Admiring the Flora and Fauna in the Terra Nostra Garden (São Miguel, Azores)
- Brooke
- Jan 29, 2019
- 3 min read
Updated: Mar 21, 2021
When you find yourself meandering your way across a remote volcanic island in the middle of a vast ocean, taking the time to investigate the unique flora and fauna seems like a no brainer. After all, some species won't be found elsewhere on earth, making these islands feel like your own private Garden of Eden.
When coupled with beautiful species from North America and the European mainland are added in an aesthetically pleasing collection, you get closer to the vision of the people responsible for this charming slice of Azorean life.
Deep in the volcanic valley of Furnas, a town located towards the eastern end of São Miguel that sits within the crater of a long extinct volcano, resides such a place. Terra Nostra Garden, replete with roughly 200 years of history, is the perfect place for an afternoon ramble, a warm and rejuvenating dip in a thermal pool, or just a quiet place for peace and reflection.
Though we didn't stay in Furnas (but wished we had!), Ben and I still found time to visit the gardens twice, once on our own and once with his family. There's more than enough to see on one visit, if that's all the time you have, and is well worth the effort. As one of the island's top things to see and do, you're sure to spend your moments reminiscing about your trip to the Azores with a few warm thoughts of the time you spent wandering under the canopy of the towering trees, dipping your toes in the warm springs, and overall feeling of tranquility that captures even the most hardened of hearts.
Enjoy!
Just like at home in Hawaii - growing taro!
The thermal pools might not look like the most inviting color, but the waters are warm and inviting. The brown/orange color comes from iron in the water, and they don't discolor your bathing suits (though I did read that in other online forums that this happened to some - since it didn't happen to us, I'm not sure why the discrepancy). I would recommend wearing water shoes into the pool, though, as the floor and steps are quite slippery.
The water is only about 5 feet deep or so, and at a relaxing 35-40 degrees Celsius (so around 100 degrees F). The gardens have free changing rooms, and you can rent a towel for a couple of Euros, so all you really have to do is show up with your bathing suit and you're good to go.
In my old age, I've found myself more and more interested in bird life. However, I did a cursory look up of birds of the Azores and only found one potential match out of all of the ones I saw in the park. If you know the identity of any of the non ID'ed ones, feel free to let me know!
A yellow-browed warbler?
Terra Nostra Garden Details
Finding the gardens requires navigating a few of Furnas' one way streets - it's not hard to find, but I recommend turning on the GPS to do so. We didn't see an obvious parking lot for the gardens, but we did park at the corresponding hotel one time (we had lunch there), and on the street another time.
One thing that's worth looking up on the website are the different suggestions for each season that you visit. Their seasonal maps and itineraries of the gardens help you make the most out of your time and are located here.
The entrance fee when we visited in May 2018 was 8 Euros per person, and did not include towel rental. Ask at the kiosk when purchasing your entrance ticket.
As mentioned above, free changing rooms are available.
Overall, spending a few hours rambling around the Terra Nostra Gardens was one of our more enjoyable activities on our vacation to the Azores. It's definitely on the map in terms of touristy places to visit, but you won't feel overwhelmed by crowds. We both highly recommend a visit!