Ponta Delgada

Introduction

Azores - Furnas Church

© sslatzer

Ponta Delgada is the capital of the Azores Islands and is located on the island of Sao Miguel. Roughly 50,000 people live in the urban area of this city.

Neighbourhoods

Administratively, the municipality is composed of 24 parishes.

Sights and Activities

• Tea plantation Cha Gorreana - On the north coast is one of Europe's few tea plantations. It has been ongoing since 1883, and the tea is packed by hand on the corresponding factory. You can taste four different kinds of tea, before possibly buying something.
• Terra Nostra Park - In Furnas is the beautiful and impressive botanical garden where you can bathe in the fountain of youth, with over 30 °C, ferrous water. Towels and bathing suits can have a yellowish discoloration of the water. You can rent towels at the park.
• ceramics factory - In the town of Lagoa, on the south coast, lies the ceramics factory Cerâmica Vieira. In here you can each day see how the women still to this day comes the clay and then paint it.
• Pineapple plantation - Just outside of Ponta Delgada you can see how pineapples are grown. The fruits are smaller and tastes sweeter than pineapples from elsewhere in the world. On the plantation, you can get an insight into the long process and view pineapple at different stages.
• Church of Nossa Senhora da Paz - On the hill above the town of Vila Franca do Campo is the little church, Nossa Senhora da Paz. The church was built there because the area is believed to be sacred. From this beautiful place is the most amazing views of Vila Franca do Campo city

Weather

Ponta Delgada has a fairly consistent climate throughout the year with temperatures ranging from around 17 °C during the day from January to March and around 25 °C from July to September. Nights range between 11 °C and 18 °C respectively for these periods. Precipitation averages around 1,000mm a year with nearly all of that falling between October and April. June to August is fairly dry.

Getting There

By Plane

João Paulo II Airport (PDL), 3 kilometres west of Ponta Delgada, is the busiest airport of the Azores. SATA International has flights to and from Amsterdam, Boston, Frankfurt, Funchal, Lisbon, London, Manchester, Montreal, Oslo, Porto and Toronto.
Several other airlines serve cities like Helsinki (Finnair), Amsterdam (Arkefly), Düsseldorf (Air Berlin and Lisbon (TAP Portugal).
SATA Air Açores flies to Corvo Island, Flores Island, Graciosa Island, Horta, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Pico Island, Santa Maria, São Jorge Island and Terceira.

A taxi from the airport to the city centre or hotels costs around €10 (including baggage).

By Car

Rental cars are available at Ponta Delgada Airport, and one of the best ways to explore the island. Sao Miguel is small enough to drive in a day, and there is much to see that is only accessed by car.

By Bus

There is an airport bus that sells only roundtrip tickets (5€).

Bus routes that cover the entire island are probably the quickest, cheapest, and most eco friendly way to get around. They're usually not too crowded and are very clean. Buses run the main avenue and are conveniently accessible from major sites in Ponta Delgada. In-town bus services are handled by smaller mini-buses with the larger touring buses handling community-to-community travel on the island. Both services are accessible along Avenida D. Infante Henriques and can confuse the unfamiliar traveler. Schedules are available at bus stops and the tourist office.

There are three lines operated by three different companies. The buses are fairly old, but since distances are short, rides are rarely longer than 90 minutes.

By Boat

Several cruise lines make Ponta Delgada a waypoint when journeying across the Atlantic. Some cruise ships spend a day at the port, often as they reposition themselves between cruising Europe and the Western Hemisphere.

The marina at Ponta Delgada also welcomes many yachts and private boats from around the world that make São Miguel a port of call along their trans-Atlantic travels.

Getting Around

By Public Transport

In Ponta Delgada run mini buses on weekdays. 7:00 to 19:00. Line A runs in the western part of town, line B in the central / north, and line C in the east. There are bus services between Ponta Delgada and most towns on the island, but usually only a few times a day.

Taxis are cream colored. There are several taxi stations in Ponta Delgada, including at the city gate. Reception at the hotel will be happy to order a taxi directly to hotel. They do not run after the taximeter, but after constant prices. Always ask the driver about the price to the desired target before the tour starts.

By Foot

It's possible to walk into town from the airport but it's not fun if you have much luggage. Visitors can best experience the city on foot, as travel distances are relatively short.

Eat

• Ponta Delgada is known for its pineapple harvest, so trying fresh pineapples from a local market is a must.
• Mercado do Peixe serves excellent local seafood.
• Corisco is known for scrumptious Continental cuisine.
• Osaka has great variety and serves generous portions of sushi.
• Skippers Tavern is a great place to stop for a delicious sandwich.
• San Miguel Park Hotel has a restaurant that serves international, regional, and vegetarian dishes.
• Casa Marisca is a great small restaurant with good seafood, friendly service, and a nice atmosphere.

Drink

• Ponta Delgada is known for its different types of liqueurs and alcohols, particularly Passion Fruit Liqueur.
• For unusual drinks, visit Baia dos Anjos, one of the more interesting bars that serves theme-based drinks and food based on local festivals and cultural events.
• Portas do Maris Marina by the port has a number of bars with live bands almost every night.
• Another good place for mixed drinks and local wines is San Miguel Park Hotel.

Sleep

Keep Connected

Internet

Wifi is common in many places in Portugal, including hotels, restaurants and coffee bars. Free wifi along the Algarve coast is available in many places. Internet cafés can still be found in most larger cities and tourist areas though.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

Portugal's international telephone code is 351. The general emergency number is 112.

There are three mobile telephone operators in Portugal: TMN, NOS and Vodafone.

Each provider offers a variety of prepaid (Pré-Pagos) and contract (pós-pagos) SIM cards, both of which are available to foreigners. It generally means much lower rates for calls and especially internet. Be sure to switch off data roaming if you don't buy a local SIM card, as prices for internet are very high.

Post

CTT is the national postal service of Portugal. It has relatively fast and reliable services and it takes several days to over a week for your post to arrive within other European countries, more so if you send post to North America or Australia. Post offices (correios) have varying opening hours, but in general post offices are open on weekdays from 08:30am-6:00pm and on Saturday mornings until 12:30. More information about offices, costs and other details can be found at the CTT website. It's a relatively efficient but also relatively slow postal service. If you want to send packages overseas, you'd better use international companies like FedEx, DHL, TNT or UPS, as they are competitively priced, fast and very reliable.

External Links

• Official Website