The Terra Nostra Garden Hotel is a gateway to stunningly beautiful botanical gardens. Guests of hotel have 24-hour access to the gardens, including a large thermal pool filled with volcanic water.

Hotel guests have free parking at the front of the hotel. On arrival to the barrier, press the buzzer and the hotel staff will raise the barrier. On our arrival, a staff member came out to welcome us and offer help with bags.

The reception staff were exceptionally friendly. We were upgraded to a garden view room on the second floor.

It was a large room, with a comfortable king bed. A welcome gift of water and Portuguese cakes. A bottle of water was left each day.

There was a nice terrace with a view to the gardens. It looks like first-floor rooms have a shared terrace with sunbeds.

The bathroom was small but clean and functional.

In addition to white towels, grey bathrobes and towels were provided for use when visiting the thermal pools - the iron colour gets everywhere and white robes wouldn't last long.

There was a safe and good Wi-Fi.

What was missing was a tea- and coffee-making facilities. Just a kettle would have been nice.

The hotel has a lovely warm pool - still suitable for swimming. Closes at 8pm which is a little early.

The gardens are currently open to the public from 10:30 am – 4:30 pm (admission €10). Guests of the Terra Nostra Garden Hotel have free 24-hour access. We were able to access the thermal pools and Jacuzzis after closing. While having dinner in the hotel restaurant, we watched as other guests headed out for a late-night swim.

The thermal pool, filled from hot volcanic springs and is rich in iron and other minerals, hence the colour – good for the skin apparently.

We had both breakfast and dinner included in our room rate. The dinner is fine dining - both evenings we had a window seat to the gardens. For inclusive diners, there were several choices for each course and everything was delicious. I imagine the à la carte is similar - we certainly didn't feel as if we were having a budget version of the menu. Service was formal but friendly.

After such a fantastic dinner, breakfast was a little underwhelming. In addition to the buffet, there were some cooked-to-order items, but they were chargeable. For example, eggs benedict was €12.

If you are visiting the Azores, then the Terra Nostra Garden is a must visit. If you can afford to stay at the hotel, even for only one night, then do it. This isn't just a hotel, but a gateway to paradise.

Terra Nostra Garden Hotel
Rua Padre José Jacinto Botelho 5, 9675-061 Furnas, Azores, Portugal

Phone: +351 296 549 090

https://www.bensaudehotels.com/en/ter...