Sao Jorge, Azori - Uporabni nasveti in informacije (2025)

São Jorge is one of the larger islands in Azores archipelago. Since it’s very much worth visiting we’re answering to some frequent questions about São Jorge island (and those you haven’t thought of yet). Adding some useful tips and solutions in as well.

Where is São Jorge?

São Jorge is located in the Azores archipelago, and is part of its central group, together with the islands of Graciosa, Faial, Pico and Terceira.

In terms of dimensions, São Jorge is approximately 53 kilometres long and 8 kilometres wide, with the total area of 243 km². Its highest point is 1053 meters above sea level, in Pico da Esperanca.

When to visit São Jorge?

We’d say that any island in the Azores is best in the summer months or late spring (May, June, July, August or September). The visibility will be best, water temperature warmest and generally more favorable conditions for the main activities. Hydrangeas also bloom this season.

• Temperatura zraka se v povprečju giblje med 14° pozimi in 26° poleti.
• Temperatura vode se v povprečju giblje med 16° pozimi in 25° poleti.

Če še niste vedeli, lahko vreme na Azorih prinese od vsega po malem. Sonce, oblaki, veter, dež, vse, kar želite, je na Azorih na voljo. Ni zabavno, če se odpravite na potovanje in ne morete opraviti tistega, kar ste si zadali. Seveda lahko Azore obiščete tudi zunaj teh mesecev in si privoščite čudovito potovanje! Vreme pride in gre, zato bodite pripravljeni na vse vrste razmer.

How to get to São Jorge?

There are several ways to get to São Jorge, depending on where you come from. I leave you all that information below.

Z letalom: São Jorge has an airport, between towns Velas and Urzelina. Between islands, flights to São Jorge are generally made on propelerska letala SATA. The airport code is SJZ, most airplanes fly in from Ponta Delgada (PDL).

S trajektom: There are ferries from almost all neighbouring islands to São Jorge. The ferry schedules can be found on the Atlanticoline – the only ferry service of the Azores. Ferries from Pico should be running pretty consistently throughout the day. From Pico it’s a 90-minute ride across the sea.

Uporabne mobilne aplikacije

I recommend some mobile applications that you can install on your phone – they will be useful for your trip to São Jorge:

•   SpotAzores: here you can see all the existing webcams in different points of the islands to see how the weather is. Because the weather is very changeable and it can be raining in one area of the island and sunny in another, this app is the fastest way to make sure and avoid unnecessary trips.
•  Windy: essential app in our trips, even more so in the Azores and Madeira. It allows you to see forecasts for rain, clouds, wind, etc. to help you plan your days based on the weather. The usual forecasts are not 100% reliable. It also shows the available webcams in certain area.
•  GoogleMaps: is the one we use to save / classify all the places we want to go / have gone and as GPS in rental cars. You can see other people’s opinions of the places, photos, restaurant menus, phone number of the places to contact them, etc.
•  Maps.me: application similar to Google Maps but works offline (although Google Maps can also work offline) and in many cases has information that Google Maps does not have, especially trails. Useful whenever you are going to do a trail, to orient yourself, download the route from the uradne Azorske strani o pohodniških poteh (kliknete na Prenosi -> GPS), ipd. Pozor! Pri uporabi storitve maps.me morate zemljevide prenesti vnaprej, torej pred dejanskim prihodom na cilj, sicer lahko traja nekaj časa, da prenesete (in raziščete) nove zemljevide. Ti zemljevidi so shranjeni v vaši mobilni napravi.

Some recommendations and warnings to enjoy São Jorge…

… and to make your trip a pleasant one and not a detraction from the island

• The natural lava pools almost all have freshwater showers but don’t use shampoos and soaps with chemicals in those showers. A quick shower to get the salt off and you’re done.
•  Don’t allow the disturbance, pollution and destruction of seabird nesting habitats.
•  Never try to touch or feed a wild animal – don’t be an accomplice to animal abuse!
•  Do not buy handicrafts made from sea animals or extracted from the sea (e.g. dolphin teeth, turtle shells, shark jaws, sperm whale ivory, …). The ivory trade, currently the only valuable product of the sperm whale, is still an argument for hunters. Buy local handicrafts made from alternative materials such as wood, stone or vegetable ivory.
• If you visit the island in summer and enjoy the sea, remember that sometimes you may encounter a jellyfish (aguaviva) or a Portuguese caravel whose sting is painful and dangerous. The good thing is that these last ones float and are easily detectable, but in case you see one, get out of the water immediately and warn other people of their presence. In case you have been stung by either of them, it is very important that you follow these official recommendations: do not scratch the area of the sting (to prevent the venom from spreading); do not clean with fresh water or alcohol, clean only with sea water and very carefully; and in case the sting is a Portuguese dogfish sting, seek medical attention as soon as possible.

