Azores Bus Independent transit guide

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Planning guide

Cruise day by bus: from Portas do Mar and back before all-aboard

A cruise call gives one daylight window and a hard all-aboard. The Ponta Delgada terminal is on the seafront avenue where most AzoresBus lines start, so the bus is a real option; the question is which line has a printed return that lands you back on the avenue with margin. This guide ranks the choices by return risk.

Open the official timetable

The short answer

Lowest risk: Lagoa on line 311 (about 30 minutes, thirteen weekday departures from Alfândega, returns to Forte de São Brás until 18:40) and Vila Franca do Campo on line 315 (about 50 minutes, returns until 18:45 on weekdays and 16:30 on Sundays) [source, source]. Medium: Furnas on the 318 (out 09:00, back from Furnas (Polícia) at 16:19 on weekdays and 17:18 at weekends, reaching Forte de São Brás at 17:50 and 18:50) [source]. Highest: Sete Cidades, where the weekday returns are the 205 at 09:30 and 12:00 (the latter only to Várzea) and the 17:15 line 206 shuttle to the Mosteiros junction, and where the 208 is the only weekend line, with a two-hour ride each way [source, source, source].

311 Ponta Delgada – Lagoa Weekdays: 13 trips 07:50–20:05 · 11 trips 07:20–18:40 315 Ponta Delgada – Vila Franca do Campo Weekdays: 12 trips 07:00–19:00 · 13 trips 06:30–18:45 318 Ponta Delgada – Povoação Weekdays: 4 trips 09:00–16:00 · 5 trips 06:40–16:00 205 Ponta Delgada – Sete Cidades (via Candelária) Weekdays: 4 trips 08:25–18:50 · 3 trips 07:00–12:00

Step by step

Start on the avenue

The Alfândega and Marina stops are the first stops printed on the 311, 315, 318 and 110 tables and are on the seafront near the terminal; the 205 starts at Forte de São Brás at the western end of the avenue [source, source, source, source, source]. The ticket office at Avenida Infante D. Henrique, Edifício Solmar, Loja 22 sells day passes on weekdays 09:00–19:00 and Saturdays 09:00–13:00, but not on Sundays [source, source].

Lagoa in half a day

Weekdays: out on the 311 at 10:10 (Lagoa (Santa Cruz) 10:40), back at 13:30 or 14:50, arriving Forte de São Brás at 14:00 or 15:20 [source]. Saturdays: out 09:30 or 10:30, back 11:00 (or 16:50) [source]. Sundays and holidays: the 311 prints no morning trip; use the 315 out at 10:00 (Lagoa stops before Vila Franca) and back on a 315 that passes Lagoa after leaving Vila Franca at 15:00 [source, source].

Vila Franca do Campo in half a day

Weekdays: out at 09:00 or 11:00 (terminal 09:50 or 11:50), back at 13:00, 14:45 or 16:25 (Forte de São Brás 13:50, 15:35, 17:15) [source]. Saturdays: out 08:00 or 11:00, back 15:00 (15:50) [source]. Sundays and holidays: out 10:00 or 12:30, back 15:00 or 16:30 (15:50 or 17:20) [source].

Furnas in a day

Every day: out on the 318 at 09:00, at Furnas (Largo Marquês da Praia) 10:28; back from Furnas (Polícia) at 16:19 on weekdays (Forte de São Brás 17:50) or 17:18 at weekends (18:50) [source]. The earlier 110 at 07:15 reaches Águas Quentes at 08:45 and returns at 09:10 or 17:10 (Alfândega 18:28 on weekdays, 19:14 at weekends), which is late for most sailings [source]. A ship that sails before 18:00 rules out the 110 return.

Sete Cidades only with a wide window

On a weekday the 205 leaves Forte de São Brás at 08:25 and is in the village at 09:30; the printed returns are 09:30 (Marina 10:35) and 12:00 to Várzea, where the 206 is printed at 12:20 towards Hospital (13:20) [source, source]. That is a two-and-a-half-hour visit with one change on the way back, or a full day with the 17:15 shuttle and a change at the Mosteiros junction for an 18:40 or 19:05 arrival [source, source]. At weekends the 208 takes two hours each way [source].

Fares

Network day passes published by AzoresBus: 1 Dia€7.00 · 2 Dias€12.00 · 3 Dias€16.00 · 5 Dias€25.00 — each valid for the whole network from first validation.

What goes wrong

The printed return is the last bus, not a frequency. The 311's Sunday column has one return, at 17:45; the 110 has one afternoon return at 17:10 that reaches the avenue at 19:14 at weekends; the 205 has no return after 12:00 on its own table [source, source, source]. Pick the return first, then the outbound, and treat any change between lines as a printed coincidence rather than a guaranteed connection.

Not reachable by bus

Lagoa do Fogo, Vista do Rei and the Furnas lakeshore caldeiras have no printed stop; guided trips cover them from the terminal [source].

Lines in this guide

Places: Ponta Delgada · Lagoa · Vila Franca do Campo · Ribeira Grande

Quick answers

Can I get to Sete Cidades and back by bus on a cruise day?

On a weekday with a wide window: out 08:25 on the 205, back either at 12:00 with a change at Várzea (Ponta Delgada 13:20) or at 17:15 with a change at the Mosteiros junction (18:40 or 19:05) [source, source, source]. At weekends only the two-hour 208 [source].

Which is the safest bus trip from the cruise port?

Line 311 to Lagoa or line 315 to Vila Franca do Campo, both with several printed returns on weekdays and Saturdays [source, source].

Where does the bus back arrive?

The 311, 315 and 318 returns end at Forte de São Brás at the western end of the seafront; the 110 ends at Alfândega [source, source, source, source].

Carry the timetable

Every São Miguel line offline in the Azores Bus app

The operator-sourced timetables, stored on your phone for the moment the last bus matters and the signal does not.

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Sources