Terra Nostra is one of the most beautiful gardens in the world (… and is in the Azores). It has over 200 years and an area of 12.5 hectares.
Has been a hotel icon in the Azores Islands. The hotel is also recognized by the Garden’s thermal pool, an ex-libris of the Azores.
We will have on bus leaving the airport PDL on Sunday, 26 at 16:30. Mr. Suchintan Mondal (a PhD student from João’s group) will kindly help the participants to get the right bus.
This bus will also make a short stop in downtown Ponta Delgada (Avenida Marginal – Montepio) to pick some participants at 16:45 and arrive at the conference venue (Terra Nostra Garden Hotel, Furnas) at around 17:30.
On Friday, 31 a bus will depart from the hotel at 14:30 and arrive at the airport at around 15:30. It will then continue to Ponta Delgada (drop-off to be confirmed) where it will arrive at around 15:50.
If you prefer to take a taxi from the airport to the hotel, it should take around 40 minutes and cost around 50 Euros.
After lunch time (at about 14h30), the guide will meet the group at the Hotel and guide them through Furnas’s most iconic areas, starting with Furnas lake area, the “fumaroles” and give them the chance of visiting Grená Park. This park is a big estate bought by an English consul back in the ’50s that was abandoned for many decades. It has been bought back in 2018 and was reorganized as a big natural park with beautiful surroundings. Inside the park, guests can find different species of endemic flora as well as introduced species. There will be the opportunity of exploring the park for about 2 hours and climbing more than 200 steps to reach the “Salto da Inglesa” waterfall.
Wednesday morning there are two options: the indispensable whale watching on one hand or for those that prefer to stay on firm ground, a guided sightseeing tour through Ponta Delgada.
3h to 4h jeep tour to explore the most beautiful corners of Lagoa das Sete Cidades. Lagoa das Sete Cidades is most likely the Azores’ most iconic and recognized natural monument. In a region with so many striking vistas, the view of Sete Cidades is repeatedly elected to represent or promote São Miguel island and the archipelago. Named one of the Seven Wonders of Portugal and classified as a Rede Natura 2000 Protected Vista. A bus will pick the group at the hotel and the jeep excursion will start in Ponta Delgada. The tour ends at restaurante Quinta dos Sabores (“Flavours’s Farm”) where the conference dinner will take place. After dinner, we return to the hotel by bus.
Please note that we will go directly from the excursion to the conference dinner without passing through the hotel.