Practical essentials on Faial: hospital, health centre, pharmacies, fuel and cash

Faial is a small island. From Horta it is about 21 kilometres by road to the Capelinhos lighthouse at the far western tip, and nearly everything a visitor needs is in Horta itself: the island's hospital, its health centre, its three pharmacies, most of the fuel stations, the banks and the main post office. The villages have health posts and a few cash machines, and not much more.

That makes Faial easier than most of the Azores for errands. If you are staying in Horta, all of what follows is a short walk or drive away. If you have a rural house in Capelo, Praia do Norte or Cedros, do your errands on the days you go into town anyway.

In an emergency, call 112, the European emergency number. It works in the Azores as it does anywhere else in the EU.

Faial has a hospital, which is not true of every island in the group. The Hospital da Horta is on Estrada Príncipe Alberto do Mónaco, on the south side of town, and its general number is +351 292 201 000. Its contacts page also lists a separate line for the emergency department (urgência), +351 292 201 048. Its clinical services include general surgery, internal medicine, orthopaedics, paediatrics, obstetrics and an intensive care unit.

For anything less urgent, the island's public health service runs one health centre, at Vista Alegre in Horta, phone +351 292 207 200. It offers general practice and nursing. We could not find published opening hours, so phone first.

The regional government's health register lists thirteen smaller health posts in the villages. Seven have a GP as well as a nurse: Castelo Branco, Cedros, Flamengos, Salão, Capelo, Praia do Norte and Ribeira Funda. The other six, among them Pedro Miguel, Feteira and Praia do Almoxarife, offer nursing only. They are there for local patients first, though for a dressing or a blood pressure check one may be closer than Horta.

Two phone numbers worth saving: the Azores health line, Linha Saúde Açores, on 808 24 60 24, and the Faial volunteer fire brigade, the Bombeiros Voluntários do Faial, on +351 292 200 850. Both are on the hospital's contacts page.

Bring travel insurance that covers medical evacuation, and if you live in the EU, bring your European Health Insurance Card.

The regional register lists three pharmacies, all in the centre of Horta and within a few minutes' walk of each other:

• Farmácia Ayres Pinheiro, Rua Serpa Pinto 39, phone +351 292 292 749.
• Farmácia Corrêa, Rua Dom Pedro IV 31, phone +351 292 292 968.
• Farmácia Lecoq, Rua Conselheiro de Medeiros 19, phone +351 292 200 054.

The same register lists two small pharmacy branches outside town, one on the square in Cedros (+351 292 946 164) and one in Castelo Branco. Painkillers, plasters and other medicines that need no prescription are also sold at Well's, on the hospital road.

The register has not been revised in some years, so check what is open when you arrive, and ask at any pharmacy which one is covering nights and Sundays. If you take a regular prescription, bring the full supply for the trip and a copy of the prescription, because an island pharmacy may not stock your brand.

Repsol lists two stations in Horta, one on the roundabout at the seafront avenue and one on Rua do Pasteleiro. In October 2026 it gave the same hours for both: 07:00 to 22:00, every day of the week. Both sell 95 unleaded and diesel.

OpenStreetMap shows four more road stations, without current hours: a Galp and an Azoria elsewhere in Horta, a Galp in Castelo Branco near the airport, and an Azoria on the main road through Salão on the north coast.

We found nothing mapped at the western end, in Capelo, Praia do Norte or Varadouro, or in Cedros. On an island this size that is rarely a problem: the Castelo Branco station is about 14 kilometres from Capelinhos. Still, fill up in Horta before a day out west rather than counting on the village stations' hours.

The Azores sets maximum prices for fuel. For October 2026 the maximum was 1.924 euros a litre for 95 unleaded and 1.939 for diesel.

Among the bank branches mapped in Horta are Millennium bcp on Largo Duque de Ávila e Bolama, Crédito Agrícola on Rua Serpa Pinto and Montepio on Rua Vasco da Gama, each with a cash machine. Crédito Agrícola's mapped hours are weekdays 08:30 to 15:00 with an hour off at lunch. There are also machines on Rua Cônsul Dabney (listed as open round the clock), inside the Pingo Doce supermarket on the bypass road, at the Repsol on Rua do Pasteleiro and in the airport terminal.

Outside Horta, OpenStreetMap shows cash machines in Cedros, Feteira and Capelo. Take out cash before a day in the villages anyway: a small café, a village festival stall or a farm selling cheese may not take cards.

The main CTT post office is on Largo Duque de Ávila e Bolama in the centre of Horta, the same square as Millennium bcp. Cedros has a smaller CTT counter on Rua da Praça. We found no published hours for either, so treat the post as a weekday errand and check the door.

Banks and the post office are closed at weekends. Faial's buses run Monday to Saturday only, so a Sunday without a car means a taxi or a walk. The two Repsol stations keep their 07:00 to 22:00 hours on Sundays, but village shops may not open, so buy what you need on Saturday. Our guide to getting around Faial has the bus lines, taxis and car hire, and the Horta guide covers where to stay in and around town.

• Travel insurance with medical evacuation cover, and the European Health Insurance Card if you have one.
• Your full supply of any regular medicine, with the prescription.
• The hospital (+351 292 201 000) and Linha Saúde Açores (808 24 60 24) saved in your phone.
• Cash from Horta before a day in the villages.
• A full tank from Horta before driving out to Capelinhos.
• Food for Sunday, bought on Saturday.

Is there a hospital on Faial?

Yes. The Hospital da Horta, on Estrada Príncipe Alberto do Mónaco in Horta, phone +351 292 201 000, with a separate emergency department line on +351 292 201 048. In an emergency, call 112.

Where are the pharmacies on Faial?

Three are in central Horta: Ayres Pinheiro on Rua Serpa Pinto, Corrêa on Rua Dom Pedro IV and Lecoq on Rua Conselheiro de Medeiros. There are small pharmacy branches in Cedros and Castelo Branco.

Where can I get fuel on Faial?

Mostly in Horta, where Repsol listed two stations open 07:00 to 22:00 every day in October 2026. There are also stations in Castelo Branco near the airport and in Salão on the north coast. None is mapped at the western end around Capelo.

Can I get cash outside Horta?

Yes, at a few machines: the airport, Cedros, Feteira and Capelo all have one mapped. Horta has several banks and machines, including one listed as open 24 hours on Rua Cônsul Dabney.