Camping on Terceira: the Salga, Cinco Ribeiras and Biscoitos campsites, and the rules

Terceira has three established campsites, and each one is next to a place to swim. Salga is on the south-east coast, between Angra do Heroísmo and Praia da Vitória. Cinco Ribeiras is on the west end of the south coast, beyond Angra. Biscoitos is on the north coast, by the lava pools. Which one suits you depends mostly on which side of the island you want to wake up on, and on when you are travelling. Salga is the only one with a published season and price list for 2026, and its season is short.

The Parque de Campismo da Salga is on Caminho da Salga in the parish of São Sebastião, in the municipality of Angra do Heroísmo. The Terceira tourism site Explore Terceira puts it about 14 km from the historic centre of Angra and about 12 km from Praia da Vitória, with the Salga bathing area a three-minute walk away. That bathing area is a pebble bay with a small bar, a slipway and Blue Flag status. The water gets deep a few metres out, so bring shoes for the stones. The bay is also where islanders beat off a Spanish landing in 1581, and a monument above the shore marks it.

For 2026 the campsite opened on 4 June and closes on 15 September. Reception is open every day from 9:00 to 12:30 and from 13:30 to 19:00. Facilities listed are electricity hook-ups, hot showers, free internet, barbecues and a children's playground.

The campsite's 2026 price sheet:

• Tent or caravan: €5 a day or €30 a week. Putting up an awning adds €2 a day.
• Motorhome: €10 a day or €60 a week.
• Use of the facilities, charged per person on top of the pitch: €2 a day from age 10, free under 10 and for people with a disability. A day visitor pays €1.
• Parking inside the campsite: €2 a day for a car, €1 for a motorbike, while spaces last.
• Ice is €3 a bag and firewood €3 for ten pieces.

Two rules from the same sheet matter before you arrive. The campsite takes no reservations, so you turn up and ask. Everyone staying has to wear an identification wristband. The contact on the price list is 295 905 451 or gdsaosebastiao@sapo.pt.

So a couple with a small tent and a car pays €5 for the pitch, €4 for the two of them and €2 for parking: €11 a night at 2026 prices.

The Parque de Campismo das Cinco Ribeiras is, according to the municipality of Angra do Heroísmo, the largest campsite in the municipality, with room for 385 tents on grass, 12 km from the city. It has a bar, a laundry, hot showers, washing-up sinks, running water and electricity, with views of the sea and of the Serra de Santa Bárbara. The parish council of Cinco Ribeiras runs it and takes bookings by phone on +351 295 907 123.

The campsite is about 100 m from the Cinco Ribeiras bathing area, built on the site of an old harbour that was the westernmost landing in the municipality. You swim from concrete terraces and ladders into water that is deep straight off the steps, and small children have a natural rock pool known as Poça das Cavalas. It is one of the best places on the island to snorkel from the shore; our guide to diving and snorkelling on Terceira has the other entries along this coast.

The municipal page gives no season or price. Camping directories list it as open from 1 June to 30 September, but none of them is dated, so treat that as a guide and call before you plan around it.

The municipal campsite at Biscoitos, in the municipality of Praia da Vitória, is run by Azure Outdoor. The address is Caminho de Santo António, 9760-051 Biscoitos, and the contacts on visitazores.com and Explore Terceira are +351 295 701 111 and azureoutdoor.campismo@gmail.com. Directories list 200 pitches, a lounge, a minimarket and a bar. Its listing on a booking platform, under the name North Coast Camping, adds tents for hire and wooden bungalows with their own bathrooms.

The reason to stay here is the Biscoitos natural pools: walkways and ladders through a field of black lava, refilled by the sea, with the walled verdelho vineyards starting right above them. On a calm day they are the best swim on Terceira. The catch is that this is the north coast, and a big northerly swell closes the pools completely. Biscoitos: natural pools, verdelho vineyards and the wine museum covers the village in more detail.

No official page we found gives a season or a price for Biscoitos, so ask both when you book.

• Travelling between 4 June and 15 September 2026 and wanting to know the cost in advance: Salga. It is also the one that sits between the two towns.
• Bringing small children: Cinco Ribeiras, for the lawn and the rock pool at Poça das Cavalas.
• Wanting a bungalow rather than a tent, or a base for the north coast and the wine country: Biscoitos.

Outside high summer, expect to find Salga and probably Cinco Ribeiras closed. If you are coming in spring or autumn, Biscoitos is the one to contact first; otherwise look at rooms in Angra or Praia da Vitória. All three are outside the towns, so read getting around Terceira before you decide to camp without a car.

In the Azores you may not put up a tent outside a campsite or a place set aside for it, and camping is banned outright in protected areas, which on Terceira include the island's Natural Park.

A campervan or motorhome is covered by Portugal's road code instead. Parking overnight with people inside, between 22:00 and 07:00, is allowed for up to 48 hours in the same municipality, outside protected areas and where no municipal rule forbids it. It is not allowed in Natura 2000 sites, protected areas or areas under a coastal plan except where a place is authorised, and the fine in a protected or Natura 2000 area runs from €120 to €600. Between June and mid-September, Salga's motorhome rate of €10 a day is the simplest way to stay legal.

How many campsites does Terceira have? Three established ones: Salga and Cinco Ribeiras, both in the municipality of Angra do Heroísmo, and Biscoitos in the municipality of Praia da Vitória.

Can I book a pitch at Salga? No. Its 2026 price list says it takes no reservations. Cinco Ribeiras takes bookings by phone through the parish council, and Biscoitos by phone or email.

How much does a night cost? At Salga in 2026, a tent pitch is €5 a day, plus €2 per person aged 10 or over and €2 to park a car inside. Cinco Ribeiras and Biscoitos publish no price on an official page.

Can I camp wild on Terceira? No. A tent is only allowed in a campsite or an authorised place, and never in a protected area. Motorhomes can park overnight for up to 48 hours in one municipality, outside protected and coastal areas and where no local rule forbids it.