Ilha de São Miguel Off The Beaten Path

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High up on one of the vulcanoes on Sao Miguel you have a big hotel.
The place was build many years ago by someone who did not realise that the weather conditions up on top of this vulcano is not ideal for a hotel as the place is coverd in clouds most of the time and it rains a hell of a lot there.
The hotel was build and furniture put in, but the place went bankrupt before it ever got started and now it has been sitting as an empty shell for many years.
There is still furniture there and the old offices still have paper in them with old bills and you can walk freely around it all as the place is not closed off to the public yet.
This is really one of the more weird sights of the island, but it´s quite interesting to walk through this huge place that was once build as a luxury hotel and is now just a ruin that looks like something out of a horror movie.
Using the place to shoot a horror movie is actually just about the only thing i could see the place being used for these days.
Go and visit this odd sight before the goverment tears it down for security reasons.
It´s located by the viewpoint clled "Vista do rei" where you are overlooking "Sete cidades".

Around the island you have several watchout places for whales.
They used to be used by the whale hunters who would have persons stationes there to see if there were any passing whales in the waters, but these days they are used by the companies that takes people whale watching and then they call the people on the boats and give them directions when they take people out to study whales and dolphins.
I think it´s nice that they did not have to take them down when the whale hunting stopped in 1986, but that they can now use them for some other useful purpose and they are also part of the islands history.

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Santa Iria is my favorite viewpoint on the northern part of Sao Miguel.
It´s located a little east of Ribeira Grande and shows you some of the nicest coastline on the northn shores of Sao Miguel.
There is quite a bit of parking space there and the place also have public toilets so the services there are pretty good.
It makes a really good stop if you are touring the northern part of Sao Miguel.
Santa Irira was also the site of a big naval battle in 1831 when Portugal had a civil war raging and there is a little memorial for that too at the viewpoint.

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Miradouro Pisao is my favorite viewpoint on the soth coast of Sao Miguel.
It´s located in between Vila France and Agua de Pau and you have a really nice view of the rugged coastline from there.
If you happen to drive along the south coast of Sao Mihuel then i recommend that you make a stop there to enjoy the scenery.
The viewpoint has good parking facilities.

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The chapel of nossa senhora da paz is located high over Vila Franca and is a small chapel that looks like a copy of "Bom jesus do monte" on the portugese mainland.
It´s a pretty little chapel though with a very nice stairway up to it and the hike up there is really nice and will make you sweat in a healthy way.
You can drive up there but i highly recommend that you walk up there as it´s a really nice hike.

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Salto do cavalo is one of the best viewpoints on the island and located on the center/east point of the island.
From there you can see both coasts on the island and you are looking right down on the Furnas village from there.

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Caldeira Velha is a small spring/waterfall up a little dirt road.
It´s located in between Ribeira Grande and Lagoa do Fogo and is a small stream with a warm water waterfall where you also have a little pool that is popular for swimming.
It´s a real pretty little place to stop if you are heading up to the viewpoint at Lagoa do Fogo.

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Ilheu da Vila Franca is a small island just off the south coast of Sao Miguel and it´s the remains of a vulcano and the crater is linked to the sea so you have seawater in the middle of theisland and it´s a popular place to sail out in the summer to go swimming.
From the distance it looks like a normal island, but if you see it from the top it has the shape of a ring and you can see it if you get close to it.
It´s located by the village "Vila Franca" and in the summer you have small boats taking people out to the island, so if you are there during summer months then you have the option to visit the island.

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Agua de pau is a small town on the south coast of Sao Miguel that has a fair bit of fishing families aswell as other citizens.
The town has a nice little town center and a pretty little harbour about a kilometer from the town where you also have a salt water swimming pool where you can go for a swim.
Agua de pau is not a huge sight, but a nice little place to pop by if you want to experience every day life of the Azores.

Achada is located on the north eastern part of Sao Miguel and has a really pretty waterfall aswell as an old watermill that still functions.
It´s located along the road you will most likely take if you are going back to the center of the island after visiting Nordeste and it makes a perfect stop along the way.
It´s really a pretty little place and you have a little cafe next to the watermill too where you can have a coffee and use the bathroom if you need.