What to see?

The monumental part of the island counts with innumerable churches and chapels that have been built from the XVI century. Emphasize the following:

The Santa María Madalena Church. Located in the entrance of the Madalena Villa, next to the sea is the largest temple of the island. Founded in the XVII century, its frontage suffered important alterations on the final XIX century. On the inside it is important to emphasize the golden carved of its principal chapel and two sides’ altars of historic glazed tile and a group of images.

The Convent and Church of San Pedro de Alcántara. This building of the XVIII century offers a good panoramic of the villa of Sao Roque and of the ocean. It’s a baroque building that presents an interesting frontage with church towers and arches. In its interior preserves some valuable golden carved and several religious images.

The San Francisco Convent and Nuestra Señora de la Concepción Church. Its building dates from the XVII and XVIII centuries and was constructed in the same place where two centuries before existed a little chapel. Attached to the temple it is located the old Franciscan convent with frontage and masonry worked. This convent shelters the Municipal Chamber of Lajes do Pico.

San Pedro Chapel. Built in 1460, was the first temple constructed in Lajes do Pico. This chapel still conserves its primitive sketch, even though during time has suffered many rebuilding.

In the island it also can be found interesting museums, among those who emphasize:

The Wine Museum. Rebuild in 1999 and installed in the old Convent of the Carmelites in the Madalena villa, collects the tradition the wine growing of the island, where is produced the famous verdelho wine.

Museum of the Whaling. Recreates the whale’s history of the Azores, through an exposition of ships, tools, and objects fabricated with whale bones. Gathers an important collection of scrimshau. Equally exposes the first boat with motor used in the hunting of whales. It also counts with a little library with Portuguese, English, and American bibliographies, maps and copies of books of on board of old whaling. The museum pretends to be a center of historic studies of the Atlantic Whale, and also a center of cultural interest in the Island.

The museum is complemented with an iron shop where it is shown how the lances, harpoons and other metallic tools where made for the hunting of this cetaceous. Outside the center, it was rebuilt a fabric for the obtaining in a direct form the precious oil of the Whales.

Definitely, it’s about the unique museum of the country specialized in the thematic of whale, constituting a forced reference in the local and international museum panorama.

Museum of the Whale Industry in San Roque. Located next to the port, is installed in the old fabric of the Whale and is internationally considered as one of the best museums in the industry of its kind, where is showed how was effectuated the hunting of the whale and the later process of transformation. In this museum a spectacular collection of cauldrons, ovens, machines and other tools used in the profit of the cetaceous in oil and dough can be seen.

	Pico e flores

As for its landscape richness, the island of Pico counts with a significant nature heritage, emphasizing on the following interesting places:

Mountain of Pico. With 2.352 meters of height is the highest elevation of the Azores and of the Portuguese continent and is Nature Reserve. The climbing to the top of del Pico, although exhausting, is compensate by the magnificent landscape that offers the rest of the islands of the central group. Terceira, San Jorge, Graciosa and Faial. However, is recommended to go in accompany of a guide and get informed of the risks that climbing such altitude may suppose.

The Arch of the Dog: It is a rocky formation which configuration reminds the snout of a dog. The ocean penetrates into the different tunnels made by the erosion making an interesting effect.

Quinta de las Rosas. Park with trees that has a rich variety of exotic species. It’s located in the nearness of Magdalena and where the horizon can be observed from the balcony that exists there.

Mistérios do Santa Luzia, Prainha and Sao Joao. It is a lava formation born of several volcanic eruptions that solidify in the ocean and unite the island. The cooling of the lavas and the gas escapes originated the appearance of hollows that took on the aspect of caves adorned with stalactites and stalagmites through the long volcanic passes that penetrate in the depths of the ground. Crossing it with adequate equipment and in company of a guide constitutes an exciting experience.

Forna de Frei Matias. Tunnel located in the western slope of the Pico Mountain, with almost 650 meters of length.

Landscape of the Vine Culture. In the parish of the Crianza Vieja is located the most representative and conserved plot of the entire wine growing zone. It constitutes an exceptional testimony of a cultural tradition and a notable example of a landscape that illustrates different stages of the human being pass.

Mercy. In the Matos Souto Park exists uncommon vegetal species.

The High land balcony. Located between Santo Amaro and Misericordia at 415 meters of height, from this balcony it can be observed the impressive south coast of Sao Jorge, in the same way the richness of the island of Pico forests landscapes.

Other places of tourist interest of the zone are:

La Caleta del Nesquim. A locality that has a little port of fishers with a great whaler tradition and where the first whaler was constituted.

Ribeiras. A locality a port of fishermen’s, with great traditions in the activity of fish farming. Is a land of good sailors.

Cooperative Warehouse. Room where it is produced the famous green wine very appreciated by its inhabitants. Who passes there, receives a free taste of the Lajido wine.