Review: Furnas Boutique Hotel, The Azores

Lucky, you've been eating to much eggs lately. Give them a break 🙂

The breakfast quality looks great, and for that price, I could't ask for anything more. I'm looking rates and in winter it's around 90€.

You didn't mention the stone signs haha, I like it!

Would be interesting to hear about your less-than-positive interactions with the locals, even if just a general overview.

Lucky redeemed SPG points for a hotel! Praise the Gods! 😀

@ AdamR -- It was nothing crazy, but the crew on the flight wasn't friendly, the guy at immigration was rude, and the person at the car rental counter wasn't friendly either. So it was just that every experience we had with locals up until that point wasn't positive. Fortunately I left with a much more favorable impression.

Hi Ben, I think you made the right choice to stay at this property than Ponta Delgada. Yes, it might be closer to facilities, but I believe even a short drive away from Furnas, you can find smaller local places to have food.
I have been to Sao Miguel and visited Furnas (famous for it's thermal water and activities related to it). I did not stay at this property, but did have tea here and while it is one of the pricier property on the island, it is not overly expensive as you can see from the menu.
Indeed, just 2 days is not enough to visit this beautiful island. I was here for 3 days (cut short by one due to the technical issue with the A310 flight from LIS). Just this island the nature is out of this world, I can't imagine the beauty of the other islands.
People here are friendly and helpful. Food is superb and cheap. I would certainly want to return to the Azores to discover the other islands.

I noticed for the welcome wine bottle you were not asked if you wanted put in the chiller. 🙂

The Azorean equivalent of Hawaiian pizza made with fermented red peppers sausage and pineapple gave me an idea for dinner tonight. Muito obrigado!

Excellent review Ben, thank you. Looks like a great place to decompress, especially after your unpleasant flight. Quite an elegant looking property and even the parking lot view was nice. The driving excursions were very appealing. I am now thinking Azores as a destination, however I might look for an alternative airline...and no, not TAP.

1. Why is the indoor pool water brown?

2. I guess they exhausted all of the design and decor budget on the lobby and exterior because the rooms are pretty spartan, at least according to the pictures. Some color or art on the walls would have been nice.

3. Great to see a good coffeemaker in the room.

4. The breakfast buffet looks good for the price. Quite reasonable at about $17.

Question: Do you tip in the Azores? I'm guessing not.

@ FNT Delta Diamond -- It's a thermal pool, so I believe the water was pumped in from the nearby lake, or something. Maybe someone with a better understanding of this stuff than me can chime in. And as far as tipping goes, there was the option to tip on receipts, but didn't feel like it was expected.

1. Why is the indoor pool water brown?
Iron water.
https://www.google.pt/search?q=água+férrea+furnas&client=opera&hs=EhF&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYqbi56pXVAhWJXBQKHaDyDBoQ_AUIBigB&biw=1680&bih=940

...
3. Great to see a good coffeemaker in the room.
Yes. At 240€ a nigth a capsule coffe machine is great.

4. The breakfast buffet looks good for the price. Quite reasonable at about $17.
Unless you make just a bit over that a day (+-25€), like most workers serving you there, it's minimum wage for all, otherwise most business owners would not even pay a dollar a day.

Question: Do you tip in the Azores? I’m guessing not.
It's at your discretion. As long as is not considered pay/wage because the government would probably want it's share for taxes, pension, health care, and so on.

Goo that you had a nice time around the island it is indeed a lovely place, although it is getting to crowded with tourists all year long, I remember when you would have some tourists during the end of spring and summer, and I could enjoy and share my island with them at that time, and the rest of the year was just us locals, no tourists, no bloody sunday drivers during the working/week days on teh main roads, when you are trying to get to meetings/work, no need for reservations in some restaurants, lots of room at the thermal pools, by the lagoons, etc.

But the airways opened to Ryanair and Easyjet, and so did TAP come along, about 2 years ago, and all this tourists came, which is good for the otherwise stagnated economy, but that also means that we enjoy less of our natural resources.

Also SATA is a public/regional government company, because as usual private companies will only make public transportation, specially between 9 spread out populated islands in the middle of the north Atlantic, if strongly beneficial, for instance Easyjet is leaving the LIS/PDl route later this year, and they say it's because they don't have a second plane to add to that route.

What a beautiful spot to visit, Lucky. I've been to Porto, Lisbon, the Algarve, and Madeira. I love everything about Portugal - the history, food, culture, scenery, value - it's all top notch.

The cuisine might be unique to Europe in that so many of the dishes are 'new to you'. Dine in France, Germany, Italy, even Spain, and you're likely to eat dishes familiar to you. No so much in Portugal. It's such a delicious savory cuisine; unfortunately it's unknown in the US outside of Newark and SE Mass.

The property looks lovely. However, they could class up the minibar with the addition of some AriZona Iced Tea. 🙂

Hi Ben,

Just to say, that as Portuguese and as passionate of our Açores Islands, i liked vey much to read this review and expecially to knew that you liked to be here. Just have in mind that you have 8 more beautifull islands to discover.
All the best,

Ben, do you know if the Furnas Bouutique and The Azor have left Bonvoy? Trying to book and nothing shows up for the Azores or Ponta Delgada.