PortugalStep ashore inside a volcanic crater out at sea
Just off Vila Franca do Campo, on the south coast of São Miguel, an old volcanic crater sticks up out of the sea. It is broken open on one side, and inside it is a round lagoon. The islet is a nature reserve, and the number of people allowed onto it each day is capped.
The boat leaves from Vila Franca, and the crater gets bigger quickly. Landing on it means stepping off the boat and into the volcano.
What happens inside depends on the season. From the middle of June the lagoon is open for swimming. Before that, a guide walks the group around inside the reserve instead. The swimming depends on the water as well: bathing was closed for the whole of 2025 after several years of poor water-quality results, and the islet reopened for 2026 under continuous monitoring.
