Nestled in the Atlantic Ocean are the Azores Islands. These unique islands each off something different, but all have a pristine beauty that is mostly untouched by tourism.
Flores Island is one of those destinations that most people have never heard of. It’s wonderfully off the grid, with a total population of 4,000 people on an area of 143 km2 and has incredible hiking trails.
Also named a UNESCO world heritage site biosphere reserve, there is a reason the island of Flores has some of the best hikes in the world. Combined with a short boat road to the smallest island, Corvo Island, another biosphere reserve, the amount of opportunities for unique experiences is endless.
Pro Tip: Most of the trailheads can be found using google maps and the trails themselves are well marked and easy to follow.
Lajedo – Fajã Grande
Parking your car in Lajedo, at the local post office you will wander through the town before arriving at the official trail head. This trail is 13.5 km long and considered medium difficulty. This section of the West Coast Trail and part of the Great Route Flores takes your through terraced fields, small towns, and to view some of the most stunning waterfalls views. Surrounded by the smell of flowers, this trail is a gentle awakening of the senses with the ocean on your left and vibrant greenery on your right.
Surrounded by the smell of flowers, this trail is a gentle awakening of the senses with the ocean on your left and vibrant greenery on your right. In the summer months, the flowers along this path are bursting and the air is filled with fragrance and is the best time to visit. It is the perfect spot for nature lovers.
Fajã Grande – Ponta Delgada
If sheer cliffs, fields of heather, and ocean views are your thing, this is the trail for you. This trail is the continuation of the West Coast Trail and by far the more strenuous section. It was also my favorite trail. The starting point is a steep ascent up the side of the island, with a sheer drop into the sea to your left.
Once on the top you traverse cow fields filled with large bushes of heather towering over you and obscuring the ocean views for a time. You will also see the Europe’s western most lighthouse along this trail, with the option to stop and visit it.
The end of the trail is a little less spectacular as you walk along the tarmac to reach the town of Ponta Delgada, where you can have lunch at O Pescador, which I highly recommend.
Miradouro das Lagoas
Along Riberia Grande, the main road that bisects the island is a look-off point with views of Lagoa Negra and Lagoa Comprida. The two lakes are situated next to one another, separated by a small strip of land. If you walk a short ways back down the road you will come upon a trail head sign for Miradouro das Lagoas.
In the beginning, I wasn’t as excited about this trail as I was the others. It started off close to the road and was very wet. The plants in this area were very low to the ground and there was some fog in the area, giving everything an eerie haze.
A portion of the trail is along a dirt road, which traverses to a high point with views of the valley below that you had just walked. From there you hike over the ridge and down towards Fajã Grande, with the ocean in front of you.
This was by far the best part of the trail. As you walk along you go through cow fields, (and yes you will encounter cows on the trail), to a sheer ridge, sloping sharply down into Fajã Grande on your left, with gently sloping fields on your right.
Taking switchbacks from the ridge you make your way down into Fajã Grande and the end of the trail. This is the perfect place to have a beer and some snacks at Obama Cabana, situated on the water in the heart of Fajã Grande.
Fajã de Lopo Vaz
Parking your car at the Parque das Merendes, a pretty little picnic area nestled into myricaria trees with BBQ pits and bathrooms, you begin a 45-minute descent to the largest beach in Flores.
As you hike down the slick slope of the trail, taking switchbacks along the way, you get piercing views of the ocean and glimpses of the beautiful beach that is to come. It can be really slick and potentially dangerous if you do not have good weather, so be careful during your decent.
The path itself has more than 300 uneven steps and was created over 500 years ago. At the bottom is the oldest settlement on the island, though no longer inhabited. Surrounded by soaring cliff walls, the beach and the settlement are considered the hottest place on the island. The area is so sheltered it creates its own micro-climate, which can sustain the growth of banana trees.
The area around the few homes is overgrown now but the way to the beach is clear. It’s not a place you can swim, due to the intensity of the water here but the large stones and boulders make for a soothing rumble as the water washes over them, trying to pull them into the ocean beyond.
The contrast of the green walls and the blue ocean will take your breath away. However, with the unpredictable weather on Flores, there is always a risk of a shower passing through, in which there is no shelter to be had. This happened to us, the beach and the day was beautiful and clear, then suddenly we were caught in a torrential down pour, which left as suddenly as it came.
Drone Photo Credit: Jan LovyThis trail is not a circular trail, so you have to climb back out of this beautiful hamlet, back to the park, making this a difficult trail, but completely worth it.
Great Route Flores
This route is a combination of the first two hikes I talked about, plus a section from Ponta Delgada to Santa Cruz. At total of 47 km, this trail is considered hard, and it deserves that rating. We did not do this entire trek, missing only the final section to Santa Cruz. Don’t be deterred by the Azores Trails website saying the trail is closed because it is not, we confirmed this with the tourist bureau.
