Sao Miguel Jeep Tour Review: Sete Cidades & Lagoa Do Fogo

Alright, so you’re thinking of seeing Sao Miguel, and you know, like, a jeep tour sounds just the way to do it? Good thinking! It really, truly is one superb way to, very, very quickly, get acquainted with all those unbelievable sights this Azores island has up its sleeve. I mean, the views? Simply breathtaking. We’re talking Sete Cidades and Lagoa do Fogo, two spots that are just total must-sees. Is it worth your money? Does it avoid all of the usual tourist spots? Is it suitable for people who aren’t used to hiking? What do you wear? Do I take my camera? Well, I’m gonna get you all fixed up.

What’s the Hype with Jeep Tours in Sao Miguel, Anyway?

Okay, so what’s with all the off-road excitement? Sao Miguel isn’t like your average vacation spot, I feel. You aren’t just gazing from afar. It’s a place where the wild heart of nature beats loudly, really, deeply, and personally for people visiting. Jeep tours, like your really, truly top-tier off-roading experience, they actually get you proper into that heart. Think steep inclines, and that your wheels are spinning down dirt roads, and splashing through small streams. Places that normal cars? Absolutely not going. You need the right vehicle, almost, to enjoy your experience safely. That said, more or less, these tours are not just simple ways of transport. These tours really, really change what seeing a spot really means.

What you see ends up feeling really personal because, well, you had to actually get there to see it. Plus, your jeep tour folks? The guides aren’t really, truly just drivers. It is almost like they are walking, talking history books, travel agents and nature gurus combined into one very knowledgeable package. They really just help point stuff out along the way. Your guides tend to just fill your head with cool stories about the island’s volcanic origins, a few quirky local legends, and all that local plant and animal life stuff you might otherwise miss, you see.

Sete Cidades: More Than Just a Pretty Picture, Very, Very True

Oh, Sete Cidades. Now there’s a view. So it really, really just shows up on every postcard for good cause, I really feel that way. I suppose, what photos may forget to share is actually how powerfully you feel standing there and taking it all in with your own eyeballs. The twin lakes, one green and one blue, nestle peacefully inside this enormous volcanic crater. Legend even goes that they were made by the tears of a lovelorn princess and a shepherd, too it’s almost something you’d hear from a kid. Pretty spectacular, huh? I truly can’t confirm this, but the legends are something you might hear repeated.

You really, really won’t be just stopping at the main viewpoint, not in your tour. You are going to want to head down those twisting paths into the village nestled down inside the crater itself. It feels really, truly like stepping into a totally different timeline there. That is before the adventure truly continues on along those crazy back roads and that surround all the lakes and hillsides that very, very many travelers end up not actually seeing unless they know where to actually look. Did you spot that rare bird up above us, yet? Take a closer look, as they say. And what of these hidden places? Very beautiful stuff.

Lagoa do Fogo: Fire Lake, A Super Spectacular Place

Okay, next up is Lagoa do Fogo, and it translates super interestingly to “Lake of Fire,” yet don’t get nervous, very nervous or anything. It didn’t earn that name from some scary volcano doom event that happened. It earned it from its volcanic beginnings, more or less. But the water? Super serene. Its views from above are also pretty striking. This is basically because the whole area here just really, really feels much wilder and much less touched than Sete Cidades somehow does. This is because of the simple reason it’s much higher up, very higher up actually.

Most jeep tours tend to take you to the main lookout points, so, but a bunch also factor in a quick trip down a walking path that leads you straight to the water’s edge if all people can do that, really, really. Feel it. Breath it in, I tell ya. If you are brave enough, and even if the weather’s okay with it, you can enjoy a quick dip. Now that really is embracing the Azores’ rugged beauty up close, just, just for you. Watch where you sit when changing if you are going swimming. Things here may have burrs or spikey weeds.

What a Typical Jeep Tour Might Actually Look Like, Though I’m not Sure About You

Alright, here’s what a typical day on a jeep tour sort of might look. That is assuming you do your homework on where to find the tour for you, really. We think tours vary from about six to eight hours depending on, you know, what you actually agree to, just, just to tell you what I think, more or less. It really, really usually involves pickup right from your hotel, more or less. So, no stressors there. Your morning? Basically driving straight to Sete Cidades so as you miss most of those crowds later in the day.

You will find most operators have thought it out very thoroughly. Like really, really, really thought it through. The time will often involve visiting viewpoints, those quaint side roads, and getting stories from those amazing, amazing tour guides. You will break for lunch at some cool, cute local restaurant somewhere along the way where you can recharge yourself a little. It ends with some good times exploring Lagoa do Fogo. Typically these are well planned. Though there may be a comfort stop, ask.

Is a Jeep Tour a Good Pick for You and All of your Very Closest Travel Buddies?

Okay, so jeep tours, are they suitable for anyone and everybody? Very nearly! It truly comes down to what you are looking for, honestly, to be quite straight, too it’s almost like seeing any attraction to visit around the world! Are you a big-time photographer that is needing the perfect angle? Bang, that jeep gets you where you are needing, arguably, to be! Feeling outdoorsy, but perhaps aren’t actually so super keen on doing an actual long hike. The jeep allows you to see stuff but, frankly, with not that much huffing and puffing around while doing the activity, actually.

