Refried Neurons

We’ve been to the Azores before—pre-COVID! It seems like everything in life now is either pre- or post-COVID, with not much in between.

As usual, we left booking our accommodation to the last minute, thinking that by the end of September, half the properties would be empty. What we didn’t realize is that, thanks to all the bloody wars, the US dollar has gotten stronger, and the Azores are being swamped by Americans because it’s cheap, green, warm, and frankly closer to the US and Canada than I ever thought.

Still, we managed. I guess everyone has their own favorite way of searching for places to stay, favorite platforms, etc. Right now, I’m trying to convince myself that searching on Google is the way to go, but I’m not quite there yet. For today, I’m a booking.com person!

Sometimes, looking for the best of what’s left actually makes it easier. You filter by price and amenities and are left with four options—all of which, in the case of the Azores, are hideous. So, with much reluctance, you raise your price threshold and start looking again.

Last time we were here, we stayed in a lovely cottage with a view of Furnas Lake. We loved it. One of our friends, who has breathing difficulties, hated it—too humid. I guess you can’t please everyone. Unfortunately, that cottage is no longer listed.

After much debate, we decided to spend two nights in Ponta Delgada, four nights on one end of the island, and four nights in Furnas—the go-to town for spas and hot springs. We succeeded with parts one and three: we got ourselves a lovely houseboat in Ponta Delgada harbor and a room in a hotel with a great restaurant in Furnas, for a very decent price.

The middle part was more difficult, as the houses available around the Sete Cidades area were bloody dreadful. I mean, come on, it’s the 21st century—we have interior designers, Pinterest, and even artificial intelligence to help with the decor!

Finally, we settled on what seemed to be a lovely farm stay with a pool and a private loft apartment on an old tea plantation. It wasn’t cheap, but it seemed like someone either hired a designer or had some idea how to design a space. This time, for fuckin’ once, I decided to do what all my clients do—compare the booking price to the price on their webpage. Great idea? 100 euros in my pocket! Considering the whole rental wasn’t cheap, it was a nice discount to have.

For those of you who don’t know, quite often the booking fee is added on top of what the property owner charges, especially with smaller properties. Obviously, if they offer Genius discounts or other last-minute deals, it might be cheaper or equal on booking.com, but it’s always worth checking directly.

With that, our planning was done. Accommodation, car, flights—sorted. All we had to do now was pack.