Azores · Portugal
September
The sweet spot — summer crowds thin, sea temperature still warm, and the Azores returns to a manageable scale.
Best match
#2 of 12 months
September is one of the best times to visit Azores.
Climate
High
25°C
Low
19°C
Rain
45mm
Sun
8hrs/day
30-year climate normals · Open Meteo ERA5
How September scores in Azores
Weather
Excellent
Value
Good
Crowds
Good
Events
Good
Atmosphere
Excellent
What you gain in September
- ↑September is the optimal month for the Azores: the August peak crowds have gone, the sea is at its warmest (24°C), accommodation prices drop 25–30%, and the weather remains mostly excellent with only the beginning of autumn fronts arriving in the final week; the combination of summer conditions and shoulder-season crowds makes September the most balanced month
- ↑Whale watching in September transitions to the autumn migration period: northern bottlenose whales and false killer whales appear on the deeper Atlantic passages, and the permanent sperm whale population is joined by autumn migratory species that make the species diversity the second most interesting period of the year (after April–May)
- ↑Grape harvest on Pico: the UNESCO-listed Pico wine landscape (the only Atlantic island wine classified by UNESCO) hosts its grape harvest (vindima) in September — small-scale family wine cooperatives harvest the Verdelho grapes from the distinctive lava field vineyards on the island's southern shore; visitor participation in the harvest is arranged through the Museu do Vinho in Madalena
What you sacrifice
- ↓Autumn fronts begin in late September — the first Atlantic depressions arrive in the final 10 days of September; a September visit should plan activities and hiking for the first 3 weeks and use the final days for indoor cultural activities
- ↓Some seasonal operators (particularly on smaller islands like Flores, Corvo, and Graciosa) begin winding down in September; activities that require minimum group sizes become harder to book as visitor numbers fall
- ↓Pico summit hiking window closes in mid-September — by the last week of September the summit is frequently in cloud again; September 1–15 is the final reliable window for a clear summit ascent
How September compares to May (best month)
| Factor | September | May ★ |
|---|---|---|
| Weather | 8 | 7 |
| Value | 6 | 7 |
| Crowds | 6 | 7 |
September in other destinations
Lisbon (24.6°C)Barcelona (25.5°C)Tokyo (28.1°C)Bali (30.4°C)Santorini (24.1°C)Paris (21.6°C)New York (23.9°C)Marrakech (31.6°C)Amsterdam (18.8°C)Maldives (30.2°C)Rome (26.5°C)Bangkok (31°C)Istanbul (24.2°C)Vienna (22.1°C)Seoul (25.1°C)Dubrovnik (24.9°C)Rio de Janeiro (27.3°C)Kyoto (28.6°C)Phuket (31°C)Cape Town (19°C)Prague (21°C)Amalfi Coast (27°C)Mexico City (22°C)Medellín (28°C)Fiji (27°C)London (20°C)Sydney (20°C)Iceland (10°C)Tulum (32°C)Dubai (39°C)Singapore (32°C)Hoi An (31°C)Chiang Mai (31°C)Miami (32.8°C)Florence (26.3°C)Queenstown (12.5°C)Madrid (28.7°C)Porto (25°C)Edinburgh (16°C)Copenhagen (18°C)Budapest (23°C)Kraków (19°C)Tbilisi (26°C)Palawan (30°C)Hanoi (31°C)Osaka (29°C)Goa (30°C)Cusco (20°C)Buenos Aires (18°C)Mykonos (27°C)Zanzibar (27°C)Sri Lanka (30°C)Costa Rica (24°C)Cancun (31°C)Krabi (31°C)Athens (29°C)Seville (31°C)Cartagena (31°C)Siem Reap (31°C)Havana (31°C)Split (26°C)Taipei (31°C)Kuala Lumpur (32°C)Valletta (29°C)Ho Chi Minh City (32°C)Hawaii (31°C)Cappadocia (27°C)Dominican Republic (31°C)Jamaica (32°C)Tanzania (25°C)Seychelles (27°C)Nepal (26°C)Jordan (32°C)Bora Bora (27°C)Los Angeles (28.1°C)Cairo (35.9°C)Kenya (25.3°C)Jaipur (32.1°C)Las Vegas (36.2°C)San Francisco (20.8°C)Madeira (26.5°C)Vancouver (19.2°C)Muscat (38.1°C)Lima (17.8°C)Cinque Terre (25°C)Kotor (27°C)Tel Aviv (30°C)Santiago (18°C)Bogotá (18°C)Bruges (19.2°C)Penang (31.8°C)Lombok (31°C)Cape Verde (29.2°C)Fez (32.8°C)Kerala (30°C)Kigali (27°C)Hong Kong (29°C)Oslo (18°C)Auckland (16°C)
Climate data: 30-year normals (1991–2020) from Open Meteo ERA5 reanalysis. Scores compare months within Azores, not across destinations. Methodology →