How to get there?
The Azores are a place of welcoming people, wonderful nature and rough beauty. However, due to their location in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, they are to a large extent still undiscovered by mainstream tourism. Therefore, international flight connections to the Acores are normally a bit more complex and rather expensive, thus we recommend that you book your flights as early as possible! Try different airports + inter-island flight combinations to find better deals for your travel plans. Also, just going there for the weekend will be quite stressfull and therefore we advise you to make your visit a holiday and go for at least 5 days.
The brave will be rewarded to witness probably one of the last regions in Europe with huge touristic potential for visitors but not overrun by tourists.
International Flight Details:
Direct flights to the Azores Triangle group (Pico, Faial and São Jorge island) typically depart only from mainland Portugal's cities of Lisbon and Porto, so you will typically have to stay there for a night (or longer if you like), before you can continue your journey.
The closest international airport is Horta (HOR) on Faial, from where you can take a ferry to Pico island. Other international airports in the Acores, which you can check for connections inlcude Terceira (TER) island and Ponta Delgada (PDL) on the main island São Miguel. Ponta Delgada even receives direct international flights, e.g. from London, Boston or Düsseldorf, as well as budget flights with Ryanair and Easyjet from Lisbon (LIS) and Porto (OPO).
Inter-Island Flight Details:
Inter-island flights are operated by Sata Airline (https://www.sata.pt/en/content/home-page) and are normally not too expensive. If you arrive on an aiport other than Horta, you can book an inter-island flight directly to Pico island airport (PIX) or Horta or São Jorge (SJZ) and then take the ferry to Pico.
Since this year, Sata offers free onward connecting flight within the Acores, if you are starting a trip on the Portuguese mainland and your final destination is an island other than the island of entry in Azores, e.g. you fly to São Miguel and want to continue to Pico. We have not tried it yet and it probably depends on availability, but check it out on this website: http://encaminhamentos.sata.pt/en
