When’s the best time to visit the Azores?

The nine islands of the Azores are a great year-round destination – choosing the best time to visit all depends on the type of holiday you’re looking for…

When’s the best time to visit the Azores?

January through to March tends to be the quietest time of year. That’s mainly due to the weather – you could see a week of sunshine but you might also see a little rain – which helps to make it cheapest time of year to visit the larger islands of Sao Miguel and Terceira. Both islands are great if you enjoy exploring on foot or by car, restaurants and café bars are pretty quiet, and you’ll have your choice of the best rooms at the best hotels.

The Azores Rally usually runs towards the end of March. It’s very popular with the residents of Sao Miguel – if you’re not a rally fan but you’re planning to visit the island’s beauty spots, we’ll structure your trip so the stages don’t disrupt your stay.

Sao Miguel’s Tremor Festival has now settled into a regular slot in the first two weeks of April. 2025 will be the festival’s twelfth year and it’s gradually grown into a major component of the islands’ thriving contemporary arts scene. The 2025 line-up is available via their website.

The Azores are increasingly sighted as one of the best places in Europe to observe ocean wildlife. April and May are arguably the best months for whale and dolphin watching: resident species of dolphins and sperm whales can be seen throughout the year, but spring sees the larger migratory species such as blue whales and fin whales passing through. It’s not an exact science but sightings generally peak in the final two weeks of April –  our Blue Whale Watching holiday is dedicated to sighting these magnificent species.

The Festas do Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres (Santo Cristo for short) is the largest religious festival in the Azores. Although the festival in its current form dates from the year 1700, its roots can be traced back to the mid-1500s. It’s centred around the Convento da Esperanca in the capital Ponta Delgada, and the main procession of the venerated image of Jesus is on the fifth Sunday after Easter. For 2025, Santo Cristo will be from 23rd to 27th May – the festival sees the largest influx of visitors of any event on the islands, and the city’s hotels fill-up very quickly, very early in the year.

June’s Sanjoaninas festival on the island of Terceira is one of the Azores’ most popular, most colourful week-long celebrations, with the streets of the island capital Angra de Heroismo filled with parades, concerts and live theatre  – it’s also a great opportunity to sample some the best traditional Azorean food. The festival always adopts a theme – we’re still wating for 2025’s to be announced, but the festival will run from 20th to 29th June.

The Azores Fringe Festival begins on 16th May but runs right through to the end of June. ‘…An explosion of arts from the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to the world…’, the 2025 festival is based out of Madalena on the island of Pico, and draws artists and performers from over sixty countries – Portugal and the Azores are always well-represented.

July and August are peak season and the most popular time to visit all the islands – particularly Sao Miguel and Terceira as they’re both well-connected to the outside world by direct flights from the UK, USA, Canada and mainland Portugal. Even in this peak period, the Azorean cities are never quite as busy as the big capitals of mainland Europe, and the smaller islands of Santa Maria, Flores and Graciosa are always fairly quiet. That’s a big part of their appeal, but we strongly recommend booking holidays to these islands early, as accommodation is very limited and fills up extremely quickly.

July’s Walk and Talk Arts Festival began life as a Ponta Delgada-based contemporary arts project in 2011. It’s expanded rapidly to encompass the whole of Sao Miguel and (since 2016) the island of Terceira. The festival’s focus hasn’t changed: to encourage the creation of new art inspired by, and in dialogue with, the Azores. It’s always a diverse program of exhibitions, artist-in-residency seminars, dance and theatre performances, and concerts in urban, rural, indoor and outdoor spaces.

July also sees the small island of Santa Maria hosting its annual Blues Festival. It’s been running for twenty-years, with artists from across Europe and the USA performing over three nights. With your days free, you could take on one of our favourite Azorean walking challenges: the Grande Rota is a four-day circumnavigation, connecting many Santa Maria’s most-beautiful natural landmarks.

The small central island of Faial has a long maritime history which is celebrated during August’s Semana do Mar, or Sea Week. It’s one of the largest nautical events in Portugal and festivities are centred around the main harbour town of Horta: yacht racing, windsurfing, big game fishing competitions, art and handicraft exhibitions, and live music – all building up to the main regatta which sees the channel between Faial and its neighbour Pico filled with boats of all shapes and sizes. Sea Week usually begins on the first Sunday in August – as with Santo Cristo and Sanjoaninas, this is the busiest time to visit Horta and we recommend booking early.

If you’re not tied to the school holidays, September is one of the best times of year for an island hopping holiday. Our most popular combinations of islands are Sao Miguel, Flores and Faial, followed closely by Sao Miguel, Sao Jorge and Terceira. If you’re a keen walker, September’s ideal for hiking the three central islands of Faial, Sao Jorge and Pico, exploring the very best of the Azorean trail network.

Heading towards the end of the year, October and November are the months we tend to visit ourselves – to stay at new hotels and visit old favourites, to try out new excursions and activities, and  to catch up with the many friends we’ve made across the islands over the last twenty-five years. The islands are quiet in the Autumn, the temperature tends to be in the low-twenties which is ideal for hiking and biking, and the sea’s still warm enough for a little wild swimming at the end of a ride.

And finally into December – Azorean’s love Christmas and New Year, and a tailor-made variation on our Best of Sao Miguel holiday is the ideal way to make the most of the islands’ festivities. You could spend Christmas Day relaxing in the iconic hot springs and geothermal swimming pools at the Terra Nostra Hotel in Furnas, before welcoming in the New Year in the capital city Ponta Delgada.

The Praca de Goncalo Velha square is the place to be – there’s live music by the famous Portas do Cidade gates, and as the clock of the Igreja Sao Sebastiao tolls the countdown to midnight, the marina is illuminated by an explosion of fireworks.

We specialise in personalised holidays to the nine islands of the Azores.

Call our team on 01768 721020 to begin planning your own adventure.