Vila Franca do Campo beyond the islet: Lagoa do Congro, Nossa Senhora da Paz and the town of 1522

Most people come to Vila Franca do Campo for the boat to the islet and leave again. The town and the hills behind it are worth half a day of their own, and they work in every month, including the long stretch of the year when the islet boat does not run. This guide covers the hidden crater lake of Lagoa do Congro, the hilltop sanctuary of Nossa Senhora da Paz, the municipal museum, and the story of 1522 that explains why the island's capital is Ponta Delgada and not here.

Vila Franca do Campo was São Miguel's first capital. It became a vila, a chartered town, in 1472, and the island's donatary captain and its customs house were based here. In the early hours of 22 October 1522 an earthquake shook the slopes above it loose. Mud and boulders ran down the valleys and buried the town, and the debris reaching the sea raised a wave that wrecked boats near the islet. Between 3,000 and 5,000 people died. The chronicler Gaspar Frutuoso wrote it all down about 70 years later.

The island's centre of power moved to Ponta Delgada, and it never came back. What you walk through today is the town rebuilt after the disaster. The municipal museum presents itself as the place to rediscover "the first capital of São Miguel", and it is a good first stop for that reason.

The main building is the Solar dos Viscondes do Botelho, a manor house on Rua Visconde do Botelho. The collection covers the local pottery, crafts, whaling art, the viola da terra (the local guitar), the old water mills and archaeological finds. Other branches include the Master António Barata Pottery Museum and an old earthenware kiln. Those two are seen on guided visits that you book by phone on 296 539 282, and tours in English are available.

Entry is free. The Azores museums network lists the opening hours as Tuesday to Friday 09:00 to 12:30 and 14:00 to 17:00, and Saturday and Sunday 14:00 to 17:00, closed on Mondays. That listing carries no date, so phone before you plan a day around it.

The white chapel sits on a hill just above the town. The present building dates from 1764. It stands on the site of an older chapel, possibly from the 16th century, where by tradition a shepherd found an image of the Virgin in a cave. It has been listed as a building of public interest since 1991.

You climb to it by a staircase of 100 steps. The landings carry blue and white tile panels of the mysteries of the rosary, and there is a small car park below the last flight if you drive up. The chapel itself is often locked, so come for the view: the town, the harbour and the islet below you, and the south coast running off to either side.

On 1 January 2025 the bishop of Angra raised the chapel to a diocesan sanctuary, the first Marian sanctuary on São Miguel. The decision had been taken in April 2024 after more than twenty years of requests.

Lagoa do Congro is the reason to drive into the hills. It is a small green lake at the bottom of a crater north-east of town. The regional nature park describes the crater as a maar, a hollow blown out about 3,800 years ago when rising magma met water underground. It is about 500 metres across, with steep sides that drop up to roughly 120 metres. A second, smaller pond in the same crater, the Lagoa dos Nenúfares, is named for the white water lilies that cover much of it.

The forest around the lake is not native. After José do Canto bought the land around it, he planted it with Japanese cedar, eucalyptus and camellias. The walk down feels more like an old estate than wild woodland. The name Congro goes back to the nickname of André Gonçalves Sampaio, one of the first owners. The area is now a 38-hectare protected habitat area inside the São Miguel Natural Park.

You leave the car at a small car park at the end of a dirt road and follow a zigzag path down through the trees to a little jetty on the shore. Allow about 20 minutes down and 25 back up. The path has roots and holes, so wear proper shoes, and it is slippery after rain.

The path can close after storms. In June 2023 storm Óscar brought down trees and caused landslides on it. The nature park closed it on 14 June and reopened it on 21 June once the clearing was finished. If there has been a gale in the days before your visit, check the nature park's news page before you go.

The official circular walk from Vila Franca is PRC44SMI Pico da Praia. It is 8.9 km, graded medium, about two and a half hours, along the south slope of the Serra de Água de Pau between Vila Franca and Lagoa. It passes the ruins of an old flax factory and has views down to the islet, and a 5 km return detour on PRC02SMI follows a levada to the south shore of Lagoa do Fogo.

On 7 October 2026 the official Azores trails site listed PRC44SMI as closed. Do not walk it while that notice stands; check the trail's page for its status before you plan around it. Our São Miguel hiking guide has the trails that are open.

Allow about an hour for the lake, half an hour for the chapel and an hour for the museum. With a car, a half day from Ponta Delgada covers all three, and you can add Furnas to the east in the afternoon. Our Furnas guide explains how to plan that part.

If you are here in the boat season for the islet (in 2026 it runs from 12 June to 11 October), take one of the first boats to the islet in the morning and leave the hills for the afternoon. Our islet guide covers tickets and the visitor cap. Before you leave town, buy a box of queijadas da Vila, the small cheese tarts the town is known for; our food guide says where.

How long is the walk to Lagoa do Congro? About 20 minutes down from the car park to the lake and 25 minutes back up, on a steep forest path with roots and holes.

Can you visit Nossa Senhora da Paz inside? The chapel is often locked. The staircase of 100 steps and the view over the town and the islet are open at any time.

Why was Vila Franca do Campo the capital of São Miguel? It was the island's first chartered town, from 1472, seat of the donatary captain and of the customs house. After the 1522 earthquake and landslide buried it, the capital moved to Ponta Delgada.

Is the Vila Franca do Campo museum free? Yes. Entry to the municipal museum is free. It is listed as closed on Mondays; phone 296 539 282 to confirm the hours.

• Lagoa do Congro protected area, Parques Naturais dos Açores
• Lagoa do Congro trail closed, 14 June 2023 and reopened, 21 June 2023
• PRC44SMI Pico da Praia, Trails Azores
• Vila Franca do Campo Municipal Museum, Azores museums network
• Nossa Senhora da Paz raised to a diocesan sanctuary, RTP
• 1522 Vila Franca earthquake, Wikipedia