What a Pico trip costs in 2026: mountain fees, the lava cave, whale trips, ferries and wine

Flights, rooms and the hire car will take most of a Pico budget, and you can only price those by date. The smaller costs are easier to pin down, because the mountain, the cave, the boats and the fuel all have published prices. This guide lists them with the year each figure applies to, so you can add up a week before you book.

Prices change, so check each source shortly before you go.

Mount Pico is a nature reserve, and the climbing fees are set by regional regulation (Portaria 64/2023). If you climb on your own, you pay at the Casa da Montanha when you register:

• EUR 5 to Furna Abrigo, about 45 minutes up the trail.
• EUR 15 to the crater rim.
• EUR 25 to the Piquinho, the small summit cone inside the crater.
• EUR 10 on top of that to spend the night in the crater.

Azores residents climb free. With an authorised guiding company the reserve fee drops to EUR 5 for the full climb plus EUR 5 for the Piquinho, but you pay the guide: Futurismo listed its guided climb from EUR 65 per person in October 2026.

Everyone gets a GPS tracker at registration. You can pay EUR 30 to cover yourself against losing or breaking it; without that cover, a lost or damaged tracker costs EUR 300. A rescue caused by ignoring the rules is billed at EUR 1,200. The route, the permit and the bad-weather rules are in climbing Mount Pico.

The lava tube near Criação Velha reopened on 19 July 2026 with new kinds of visit. In October 2026 the online ticket office said it was offline while it was updated with the new formats and their prices. The last published list charged EUR 10 for adults aged 15 to 64, EUR 5 for ages 7 to 14 and over-65s, and nothing for children aged 5 and 6 or for Azores residents, with helmet and torch included. Use it as a rough figure and check the price of the format you book. What the visit is like is in our Gruta das Torres guide.

Futurismo's whale and dolphin trip from Lajes do Pico cost EUR 70 per adult in October 2026, plus a EUR 4.20 fee when booked online. It takes about three hours: half an hour of check-in and safety briefing, then roughly two and a half hours at sea in a rigid inflatable. The company suggests children be over 6. Cancelling more than 48 hours ahead costs nothing; between 48 and 24 hours you lose half. Two adults should budget about EUR 150.

If whales are the reason for the trip, Espaço Talassa in Lajes sells a seven-night blue whale week for March 2027 from EUR 699 per person for one traveller, falling to EUR 417 each for four, with the boat trips and a hotel included. Seasons and seasickness are covered in whale watching from Lajes do Pico.

The island's wine cooperative, Picowines, runs three tastings at its Madalena winery: EUR 20, EUR 25 and EUR 35 per person in 2026. The EUR 20 one pours three wines in about 30 to 40 minutes; the other two pour five, and the EUR 35 tasting is for over-18s only. A cheese board adds EUR 12. You have to book and wait for confirmation, and you pay on the day. In low season tastings run Monday to Friday only. The vineyard landscape itself is in the UNESCO vineyards.

Atlânticoline's 2026 fares for a non-resident adult, one way:

• Madalena to Horta (Faial): EUR 8.20, or EUR 16.40 return. Children aged 3 to 12 pay EUR 4.10 and over-65s EUR 5.75.
• Cais do Pico (São Roque) to Horta: EUR 12.20.
• Madalena or Cais do Pico to Velas (São Jorge): EUR 17.30.
• Pico to Terceira: EUR 45.90.

The Madalena to Horta boat runs all year and takes about half an hour. Some longer routes run only in summer: in 2026 the Terceira sailings ran from June to 30 September. Check the timetable for your dates before you plan a crossing around it. How to fit Faial into a day is in day trip from Faial to Pico; the timings work the same in the other direction.

The Azores regional government caps fuel prices. From 1 October 2026 the cap was EUR 1.924 a litre for unleaded 95 and EUR 1.939 for diesel, up from EUR 1.620 and EUR 1.474 in January. A 40-litre fill of petrol therefore costs about EUR 77. Hire rates depend on the season and we found no published price worth quoting; book early for July and August. Buses exist but are too thin for sightseeing, as getting around Pico explains.

All five bathing places we list for Pico are free: the Zona de Banhos da Furna and Poça Branca in São Roque do Pico, Areia Larga in Madalena, the natural pools at Santa Cruz das Ribeiras and the pool in Lajes do Pico. Where to swim is in swimming on Pico.

Ponta Delgada, on São Miguel, has charged EUR 2 a night since 2025. For Madalena, São Roque do Pico and Lajes do Pico we found no published tourist tax regulation, though one booking listing in São Roque mentions a tax line. We could not confirm it either way, so check your booking and your bill.

The "Azores Fare" of EUR 61 return between islands is only for people with tax residence in the Azores. Visitors pay normal fares, priced by date.

Using the 2026 figures above for two adults: the crater climb EUR 30, a whale trip booked online EUR 148.40, a five-wine tasting EUR 50, a day on Faial by ferry EUR 32.80, the cave at the old price EUR 20, and a 40-litre tank of petrol about EUR 77. That comes to roughly EUR 360 before rooms, car and food. Add EUR 20 if you both go on to the Piquinho.

How much does it cost to climb Mount Pico in 2026? On your own, EUR 15 to the crater and EUR 25 to the Piquinho summit, paid at the Casa da Montanha. Azores residents climb free. A guided climb starts at about EUR 65 per person.

Do I have to pay for the GPS tracker? No, it is handed out at registration. You can pay EUR 30 to cover loss or damage; without that cover, a lost or broken tracker costs EUR 300.

How much is the ferry from Pico to Faial? EUR 8.20 one way for a non-resident adult in 2026, EUR 16.40 return. It runs all year and takes about half an hour.

Is there a tourist tax on Pico? We could not confirm one in 2026. Check your booking confirmation and the bill at check-out.