Furnas – The Azores

Furnas

Sao Miguel Island, the largest and most populated island in the Azores, is a hotbed of volcanic activity. Without getting bogged down in the geological details, the island consist of three central volcanic calderas that have resulted in the island’s best known crater lakes: Sete Cidades, Lagoa do Fogo, and Furnas. Furnas is the easternmost of the three calderas, and the volcanic activity in and around the village is still as active as ever (well…other than the times the volcano actually erupted). While Sete Cidades might be the main attraction on Sao Miguel, and Lagoa do Fogo is a more beautiful lake, the village of Furnas and surrounding area was the highlight of our visit. The lush mountainous landscape and charming cottages lining the quiet, narrow streets of the village combined with the geothermal attractions of Terra Nostra and Furnas Lake created an idyllic setting that could not quite be rivaled by the other villages and towns on the island.

The village itself is small, with a population of only about 1,500, and easily walkable. The streets are extremely narrow, and the doors of the colorful stone homes often step directly into the road.  Despite being a major draw for tourists, the town is in no way “touristy” and still feels like an authentic Portuguese village where residents are going about their daily lives as they always have. There really aren’t any souvenir shops and only a couple of restaurants in town target a foreign clientele. Perhaps this will all change now that Delta is starting to shuttle planes full of Americans to the hidden gem that is the Azores…but hopefully not.

 

Terra Nostra Garden

Furnas Lake

Located just outside the village of Furnas on the eastern side of Sao Miguel Island, Lagoa das Furnas sits inside one of the calderas of the active Furnas Volcano. The drive from the center of the village of Furnas to the lake takes about 5 minutes, or you could walk to the lake in about 30 minutes. The Fumarolas da Lagoa das Furnas are located on the northern tip of Furnas Lake and are easily the lake’s biggest tourist attraction. While the Furnas has plenty of geothermal activity, the fumaroles on the water’s edge are one of the most impressive examples of just how active the area really is. A series of boardwalks leads visitors through the billowing clouds of sulfuric smoke emanating from the mud pools and fumaroles. If you’ve ever visited Yellowstone National Park, this is very similar to the many boardwalks of the famous geyser basins.

One thing that makes this particular area unique is that the restaurants in town use the geothermal heat to cook the local stew known as “cozido”. Each restaurants has their own designated hole in the ground where they submerge massive pots of meat and vegetables each morning in order to be fully cooked by lunch time. We ate a cozido at Tony’s in Furnas, and it was the most outrageous amount of food we’ve ever received. We split the meal for two, and while it was delicious, we were served a heaping pile of meats and vegetables which we had no chance of finishing.The trail around the permitter of the lake is about 5 miles long so the full loop can take about 2-3 hours to complete. The most prominent features of the trail are the fumaroles and the 19th century gothic church, Cappela da Nossa Senhora das Vitorias. If you’d rather explore the lake on water rather than land, there are paddleboat rentals available over by the fumaroles….Oh and how could we forget the ducks…

Furnas Boutique Hotel

There aren’t many options for accommodation in town, but we chose to stay at the newly opened Starwood Hotel: The Furnas Boutique Hotel. The hotel consisted of 54 small but nice guest rooms, an indoor and an outdoor thermal pool, restaurant/bar, and a spa. From everything we have read and from everyone we spoke with, this is the nicest hotel on the island, and the rate was very reasonable (at least in February). The breakfasts were excellent, the service was top notch, and the indoor thermal pool was a perfect way to end a long day of exploration. We would definitely recommend this hotel to anyone looking for a good home base on the eastern side of Sao Miguel Island.

Find out how to fly to the Azores from the US