Honeymoon in Azores - DIY or w/ tour group

by Pete
(Pennsylvania, USA)

Hello Rob,

First off, your site is fantastic and is a great source of info. It's nice reading about a place from a real person w/o a marketing agenda!!

OK, I'm getting married in September, and my fiance' and I are thinking about exploring the Azores on our honeymoon (first time there for both of us). We are both adventurous and it seems like the perfect destination, however I'm undecided about just winging the itinerary myself of if we should try and join in w/ a tour we found online.

The tour sounds great, but would you mind letting me know what you think about the destinations they have listed (Sao Miguel (Vila Franca & Furnas), Flores (Faja Grande), and Faial (Flamegos))? I'd feel much better hearing your opinion than hearing from them how wonderful it is. Also, we're from the US and this tour is organized out of the UK, so its not that easy to just call them up and chat.

If we were to go at it ourselves I was thinking of checking out, Sao Miguel, Santa Maria - to hit the beach and maybe try our hand at surfing (plus Danielle had originally wanted to go to the Caribbean so this might satisfy her need for hot weather and a beach.

Lastly, the tour is 2 weeks long... I'm not sure we could swing that much vacation time, but I'm definitely keeping my fingers crossed.

Thank a million for entertaining my questions, and maintaining your fantastic website. It really is a huge help.

I'm looking forward to hearing back from you.

Best regards,

-Pete

Azores Honeymoon Package

Hi Pete
Thanks for your kind words. I enjoy writing the site. It gives me an excuse to explore.

You would probably have a great time on that package vacation. Flores, Faial and Sao Miguel is a great trip. And I believe that a car is included in the tour you mentioned. Having a car in Sao Miguel and Faial is essential in my personal opinion. There are so many spots worth checking out.

The hotel in Furnas is located in a wonderful spot. I have written several pages about the area because there are a lot of neat things to check out. (You can find the links for Furnas on my page about Sao Miguel)

I can't recall the place you are staying at in Vila Franca, but the website is nice. And Vila Franca is a very historic town, located about 30 minutes from Ponta Delgada, the main city in San Miguel. Vila Franca has a beach and nice little island just off the coast which is great for sunbathing: Ilheu de Vila Franca

And the "volcanic waterfall" is Caldeira Velha

Flamengos is a pretty town in Faial. I have only been there for a few short minutes, so I can't give you a lot of great feedback. And if you have a car on Faial, you can see much of the island in 3 days time. And maybe even take a quick visit to the island of Pico, like I did in November 2009 (I wrote about that visit in my newsletter #6 and #9 - Magical Azores Islands Back Issues)

Flores is small, but beautiful. I don't think the beach situation would please your fiance though. Perhaps a future trip would be better.

All that said, it might not be practical for you to deal with a company from the UK when you are from the US. For that reason, I am going to say that you can easily do it yourself. But it's a good idea to book everything soon to avoid any disappointments.

My site might not be commercial in nature, but I do recommend a couple of places that have been good to me and that I am confident you would enjoy. With that in mind, may I recommend this accommodation in the Azores. It's grounds are beautiful and private. The hosts are wonderful. They will help you in any way they can. If you book the trip yourself, check them out. And let me know how you make out.

My next Azores vacation will be to Sao Miguel and Santa Maria, for two weeks. So you are on to something with your plans. I think that's a great choice for a summer vacation. You can easily take a ferry to Santa Maria from Sao Miguel. For just a day, or for several days. The ferry stops sometime in September though, so be aware of this.

Pete, I hope that helps you a little? Feel free to comment to ask further questions. I am sure other site visitors will appreciate it too.

Sincerely,
Rob Belchior
www.magical-azores-islands.com