A guide to Furnas
Fumaroles, felines, and fantastic views
Posted by: Josh, 24 January 2026
Known for its volcanic hot springs and hiking routes around its resplendent lake, Furnas is one of the best places we’ve visited together.
Here’s why, along with some advice on how to get the most out of a visit.
While the most famous views in Furnas can be seen at Lake Furnas and the calderas, there are plenty of other scenic parts of town
Contents
Hot springs
Furnas is as famous for its hot springs as it is for its lake. The waters have a noticeably orange tint to them, thanks to their high iron content, and you will probably have a similar tint to your extremities after a few minutes spent soaking in the pools. Don’t bring your fanciest towels is what I’m saying.
There are two options to choose from.
Poça da Dona Beija
A small and beautifully maintained private facility with four thermal baths of varying depths, each with a water temperature just below 40 degrees Celsius, and one ribeira – a slightly cooler stream running between the baths, which was sadly closed for a little renovation when we visited.
Tickets are 12 euros each for adults and most children for bookings before 17:30 and 16 euros for bookings later in the day. For children between two and six years old, knock a couple of euros off each of those prices.
We booked two tickets for a 9am slot, with less than half a dozen other guests on site, and couldn’t have been happier with our visit. I’m not generally a fan of hot springs (too hot!) but the water was a comfortable temperature to me.
Poça da Dona Beija: A blissful way to start a day
The border plants around the paths are immaculately maintained, the cold showers are powerful and refreshing after a long soak, and there’s storage lockers and rental towels available should you need them. All in all, you’re going to be very well cared for in a wonderfully relaxing environment if you book here.
Liz even found some things she liked in the souvenir shop on site, coming home with a bracelet as a memento of her visit. I resisted the temptation to buy any of the cute cow-themed souvenirs for my Mum, and she’s resisted the temptation to forgive me for it ever since.
Parque Terra Nostra
Your other option is to pay 17 Euros for an adult, or 14.50 Euros for people 65+ or under the age of 18, to get into the Parque Terra Nostra Hotel’s botanical gardens and make use of the giant hot bath there.
The size of this pool took us by surprise; there’s space for hundreds of people in there. On our visit last year, the pool was very busy and quite noisy.
Still, it’s a way to experience Furnas’ volcanic waters and it comes with access to a very beautiful centuries-old garden (more below). And if you insist on your iron-infused water looking extra iron-infused, this is the place for you, as the size and depth of the pool mean the colour of the water is an even deeper orange-brown colour than at Poça da Dona Beija.
If the busy main thermal pool isn’t for you, there are a couple of smaller jacuzzis hidden away in the lower part of the garden.
Hiking in Furnas
Our day hiking around Lake Furnas is one of my favourite memories of travelling with Liz
Furnas Lake trail (PRC 06 SMI) takes around three hours and is a circular route around the lake which novice walkers can easily complete. You might want to budget more time to visit the Jose do Canto Forest Garden (more on this in a second), which you’ll find by the strikingly eerie and now-abandoned gothic 19th Century Capela de Nossa Senhora das Vitórias, which you’ll spot on the shores of the lake from some distance away.
The lakeside walk is almost perfect, with the only quibble being the occasional speeding driver whizzing past on small stretches of the one-lane road you’ll spend some time walking down.
Otherwise, the area is remarkably peaceful and very beautiful. Like all of the places we visited in the Azores, the climate keeps the greenery exceptionally green and the walking conditions ideal for a long hike. The weather is, of course, very changeable; the Azores can pack all four seasons into a single day - and often does.
Furnas seen from above. Somewhere down there is the second most picturesque football pitch I've seen on our travels, beaten only by the floating pitch at Ko Panyi in Ao Phang Nga, Thailand
The highlights of our day included around José do Canto Forest Garden, which we enjoyed every bit as much as the Parque Terra Nostra Botanical Garden. Like Parque Terraa Nostra, it’s home to a large collection of ancient camellias. But unlike the botanical garden, it’s also home to the Salto do Rosal waterfall which you can get to in an hour – or maybe a little less, if you’re walking quickly. We took longer, stopping as we did to admire every plant along the way. There’s even a giant sequoia tree around the midpoint of your walk, which isn’t something you see every day while travelling in Europe.
After our loop around the gardens, other highlights on the walk included the Furnas Environmental Interpretation Centre... mainly for the clean bathrooms, but also for the history lesson on the Azores’ geology. And, finally, reaching the bubbling fumaroles at the edge of the lake where hot water and steam rise to the surface from the subterranean channels below.
Lake Furnas' fumaroles: Prettier when seen from across the lake, but interesting when seen up close too
Crucially, the fumaroles are also where you’ll meet some of the Azores’ happiest cats. These well-fed felines can be seen curled up in warm little bundles on patches of grass close to the steam vents, or walking around showing the ducks by the side of the lake who’s boss. We took a particular shine to a playful white, grey and sandy kitten and its ever so understanding mother, and named her Smoky Lemons. She’ll be fully grown now, but if you recognise Smoky on your hike please do stop and tell her we say hi.