•  Respect other people and the island: don’t play your music loudly on the beach or natural pool (if you want to listen to music, wear headphones), don’t leave trash, don’t throw cigarette buds, etc. Leave the beach better than you found it (if you find plastic, pick it up!).
• In some areas bathing can be dangerous due to strong currents. Don’t be too brave. There’s usually a flag (red, yellow or green) indicating the level of danger at certain time and beach/lava pool. Red means ‘don’t swim’ and I highly suggest you respect that indication.
• On the trails, you will sometimes pass through closed wooden gates, which you will have to open and, very importantly, close again, as they are usually the boundaries of land with cows grazing inside.

Getting Around in São Jorge

São Jorge doesn’t have a good public transportation system for travelers. Buses are irregular and don’t stop at interesting spots – they’re meant for locals.

Vendar obstaja rešitev! Lahko najamete avto, skuter ali taksi/vodiča/turo za en dan.

Najboljši način za premikanje po Azorih je najem avtomobila. Postopek je enostaven - če imate veljavno vozniško dovoljenje, preprosto stopite v eno od trgovin in za dan (ali dva ali več) najamete avtomobil. Parkirišča po vsem otoku so brezplačna, parkirišča pa prostorna in dobro označena. Tudi vožnja po otoku je zelo preprosta, saj na samem otoku ni veliko prometa, ceste pa so lepo urejene.

I can recommend renting from RentalCars.com. They have multiple options and are easy to rent at.

Pozor! During the summer months (June, July, August) car prices skyrocket with limited availability. There are also scooter rentals, but oftentimes the high mountains of São Jorge are covered in fog and have limited visibility.

If you’re staying on the island for several days then the car rental is your best choice. That way you can see the island at your pace and pick and choose which places you would like to visit during your time on São Jorge.

Najem skuterja

I have a great experience with stopping by at „Azorean Way Rent a Car“ and renting a scooter on arrival. Expect to pay between 30€ and 40€/day.

Taksi storitve

There are also numerous verified taxi drivers found throughout the island. Many of the hiking trails of São Jorge are linear (point to point, A –> B), so a taxi driver should be arranged for pick up and drop off. Taxi rentals will cost you anywhere from 80€ to 150€ per day. Note that a taxi can accommodate up to 4 people, so sharing the expense makes it very affordable.

São Jorge Tours for Those Not Renting a Car

There is very limited public transportation on the island of São Jorge. It is nearly impossible to rely on buses that run infrequently and stop at limited locations.

If you’re short on time it’s best to book a full-day tour of São Jorge. Here are some highly recommended tours:

• Sao Jorge Van Tour – Full Day with Activities
• Walking Trail and Tour – Fajã Caldeira Santo Cristo
• Ostali izleti

SIM kartice na Azorih

Preden preberete ta del, se vprašajte, ali na Azorih dejansko potrebujete kartico SIM. No, če vas ne moti, da nimate interneta ves čas, boste verjetno našli brezplačen WiFi v restavracijah, nakupovalnih središčih, hotelih itd. Če nameravate uporabljati le maps.me aplikacijo, ki jo je mogoče uporabljati brez interneta, bi to moralo zadostovati.

Če pa boste podatke potrebovali za premikanje, klicanje taksija, prevajanje besed v portugalščino ali preprosto iskanje dodatnih informacij, si boste za potovanje po Azorih morda želeli kupiti kartico SIM.

For traveling in the Azores I recommend using a SIM card from Meo, Vodafone, NOS, or Airalo. (I’ll get back to Airalo later on, so keep reading to learn more!)

Če nameravate med potovanjem po Evropi obiskati tudi druge države, boste morda želeli izbrati možnost, ki ponuja kritje v drugih evropskih državah.