Folks with limited mobility ought to maybe look carefully into a tour’s itinerary before deciding firmly. Be certain that all the stops actually align with personal physical levels of fitness, for example. Families usually have good success on these tours. It allows you, especially, to see many things in only one day but still make it truly exciting for even those little ones who seem very easily bored as they go along, especially if the tour company really, really actually lets the youngsters go stand up and hang their faces out of the vehicle windows! Check if tours welcome babies/toddlers and their special needs or car seats requirements when people pre-book, though. Most do, for the record.

Things to Prepare In Terms of Proper Packing and Wearing for Your Day in a Jeep

So, how does one prepare themselves to ensure that their Jeep excursion goes pretty darn perfectly? Pack for pretty much everything in that one day, truly. Weather conditions can quite wildly swing up and down surprisingly rapidly, for instance, when you move up in elevation from the ground up, very quickly actually. Here are some things that you might actually take with you in the field:

Layers. It might actually get pretty chilly at those higher elevations, or even the sun’s intensity on your poor skin may truly be intense. Consider packing up waterproof layers even when it, arguably, may seem very sunny back down where you’re staying, if it might stop the rain. This might truly include quick dry clothes and a windbreaker jacket or item.
Hiking footwear. Do not plan on turning up and out wearing flip-flops! Those off-road treks call truly for much sturdier and strong footwear choices or shoes that people wear as they hike for proper support and good grip! Also keep that thick pair of socks up top of your ruck sack and roll them on, should weather conditions turn.
Sun and Bug stuff. That sun actually beats down pretty darn intensely over there even when it’s quite cold, or even chilly. Wear your super protective sunscreen. Remember a cap or something to protect your head and sunglasses as well to keep your focus at just about one hundred percent. Take repellent to protect you should those gnats become truly, extremely bothersome, they often tend to.
Water. Now water is an absolutely must, truly. Take that refillable water canister with you and drink constantly on those climbs. When full it also increases the weighting, improving your grip and athletic prowess along the walk. When you see your tour folks for the tour, discuss top up places at the very beginning of the session.
Snacks and food stuffs. Most often tours really just plan stops to pause at, or eat within local food joints to grab food, snacks are a clever tactic you might consider utilizing should hunger affect energy outputs and make a long day much tougher than really, truly it ought to have ever have even been! Don’t pack items with strong smells, this may interfere with another traveler.
Camera. Capture it. Hold it in your heart for your children to inherit your happiness. This can often be affected if a camera is a cheap product, with awful quality. Or if the device is damaged when in your back pack as you ascend the various inclines in the land mass!

How to Maximize the Experience that is a Jeep Tour and Actually See Stuff as you go

To really maximize the experience that a jeep tour can bring, you could very well, well I’m just being honest now, show up expecting to absorb every single thing. Listen when all your guides speak. Interact with people while asking them any question to have answers offered or suggested. You may even just suggest ideas on routes, too! It really, really may make for a more unique experience overall when you do that a little bit! These are just some ideas.

Ask questions of every tour professional: Remember those tour guys you just booked? They are mostly locals or people with tremendous experiences to just pull information from when getting tips regarding even hidden island sights and secret picture vantage locations or maybe just the best type of local coffee or cake! Milk or no milk? Sweetner or not? Your chance to take advantage.
Consider that weather can vary on your visit: Being flexible remains pretty important really, really. If weather turns pretty grim somewhere you really had decided that you wanted to pause a little at, it ends up becoming okay or useful to adapt, even at a moment’s warning if doing so tends to enable a much better overall adventure to occur. Be agile in attitude and persona when on the Azores! Pack for this kind of flexibility in personal kit, too!
Try the grub that locals seem to chow down on: Absolutely do make the most of having breaks at restaurants when on tour. Try unique cuisine so as to truly begin to sample the taste of Azores a bit better than perhaps, what one eats daily. Really actually just force yourself outside the norm so that you grow on an intellectual plane just, just as you expect while adventuring. Be an ‘open hatch’!
Respect everywhere when out: Stick to the tour routes you learn. Try never ever go stomping your huge feet all across private areas or locations so as to not hurt plants that are vulnerable in general or fragile from season climate pressure variations there that season or year. “Look don’t touch or trample”, even. Take nothing but thoughts from your heart home when seeing this incredible beauty. Leave what exists. Try only make those footsteps and imprints on surfaces made to take that stress like pathways.

Alright, well here are a list of the really main important takeaways about doing Jeep excursions up around Sao Miguel and hopefully it helps people make just a little better planned personal itinerary choices there, so it might suit requirements. You can thank me a tiny bit later! Sao Miguel delivers natural spectacle experiences which can be further achieved up on tours done from the seats within jeeps across some locations up along that land! See those volcano formations up closer!

Tour firms furnish knowledgeable, entertaining professional guidance and tips with stories behind various destinations visited that day by those on the move!
Prepare your stuff really carefully for conditions and temperatures being dynamic at that site especially on peak high elevated view spots with weather being quick to morph from sun baked to almost soaked instantly just it would seem!
For maximum impact or influence take time out by just absorbing insight from professionals at your service within that specific itinerary and location rather than just taking pictures or videos and selfies or doing a small bit less actually while you take notes to make those experiences a bit fuller than really originally had been or, might normally prove as when taking similar visits up on Sao Miguel!

I appreciate your time, have great days!