Smoky Lemons: Cute, but fearsome. Smoky Lemons Sr: An angel
Volcano cat sightings ticked off, you’ll need to head to the Pico do Ferro viewpoint for the best view over the lake. Unless you’re an experienced hiker, I’d recommend driving there if you can. Though I've left this until last, you might want to do this before your lakeside walk, or to wait until the next morning since we found afternoons in Furnas were typically cloudier or mistier than the mornings.
If you don't drive, you can walk up the trail (PRC 22 SMI) starting near the calderas, but be warned that it is extremely steep in places. Liz and I love hiking on holiday, but we found ourselves stopping a couple of times on the way up the hills around Lake Furnas.
As for the calderas, they’re worth visiting if you haven’t experienced a similar thing before. The views to the mountains around you are very striking through the steam rising from the churning waters, though the calderas themselves weren’t the strongest we’d ever seen on our travels. You can try drinking from some of the fountains here, but don’t go expecting an Evian-esque taste if you do.
Parque Terra Nostra Botanical Garden
Away from the big thermal pool, Parque Terra Nostra Botanical Garden is very tranquil. As it should be, at 17 Euros for an adult
I’ll leave the owners to tell you the complete history of this garden, which has been developed through multiple changes of ownership since the mid-18th century into the very lovely place that it is today. Since the entry fee is 17 euros per adult, it's hard for me to claim it's good value for money unless you’re taking advantage of the baths while you’re here.
But since we were staying in Furnas for a few days, we decided to take a look around anyway - with our pockets much lighter than when we arrived.
I’m not sure where the garden’s website takes its claim to be “one of the 250 best gardens in the world" from, but I’m willing to believe them. While I slightly preferred the botanical gardens we went to in Ponta Delgada, since they were a bit more compact and I felt that you could more easily see a greater variety of interesting plants (including a spectacular old Banyan Tree), I suspect most people would prefer the grander and more traditionally designed gardens here.
While the weather in the Azores can change in an instant, the climate is very consistent throughout the year - making it a place where all kinds of plants can flourish
The gardens are beautifully laid out, if a little confusingly signposted, with highlights for visitors likely to be either the giant water lilies or the extensive Camellia collection if you’re visiting between October and March, when they’re in bloom.
We spent a few hours in the gardens, resting from time to time to recover from the previous day’s hiking, but you could get a good sense of them in 90 minutes to a couple of hours.
For those with only a few hours to spend in Furnas, I don’t think Parque Terra Nostra Botanical Garden is a 'must-visit'. But if you have a while longer, you might enjoy taking the chance to explore it for a while.
Liz filed this first picture as 'Furnas Azores Happy Cow'. Few would disagree
Food and drink
While you will have fewer options for a restaurant meal in a town the size of Furnas than in Ponta Delgada, there are still enough places around that you won’t need to worry about going home hungry.
Parque Terra Nostra Hotel restaurant
The swankiest place in town is the restaurant at the Parque Terra Nostra Hotel, which you’ll need to book in advance and might want to dress a little bit smarter for - though there is no formal dress code. It’s a popular place for people to eat at, but it’s hard for us to recommend it as it’s so much more expensive than anywhere else we ate on Sao Miguel.
When we visited in summer 2025, we found it pleasant. No more, no less. The food was mostly fine and presented very nicely, there’s a long wine list, and the ambience was lovely.
I had – I've forgotten exactly how it was listed on the menu, so let's call it – ‘parsnip experience’ for my starter. It was perfectly nice, seeing how many textures and slight varieties in flavour they could draw out of one vegetable, but if you’ve watched Culinary Class Wars S2’s carrot round you’ll know how much better it can be done.
My tomato and basil gnocchi, for the main course, felt like imbibing pure nectar - with far too much sugar in the tomato sauce even for my sweet tooth. Liz tells me her food was pretty good, with a well-cooked white fish for her main course going down well, but still a little less exciting than she’d have been hoping for the price.
The food at Parque Terra Nostra Hotel was nice enough, but it looked better than it tasted
I can't tell you for certain whether we'll go back again the next time we visit Furnas. We are here for Liz’s birthday and it made for a fancier-feeling way to mark the day than we would have been able to get elsewhere. But if we don’t have a special occasion to celebrate the next time we’re in Furnas, we’d probably just swing by the local grocery store again to pick up some food to make in our rental apartment, as we did on a couple of other nights of our stay. You can also head to the local Spar if you’re short on seasonings or need to get some staples – pasta, meat, whatever you fancy – to make a home-cooked dinner work for you.
Volcanic Stew - Cozido das Furnas
I can't write a section on Furnas' food scene without mentioning this local specialty, 99% of which I suspect is eaten by tourists these days, is a stew slow-cooked in pots dug into the steaming hot ground around Lake Furnas’ fumaroles.
A couple of restaurants do serve vegetarian options, but a pot of steamed veg with no indication of how it might be seasoned somehow didn’t persuade me to part with the extra cash needed to order this dish.
