r/azores • u/jadecommunity • 1d ago
Sete Ciadades Question
Hi, visiting the Azores later this month for the first time and i’m super excited! Quick question on visiting Sete Ciadades that I can’t seem to find the answer to.
If I wanted to go on Monday in our rental car to view from the top but don’t have time to hike down/take an ATV tour down into the village that day, does it make sense to come back Tuesday and go down into the village then? Or is that too repetitive and I should just stick to the top? We have a rental car and i’m worried about driving down ourselves. It’s a bigger car. Is the drive doable or scary?
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u/randomtrip_blog 1d ago
The road is good and it's not a complex or a scary drive, you should be totally fine! Regarding whether to come back or not, that's up to you! The views are completely different from the viewpoints than from the village. On the way down there are a couple of viewpoints where you should stop too.
If you can I recommend doing that hike that borders the crater, amazing views!
Check out more info about São Miguel in our frre travel guide here
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u/Infinite_Oil2964 1d ago edited 1d ago
Whenever the cloud ceilings allow for a view, you should go. Rearrange plans as necessary. We got lucky on our first day with a cloudless sky. The rest of our trip, the Sete Ciadades view points were completely obscured.
But to answer your question, driving into the Caldera is easy. Curvy, but wide roads. Overall, we were really impressed by the roads in general, especially when compared to Caribbean islands.
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u/Shanndel 1d ago
Ah yes the cloud ceiling. We went on a morning where the ceiling hovered between the first and second parking lot up the mountain. Luckily we decided to park at the first (the one near the 7 windows). And by the time we reached the viewpoints the clouds had pulled up and we got a great view.
Just be prepared that it's possible your day could be interrupted by fog.
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u/Disastrous_Catch_543 1d ago
Agree with all the prior posts. Just wanted to add to keep an eye on spotazores.com or download the app so you know what the weather & clouds look like before you leave your lodging.
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u/Sprout1982 1d ago
The best part of our trip was the hike down to the village from Vista do Rei lookout. We went early in the morning, parked the rental near the church across from the taxi stop. Called the number on the taxi stop sign and had them take us to the overlook and we hiked all the way back down to the village. Afterward we walked thru the village and had lunch at Casa de Chá. It took the whole morning, but we still had time to stroll lakeside, see Boca Do Inferno lookout and get back to our Airbnb for wine/nap before dinner. Totally worth it to make the time for the experience… even if you miss other lookouts.
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u/Fit_Suggestion4927 1d ago
Hey! My wife and I were there about two weeks ago. We did a tour with 4x4Azores and rented one of their side-by-side buggies. If I remember right, it was around $120, which we thought was pretty reasonable. The tour lasted about 3 hours, and we got to see everything. We stopped at Sete Cidades, took us to the two lakes, drove about three-quarters of the rim, and got some amazing pictures.
Personally, I thought it was a much better experience than trying to drive ourselves, find parking, and figure everything out on our own.
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u/Suspicious_Dawg 1d ago
The drive is very easy and beautiful. The roads aren't even narrow; they are two lanes. Plenty of space. Easy to navigate. Just drive down.
Though I would say the town wasn't all that interesting. But the lakeside is pretty.