Hebridean Cruises, Extraordinary landscapes of the Azores, Cruise Vacation Package
Duration: 7 Days / 6 Nights
Priced From: $ 9,451 pp Dbl. Occ.
Dates: Jun
Ship: Hebridean Spirit
Departs: Ponta Delgada
This far-flung cruise takes us into Atlantic waters, following the route of Portuguese maritime explorers to the islands of the Azores. As we explore the archipelago, we find green and fertile lands, volcanoes and calderas, historic vineyards and an offshore population of whales and dolphins.
Itinerary
Day 1
Ponta Delgada, São Miguel Island, Azores
Passengers board Hebridean Spirit in Ponta Delgada.
Day 2
Ponta Delgada, São Miguel Island, Azores
We spend the morning exploring western São Miguel. Guests see the Sete Cidades caldera — a 12km-wide volcanic crater with two lakes, the blue Lagoa Azul and the green Lagoa Verde, at its centre. There is time to potter in the village of Sete Cidades before lunch on board and a leisurely afternoon.
Day 3
São Roque do Pico, Pico Island, Azores
We tour the mountainous west of Pico Island, taking in its black lava fields and the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Pico Island Vineyard Culture. These vineyards are a rare example of 15th-century viticulture, still laid out in their original formation of thousands of rectangular plots. After lunch on board, there is free time in the São Roque do Pico.
Day 4
Horta, Faial Island, Azores
Several species of whale and dolphin are common to these islands, and we spend the morning on local boats, cetacean-spotting with a guide. There is the chance to lunch ashore before an excursion to the Ponta dos Capelinhos, an isthmus created by the offshore volcanic eruption of 1957-58. We continue to the Botanical Garden of Faial to see its abundant collection of subtropical plants.
Day 5
Velas, São Jorge Island, Azores
We spend a full day touring this fertile volcanic island, visiting a producer of the famous São Jorge cheese, and the island fajãs, plains covered in vineyards and orchards. After lunch ashore, we visit the pretty rural village of Manadas, and Urzelina, whose bell tower is all that remains after an eruption by Pico da Esperança in 1808.
Day 6
Angra do Heroismo, Terceira Island, Azores
We drive up to the top of the 205m-high promontory of Monte Brasil. This partly submerged volcanic crater is encircled by five kilometres of fortress walls and at its summit, it has superb views over the town and bay of Angra do Heroismo. After lunch on board, guests have free time to explore this port town, of immense strategic importance to the Portuguese between the 15th and 19th-centuries, or can join an excursion to the Biscoitos Wine Museum, where Verdelho wine is produced.
Day 7
Ponta Delgada, São Miguel Island, Azores
Our morning is spent touring this so-called ‘green island’ along country and coastal roads to the historic weaving town of Ribeira Grande. Tea production was a thriving industry in the Azores in the 19th-century, and we visit one of the remaining plantations for a tour and tasting. The picturesque lake of Lagoa das Furnas is our last stop before returning to the ship for lunch and an afternoon of leisure in Ponta Delgada.
Day 8
Ponta Delgada, São Miguel Island, Azores
Guests disembark Hebridean Spirit in Ponta Delgada.
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6/09
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