Concluding thoughts
There are so many amazing Azores hikes to check out on all the different islands, from the big and more popular island of São Miguel to the small but hiking packed island of São Jorge. But Flores is one of the most beautiful islands I have ever visited and would return to over and over again. It’s a small island, but it is made for the nature enthusiast and hiker. With its pristine land, sheer cliffs, and 360-degree views, there is no place quite like it.
I recommend you rent a car and drive around the whole island as the best way to fully experience everything Flores has to offer. It is by far one of the best places to visit.
Heading to the Azores? Make sure to grab a copy of my guidebook The Azores: A guide for hikers.
Comments
Hi Nicole,
Im going to the Azores in 2 weeks;
Hope you can help me with a couple of questions!
Did you camp in any campsites?
did you stay in guest houses, could you give me some names?
Which Island would you recommend most for hiking?
Thanks so much!
Dalit
Author
Hi Dalit! I did not camp. The islands I visited didn’t really seem to have that as an option that I could tell. Sao Jorge might have some camping options, it’s well known for being the hiking island and seems a bit more remote (I am hoping to go their myself this year). I booked everything through Azores getaways, which was very affordable and included all my hotel stays, the car rentals on both islands, and my flight. They have packages that pick the hotels, but you can’t really go wrong. Flores is so small it doesn’t really have a lot of options, you either stay in Santa Cruz (in 1 or like 3 hotels) or in Faja Grande (I would try to stay in Faja Grande if you can because it is the mid-point for the west coast trail). For hiking, I would recommend Flores, Sao Jorge, and Pico. I hope that helps, let me know if you have any other questions and check out https://azoresgetaways.com to give you some ideas on places to stay. I am looking forward to hearing how your trip goes! The Azores were phenomenal.
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Hi Nicole,
Thanks for the detailed description of the trails. I noticed that all of them were linear and mostly too long to go back to the starting point. How did you manage the transfers? I thought of leaving my car at one trailhead and then catching a taxi or shuttle to the other. But I could not find any businesses offering those transfers.
Thank you,
Ian
Author
Hi Ian, You’re right they are linear and rather long. We parked our car at the start of the trail and then when we reached a restaurant or small bar we asked them to call us a taxi to come get us. There aren’t many options in Flores and there are no local buses just one or two tour buses. Honestly, there are so few roads it was so easy to drive around there. But there are only 1 or 2 taxi companies and when we did the first section of the West Coast Trail we stopped in Faja Grande and the guy at the local cabana along the beach called his brother to take us back to our car (and we paid him). It’s not too hard to get a taxi once you are there you may just have to wait a bit for it. Hope that helps and I hope you enjoy Flores, it is one of my all-time favorite destinations. Let me know if you have any other questions! I am happy to help 🙂
Thanks a lot Nicole!
We booked a B&B in Faja Grande and will be using local taxi services for transfers. There’s one transportation agency I found online, Experience OC, so we can always call them if we need a shuttle and there are no other options.
We planned a hiking trip to Pico and Sao Jorge in April but had to cancel, for obvious reasons. Now, that Acores started to open up, we’ve re-booked our trip for April 2021, but ended up with some SATA credit leftovers and decided to use them and visit Flores this September. Hopefully, the islands stay open and our COVID tests will be negative.
Author
That sounds like a great trip! I have my fingers crossed for you that it all works out this go around. I have plans to go back to visit Pico and Sao Jorge as well, not in 2021 but the near future, the hiking there is supposed to be incredible. You will have to let me know how it is! Enjoy!
Hi Nicole
I paln traveling to the Azores in end of May. I was thinking visiting Sao Miguel Flores and maybe Corvo or Pico. How many days would you rcommend staying there for hiking?
Author
Hi Eran, all of those islands are great choices! Sao Miguel is a pretty big island to explore, so you will need the most time there depending on what you hope to do while you are there. I would say 4-5 days in Sao Miguel, 3-5 days on Flores, using one of those days for a day trip to Corvo and for Pico you could do in 3 days. I used Azores Getaways for my trips and they can help customize your trip by booking your car, ferry, flights and hotels and changing out anything you want and they are a good price and have the most amazing customer support. I just found it easier to go through them then try and figure out each piece on my own, because it’s a bit more challenging to find the information and options you need for these particular islands. Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions!
Many thanks Nicole! I love planing it by myself so we proceeded to have 5 days in SM then 5 days in Flores and 1.5 day in Pico. Apparently, rental car in Flores is very expensive. Do you think we can get around with taxi? Do you know if we can do the 47 km trail in 3 days , each day another part?
Author
I think that sounds like a great plan! You will definitely need a car. The taxis are expensive and extremely unpredictable unfortunately. I think that being able to do 47km in 3 days really depends on what you would normally hike. I think it could be doable, there are some slight elevation gains but also a lot of flat sections.
Many thanks Nicole. I only now realized that you responded so fast. I did not get any notification to my email. Many thanks
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