Are you planning your trip to Ponta Delgada? Visit this place, will hardly be at the top of your travel plan’s priorities. Here you can find everything about the 10 best places to visit in Ponta Delgada Portugal. The small fishing village of yesteryear has given way to a cosmopolitan, economically and culturally active city, worthy of the cover of travel magazines under the title Europe’s Best Kept Secret.
Ponta Delgada is known for the churches, convents and manor houses, typical neighborhoods, narrow streets, airy squares, and exuberant urban gardens that mark the historic center. And along the graceful promenade facing the Atlantic, which outlines its profile, filled with terraces, bars, and restaurants serving the best of regional and international cuisine. Below you will find places to visit in Ponta Delgada Portugal.
10 Best Places to Visit in Ponta Delgada Portugal
- The José do Canto Botanical Garden
- Appreciate the City Gates
- Convent of Our Lady of Hope
- Lagoa das Sete Cidades
- Mother Church of Ponta Delgada
- Fort of São Brás
- Boca do Inferno Viewpoint
- Vista do Rei Viewpoint
- Santiago Lagoon
- Whale and Dolphin Watching
- Milicias Beach and Populo Beach
The Jose do Canto Botanical Garden – Ponta Delgada
Surely one of the most beautiful places to visit in Ponta Delgada, the José do Canto Botanical Garden was one of the spaces that most surprised me in the port city. It is a private garden created by José do Canto, “a rich man, cultured and a lover of nature” who lived in Ponta Delgada in the 19th century. “A profound connoisseur of the secrets of botany”, reads the garden leaflet. In fact, the José do Canto Botanical Garden is a kind of green oasis in the heart of Ponta Delgada, where hundreds of species from the four corners of the world can be found.
Old city gate – Ponta Delgada
Dating back to 1738 and one of the iconic images of Ponta Delgada, the structure known as Portas da Cidade is, in the words of the City Council, “a construction in basalt stone, consisting of three arches with some baroque elements, the coat of arms of Portugal and the Municipality of Ponta Delgada.
Convent of Our Lady of Hope in Ponta Delgada
Spiritually, this convent from 1545 is one of the most important, not only in the Azores but also in Portugal. For this, you can thank the statue of Santo Cristo dos Milagres, which was presented to the founders of the convent by Pope Paul III in the first decades of the 16th century. The building is something to behold too, with a strange square tower that has three rows of windows. In the church, there is a baroque altar with gilded wood and beautiful tile panels.In April or May this statue is the star of the Santo Cristo celebrations.
Lagoa das Sete Cidades
The Lagoa das Sete Cidades is the largest natural reservoir of fresh surface water in the Azores, occupying a vast area that reaches 4.35 square kilometers, with a depth of 33 meters. It is characterized by the double color of its waters, being divided by a shallow channel, crossed by a low bridge that separates a mirror of green water on one side and, on the other, a mirror of blue tone.
Mother Church of Ponta Delgada
The beautiful and imposing Igreja de São Sebastião, or Igreja Matriz de Ponta Delgada, is located in the beautiful capital of São Miguel Island and the wonderful Azores Archipelago. In the place where there was once a small chapel in honor of São Sebastião, construction of the current temple began in 1531, having been completed in 1547. The Church was built with the effort of the population, by appealing to the patron saint of the sick, a miracle in order to put an end to the Plague that ravaged the city between 1523 and 1531.
Fort of Sao Bras in Ponta Delgada
In the Azores, there are no castles, but forts and fortresses, since the castles date from the medieval period, before the discovery of the islands. In the city of Ponta Delgada there were several forts: São Pedro, Açougue, and São Cristóvão, which disappeared with the repairs to the seafront, leaving the military fort of São Brás. This fort is a construction with a polygonal base, designed by the Italian Tomaso Benedetti, with four bulwarks at the corners, prepared to receive artillery pieces and low wall curtains, of great thickness.
Boca do Inferno Viewpoint
This is the Boca do Inferno Viewpoint, in Mata do Canário, next to Lagoa do Canário. In this unique location it is possible to have a view of Lagoa das Sete Cidades, Lagoa Rasa, Lagoa de Santiago, Lagoa do Canário, part of the village of Sete Cidades and Serra Devassa. At an altitude of 730 meters, we can see the sea, the mountains and the lakes, in the midst of natural and wild vegetation.
Vista do Rei (Famous viewpoint on Sao Miguel island)
Viewpoint over Lagoa das Sete Cidades, so named because this was the place where King D. Carlos and Queen D. Amélia stopped to enjoy such an unforgettable landscape during their visit to the island of S. Miguel, in 1901. Viewpoint located in the municipality of Ponta Delgada, in the parish of Sete Cidades. Traveling on the ER-8-2, heading towards Ponta Delgada towards Sete Cidades, at the crossroads where the descent to this location begins, go straight ahead for about 1 km, along the ER-1-1, where you will find the viewpoint.
Santiago Lake of Ponta Delgada
Lagoa de Santiago is located in Serra Devassa, very close to the fantastic Lagoa das Sete Cidades, on the wonderful island of São Miguel, in the Azores archipelago. In a place of frank natural beauty, Lagoa de Santiago surprises with its surroundings of verdant mountain escarpments full of richness and different species of fauna and flora, which seem to want to keep the beauty of this flow to themselves, in a vivid dark green tone.
Watching Dolphin & Whale in Ponta Delgada
Water activities are audience champions, if it weren’t for the Azores being one of the best marine biodiversity sanctuaries. Watching whales on the high seas was one of the most unique experiences you will ever feel. Especially if you manage to visit Ponta Delgada between April and June, the time of year when the greatest number of cetaceans cross Azorean waters on their migratory routes. Summer is the best time of year to see dolphins. It is at this time that more species of dolphins sail the Azorean seas and the groups tend to be larger and with more calves as well. This is one of the best things to do in Ponta Delgada Portugal.
Milicias Beach and Populo Beach near Ponta Delgada
Visit some of the best beaches in Ponta Delgada. This city has several beautiful beaches, such as Milicias Beach and Populo Beach. The first is well-known and one of the most visited beaches in Sao Miguel. Situated on the southern coast, it is recognizable for its large spread of black sand of volcanic origin. These beaches are perfect for relaxing and swimming.