Kako kupiti kartico SIM na Azorih

Azorsko predplačniško kartico SIM lahko kupite osebno na nekaterih mednarodnih letališčih, v prodajalnah mobilnih operaterjev, trgovinah s priročnimi izdelki ali vnaprej prek spleta.

Ponudniki na letališčih imajo običajno višje stroške in slabše podatkovne ponudbe, zato to ni najboljša možnost. Pozor! Not every airport will have SIM card shops (especially smaller airports), so keep it in mind! São Jorge airport doesn’t have that option.

Meo SIM kartice

Meo je portugalsko telefonsko omrežje, ki ponuja turistični paket, ki pokriva Azore in Madeiro:

• 5 GB podatkov, klici in sporočila na Portugalsko, veljavni 7 dni = od 3 €

Vodafone Portugalska SIM kartice

Vodafone Portugalska pokriva Azore in Madeiro ter ima na voljo dva različna predplačniška načrta. Ima tudi najboljšo pokritost:

• Neomejeni podatki, veljavni 15 dni = 20€
• Neomejeni podatki, veljavni 30 dni = 35€

NOS SIM kartice

NOS ponuja veliko portugalskih načrtov, ki zajemajo tudi Azore in Madeiro:

• Neomejeni podatki, veljavni 8 dni = 15€
• Neomejeni podatki, veljavni 1 mesec = 35€ 

Relativno nov koncept - eSIM: virtualna kartica SIM v telefonu

Če vaš mobilni telefon podpira kartice eSIM, je to zagotovo ena najboljših možnosti za pridobivanje podatkov na Azorih. Če ste novi in želite izvedeti več, si o tem preberite na eSIM Roamers.

eSIM sem začela uporabljati takoj, ko jo je moj mobilni telefon podpiral. Za nakup eSIM običajno uporabljam Airalo, zanesljiv in razširjen ponudnik eSIM.

Airalo na Azorih ima na voljo veliko različnih možnosti, nekatere med njimi so navedene spodaj:

Where to eat on São Jorge?

Although there aren’t as many options as one’d like, there are still some very good restaurants you can stop at.

As for what to eat on Faial Island, seafood and fish are naturally good options. Be sure to try cracas in lapas, ali hobotnico. Na otoku lahko najdete tudi dobro meso krav, ki se pasejo na otoku. Vedno je pametno vnaprej rezervirati hrano.

• O’Borges
• Sabores Sopranos
• Ponto de Encontro
• Tasca Caldeira
• Charlie’s Place
• Restaurante Amilcar

Druge uporabne informacije

• rezervacija letal: Potovanje na Azore ni bilo nikoli poceni, a kljub temu je najboljši nasvet za varčevanje prilagodljivost. Bolj kot ste prilagodljivi, cenejši je lahko vaš let. Uporabljam Skyscanner za nakup letalskih kart in Google Flights za najboljše primerjave datumov.
• rezervacija nastanitve: São Jorge is definitely worth spending a few days at. There are plenty of accommodation and restaurant options in the main village of Velas, fewer elsewhere around the island. Depending on what you’re looking for there are various websites that provide accommodation of all types. The comfort of home can be found on Vrbo, razkošje hotela na Booking.com, najboljša cenovno ugodna možnost za samostojne potnike je Hostelworld. Če ste res omejeni s proračunom, a imate prosti čas, si oglejte Worldpackers – they offer accommodation for FREE in exchange for work.

Some great accommodations:

1. Hospedaria Australia
2. Cantinho do Piano
3. Blue Planet
4. Casa dos Lagos
5. Cantinho das Buganvilias
6. ali potrebujete vizum?: check all the latest information on iVisa (https://www.ivisa.com/) – the website is super easy to use (and apply for a visa too, if you’re required to have one!). It goes for all countries around the world, so mark that one down 🙂
7. spakirajte najnujnejše: powerbank, nepremočljiva jakna, adapter, potni list, nahrbtnik... Oglejte si popoln seznam stvari za Azore.

Če povzamemo vse...

Verjamem, da je to to! Če mislite, da je še kakšna druga tema, ki je nisem zajel, mi to sporočite v komentarjih.

Če potrebujete pomoč pri načrtovanju potovanja (informacije, rezervacije in rezervacija, leti, drugi nasveti), se obrnite na nas in si zagotovite osebno prilagojen potovalni nasvet.