So, over to special stew correspondent Liz for this report on her meaty version:
"It’s good! I still remember the potatoes, which had been cooked into a fondant-like texture that melted in my mouth when I bit into them. The rest of the vegetables weren’t as memorable, but they still tasted fresh and flavourful and the meat was nice and savoury too. It didn’t have a lot of seasoning so the flavour wasn’t particularly strong, but the textures were amazing. Even if you have to pay a little more and order in advance at some restaurants, it’s worth trying while you can."
Thanks, Liz!
The bus from Ponta Delgada will drop you off close to the church on the right. I love how the white paint contrasts with the stones
Drinks
I only have one recommendation, as we mostly spent our evenings sat with a drink in our apartment watching the clouds rolling over the hills to our left, and then with a second drink watching whatever mad creation Tia Catia was showing us on 24 Kitchen.
We did, however, enjoy the atmosphere at A Quinta, which you’ll find a short walk away from the main bus stop in town. Drinks were a fair price and they have a sheltered outdoor area to relax after a long day’s hiking. You can also order food here, with Cozido das Furnas on the menu. I can't say my vegetarian burger was the best I'd ever had, but it hit the spot after a walk.
How to get there by public transport
Assuming you're travelling from Ponta Delgada, look for the direct buses which depart from near the Tourism Office on the main road next to the ocean. If you’re wanting to get to Furnas and back in a day, it’s best to take the C110 bus at around 7:10 (we found buses were rarely exactly on time) to arrive just before 09:00.
If you’re staying longer, there are several other buses throughout the day. The buses have luggage compartments, so you’ll be fine travelling with your suitcase if you need to.
To get back to Ponta Delgada, take the bus from the bus station (“terminal de autocarros” on Google Maps). There is a lack of signage to explain where you should queue; when going back to Ponta Delgada, stay on the side of the road nearest to the church.
Leaving Furnas was difficult, but there are far worse places to go back to than Ponta Delgada
Of course, you can book tours to Lake Furnas from Ponta Delgada too. Whether that’s the right call for you will depend on how much time you have to spare, how much of a hiker you are, and whether you have your own car. Liz and I think there’s enough to enjoy in Furnas that it’s worth an overnight stay, or making your own way there so that you have enough time to enjoy all there is to offer.
That said, we took two guided tours in our time in the Azores – one a circumnavigation of Terceira, and another to Lagoa do Fogo while in Sao Miguel – and very much enjoyed them both, since we don’t drive and wouldn’t have been able to see those places otherwise. If that’s your situation, then I’d absolutely recommend taking a tour so you can see at least some of Furnas’ best sights.
Useful tips
-
Apply sun cream in spring and summer. While the Azores never gets uncomfortably hot, you can very easily get sunburned on a hike in spring and summer months. Just ask Liz.
-
Apply mosquito spray, liberally. While there’s no disease-carrying mosquitoes in the Azores, you may get eaten alive. Our rental property backed out onto a field in which yams were being grown, making it the perfect breeding ground for mozzies. You’re also likely to get bitten a few times on a walk around Lake Furnas if you’re not prepared.
-
Early wake-ups will help you get the most out of your stay. This is true for visiting the hot baths, which will be at their quietest if you book the earliest possible slot. The baths won’t get too heaving, as stays are limited to a couple of hours per person, but they were certainly much more peaceful when we first arrived than by the time we left.
-
It’s also true for hiking. On our final day in Furnas, we wanted one more look at the lake and - you caught me - one more chance to see Smoky Lemons and friends. The area was almost deserted when we arrived a little before 9am.
-
I would give all the money I have to own a home like this next to Lake Furnas. Sadly, I think I might be several hundreds of thousands of euros short.
Final thoughts on Furnas
Liz final thoughts
This tranquil little town stole a piece of my heart. The scenery was beautiful, the air was so fresh and clean, and there were so many beautiful places to just wander. It is small so if you’re looking for nightlife it’s probably not the place for you, but Furnas is a great place to just relax, unwind, and reconnect with nature – three of my favourite things to do!
Josh final thoughts
We typically don’t go on another holiday to the same area in a short space of time. We never have, in our time as a couple, in fact.
For the Azores, I will insist we make an exception. I loved Lake Furnas and I’m hoping we’ll get chance to hike here again this year – or next, at the latest – on a longer trip taking in a couple more islands than we managed in 2025.
While there’s no more new things for us to do, I couldn’t ever get bored of walking by the lake and through the gardens in Furnas or simply sitting on a balcony watching the ever-changing weather with a home-made meal. It is simply the most blissful town I’ve visited on my travels to date.
Lastly, does it Ding Go?
Of course not. The beloved Taiwanese bubble tea chain known as Ding Go has yet to establish stores in the Azores. You will need to read our guides to visiting Taiwan to find out how to experience Ding Go’s brown sugar latte drink.
To our regular readers (hi Mum!), I promise this is the last time I’ll do this bit.
Related posts
