here.

 

Here a picture of Horta, a little town

 

 

Just a note to travelers. Horta is not on the island of Sao Miguel. If your ship stops at Ponta Delgada, you will not see Horta. susan.

[TexEm]

Lane and Susan--interesting about Amazing Tours. The website is really professional and has some great photos. (He must've taken a course on web design, used good software, or paid someone to do it). I really appreciate your recommendations and now will discuss it with my mom to see what she wants to do. We'll just pray for great weather while there, so we get to see the twin lakes. Thanks, too, for the offer of the weather report--I may call you no matter what we decide just to thank you in person for your help! I see you're heading to FLL in November--do you get back to the U.S often, do you need anything from "home"? (that will fit in a suitcase

 

AzoresW--thanks again for the photos, this time of Horta. I'm sorry I'm not computer literate enough to link your post to the thread I started on "Do-It-Yourself Horta"--but will figure it out. The Prinsendam must be one of the few ships to stop at both islands, we go to Faial first, then Sao Miguel. (Someone who posted on the other thread was from southeast of Lisbon and had been to Horta and made some recommendations. Don't want to go off-topic here, though.) I never knew anything about the Azores (except the name) but am learning.

 

Mary

[trubey]

I see you're heading to FLL in November--do you get back to the U.S often, do you need anything from "home"? (that will fit in a suitcase)

 

Mary

 

Thank you, Mary. I do have a small request. Any books and magazines in English, used or otherwise, are always much appreciated. I believe you said that you will be on the Prinsendam. We are having lunch with Randall, who will be your Crow's Nest entertainer for your cruise, when the ship is in port. So, if you do want to win my heart, you could drop off any goodies with him. susan.

[TexEm]

Susan--I'll email you about the books and magazines request. Just wanted to acknowledge your message.

 

Mary

[RuffinReady]

Francine--thanks for the website, I checked out all our ports and often we are the only ship in port--except for Ponta Delgada, of course! I figured even with the Galaxy and the Prinsendam in port, both combined are still smaller than some of the ships we've been on!! We had thought about taking the Galaxy, but my mom preferred an even smaller ship. Hope you have a great time!

Mary

 

Actually, the Galaxy is almost exactly twice the size of the Prinsendam (77,700 tons versus 38,000 tons) I was on the Galaxy in June 2003 and it is a beautiful ship. I am looking forward to the Prinsendam which I expect will as nice.

 

Ruffin

[TexEm]

Hi, Ruffin--can't wait to get on the Prinsendam! Wish we could still board other ships while they're in port to check them out, would love to see the inside of the Galaxy. Will just have to settle for an outside view when the two ships are together in Ponta Delgada. As far as size, we were on the Caribbean Princess last summer--it's 116,000 tons, 3100 passengers--which is more tonnage than Galaxy and Prinsendam together, plus lots more passengers. When we were in Grand Cayman and Cozumel, all those big ships in at the same time overwhelmed the ports. Can't picture if that happened in the Azores! Or can the big ships even dock there?

 

Trubey--what's the biggest ship you've seen there?

 

Ruffin--see you onboard!

 

Mary