Visite privée des grottes avec un géologue

What a day! Each of the sites we visited with Ricardo—Gruta do Natal, Algar Do Carvao, and Furnas do Enxofre—was fascinating and astonishing beautiful. But to have a geologist explain the wonders we were seeing took our experience to a whole different level. Ricardo also offered a kind and steadying hand as we two older women made our way along wet, slippery paths and ducked under volcanic structures. Obrigado, Ricardo!

Ricardo was very knowledgeable, friendly, and made sure to take his time explaining all the various rock formations. Super cool! It was well worth it, highly recommend.

Ricardo was an excellent tour guide. He was knowledgeable about geology, creative, and very patient with our questions. I highly recommend Ricardo if you want to do a deeper dive about the geological formations of Terceira.

Having Ricardo as our guide took this tour from good to excellent. He was patient and thoughtful. He allowed us to go at our own pace but was there to answer any questions. He added invaluable information and insight, we never could have had if we not had an experience geologist to guide us. I would also recommend bringing a raincoat and wearing grippy closed toed shoes. There are a lot of stairs and uneven ground but doable even for my 63 year old mother.

We are adventurous and this was our first trip to the Azores. Ricardo picked us up at the square in Angra do Heroismo. The big cave is closed temporarily for upgrades so he suggested some other activities and left it to us to decide. We went inside lava tubes at Christmas cave and also visited an area with multiple fumaroles. As scientists we knew right away talking with him that he was very knowledgeable. Ricardo says he's from the mainland, and fell in love with Terceira when he was completing exploration work for the geothermal power station that now supplies a percentage of Terceira's electricity. He showed us the outside of the geothermal plant and explained how they use the steam and water to generate electricity. He decided to come back to Terceira after working there. We have met people like Ricardo while traveling before, and he smiled widely when we mentioned some people decide to relocate because they fall in love with a certain location and way of life. Ricardo fits this profile. We spent the last hour enjoying local cheeses in a cantina overlooking the ocean and chatting about travelling. Ricardo's parting advise was to try the fish soup at a restaurant at our last stop, Sao Miguel Island. It was magnificent advise! Overall, it was an amazing time and we felt like we made a new friend. Thank you, Ricardo!

Ricardo was very knowledgeable and an excellent guide. The tour was easy for our 8 and 10 year olds to also enjoy. Don’t miss this opportunity while staying in Terceira.

Ricardo was kind, knowledgeable and relaxed and made us feel very welcome. His geologist’s perspective was very enriching for our experience of visiting the island. Highly recommend. :)

It was a wonderful tour. We enjoyed it a lot, and the guide was very knowledgeable and friendly. The two caves are definitely a must in Terceira, and the Algar do Carvão was breathtaking.

Best trip of our visit to Terceira! Great communication re Hotel pick up . Having Ricardo as our guide meant that we really got the best out of our visits to Gruta do Natal and Algar do Carvão. Having the features explained and been shown what to look for made the experience soo much more interesting. We loved it . We got to see the island with someone who was great who explained the area and also had a fabulous stop for local wine and cheese. What a great experience!

This tour is a must! Ricardo is a wonderful and knowledgeable guide (and he takes great photos too!) Beyond the views, I learned a lot about lava formations and other little geology tidbits. The trip to the caves with Ricardo feel personal and special versus a larger group tour. I have already told all my friends (and my mom) they have to do this when they visit Terceira!