São Miguel itinerary5, 7 or 10 days in the Azores, with kids or without a car

Timetables, prices and seasons read on 9–10 October 2026. Bus times change; check the AzoresBus app or schedules page before each day out.

The short answer: stay in Ponta Delgada and plan São Miguel in day trips: Sete Cidades in the west, Furnas in the east, the hot springs and Lagoa do Fogo in the middle, and the sea from the marina. Five days cover the classics, seven give you a spare day for the weather, and ten let you add Terceira. Furnas, Vila Franca and (at weekends) Sete Cidades work by bus [1][2][3]; for the crater viewpoints, Lagoa do Fogo and Ferraria you’ll want a car or a tour for two or three days (do you need a car?). What each sight costs and what to do on a wet day: things to do on São Miguel.

Three rules before the day plans

1. One base. Ponta Delgada has the bus hub, the marina for whale trips and the services; where else makes sense is in where to stay on São Miguel.
2. Swap days by weather. Cloud sits on the crater lakes when the coast is sunny. Keep the viewpoint days movable and check the view before you drive up; month by month in Azores weather.
3. Check what’s seasonal. The Lagoa do Fogo shuttle runs only 1 August to 30 September and at Easter [8]; boats to the Ilhéu de Vila Franca ran 12 June to 11 October in 2026 [13]. Out of season, see the Azores in winter.

São Miguel in 5 days

Day	Plan	By bus?
1	Arrive, walk Ponta Delgada; in June–September, the São Pedro sea pools	Airport under 3 km from the centre; the airport lists taxis, not a bus (airport). Town on foot
2	West: Sete Cidades. Vista do Rei viewpoint, then the PR03SMI trail down to the village (7.5 km, easy, about 2 h) [5]. It’s one way: arrange a drop-off or taxi back to the car. Ferraria on the way back	Village only, at weekends on line 208 [2]; viewpoints and Ferraria by car
3	East: Furnas. Terra Nostra (10:30–16:30, closed 25 December) [6] and the caldeiras by the lake (€3, under-12s free) [7]. With a car, add Poça da Dona Beija in the evening	Yes for the day, line 318 runs every day of the week; the last return leaves before the evening (times) [1]
4	Sea: whale trip from Ponta Delgada marina, on a day the operator confirms it sails [10]; afternoon in town or the museum [15]	Yes, on foot
5	Middle: Lagoa do Fogo viewpoint, Caldeira Velha hot stream (pools closed 19–21 October 2026) [9], Gorreana tea fields (free) [12]	No bus to Lagoa do Fogo: drive up, except 1 Aug–30 Sep and Easter when only the shuttle runs [8]; line 110 runs along the north coast past Gorreana, but its timetable has no stop of that name, so check the nearest stop in the AzoresBus app [4]

São Miguel in 7 days

Take the 5-day plan and add:

• Day 6, a slow day. A spare for the day the cloud wins. If the weather holds: Vila Franca do Campo on line 315 [3], the town beach and, in season, the islet boats [13]. Out of season, Terra Azul runs whale trips from the same marina [11].
• Day 7, a walk. One of the official trails: Lagoa do Fogo from the south (PR02SMI, 10.2 km, medium, about 4 h) [19] or an easier coastal route. Which ones, and which are closed: hiking in the Azores.

On a wet day, move the hot springs there (pools may close in bad weather). Keep the whale trip flexible: operators cancel in rough seas and offer another date [10].

10 days: São Miguel and Terceira

Days 1–7 as above, then:

Day	Plan	Notes
8	Fly Ponta Delgada to Terceira (SATA); walk Angra do Heroísmo	On 10 October 2026 the airline’s route page showed return fares of €60–185 for October dates, depending on the day; they change daily [16]
9	Monte Brasil trail on the edge of town [18]; Biscoitos rock pools in summer	Angra on foot; Biscoitos by car
9 or 10	Caves: Algar do Carvão and Gruta do Natal, afternoons only and not every weekday, so swap with day 9 as needed	Algar do Carvão is closed from late October or November 2026 until about the end of the first quarter of 2027; the operator doesn’t recommend it for babies or toddlers; no public transport to either cave [17]
10	Fly back to Ponta Delgada or onwards

Onward flights: flights to the Azores.

With kids: what to change

• Shorter days, one big thing each. Furnas with Terra Nostra, or a boat, or a viewpoint walk. The PR03SMI from Vista do Rei is rated easy but is 7.5 km one way, with a slippery descent at the end [5].
• Age limits on boats. Futurismo takes children from 6 on its Zodiacs, and its catamaran is the gentler option [10]; Terra Azul doesn’t take under-4s [11]. With small children, ask the operator which boat suits them before booking.
• Hot springs by age. Caldeira Velha: under-13s must be with an adult [9]; Terra Nostra and Poça da Dona Beija have their own age bands. All in Azores with kids.
• Terceira caves: Algar do Carvão has 338 steps in all and isn’t recommended for babies or toddlers [17]; with small children, swap it for Monte Brasil or Angra’s gardens.
• A rainy-day card. Museu Carlos Machado is free for children up to 14 and for everyone on Sundays [15]; the Expolab science centre in Lagoa is open Tuesday to Saturday.
• Beaches with lifeguard dates: best beaches in the Azores.

Without a car: the bus version

Do Sete Cidades on a Saturday or Sunday (line 208) [2], Furnas on a weekday (line 318 also runs at weekends, but those are your Sete Cidades days) [1], Vila Franca any day (line 315) [3] and the whale trip from the marina on foot [10]; line 110 towards Furnas runs along the north coast past Gorreana (no stop of that name in the timetable; check the nearest one in the app) [4]. Exact times, stops and passes live in the Azores without a car, so we don’t repeat them here. For Lagoa do Fogo out of the shuttle season, Ferraria and the crater-rim viewpoints, book a tour or hire a car for one day.

Sources

Numbered references match the source list on this page. Read on 9 and 10 October 2026.