We had no idea what to expect, but the hotel is situated in an old fortress, overlooking the ocean. The hotel itself, however, is newly build. The architecture is very attractive. A lot of attention was paid to the art - paintings and sculptures - in the hotel.
The restaurant was fine: everything fresh, good wines and wonderful desserts to choose from.
Most important: the people working in the hotel are very friendly, hospitable, and helpful. They have really made us feel at home!

it was our first stay ever at portuguese chain of pousada hotels and we were very keen to see how these establishments are done claiming blend of history with design. And indeed this place is very interesting with old fortress combined with modern room annex. We were however lucky enough as our suite was in old part. Inside it was a loft style arrangement with flat TVs and modern furniture. Very comfortable. Restaurant serves nice breakfast and kind of modern/fusion like food and good portuguese wines for dinner. It was partly cloudy so we just lounger outside at the pool which was kind of strange as the place is open to public visiting the fortress running around with cameras. All in all very relaxing and unique stay as is the whole Azores experience.

We wanted a week of chilling in the sun, splashing around a pool, eating and drinking immoderately. We found almost all of that at the Pousada de Sao Sebastiao. It’s a modern, beautifully designed boutique hotel set inside the walls of the mediaeval fortress that sits atop the town of Angra do Heroismo, the small capital of the island of Terceira, and it’s a gem. Our room was one of their standard twins, with elegant wood ceiling and floor, yet more elegant slate and marble bathroom, all the usual conveniences, and a little balcony looking out over the Atlantic, all the way to Antarctica. It was very tranquil and the hotel’s right there in the town.

If we wanted anything, we’d tell the keen young staff on the front desk and it would be dealt with right away. I have only two minor quibbles. Wherever I ate, and this was true all over the island and not just at the Pousada, the fish and the seafood would be very fine but the accompaniments were usually bland or worse. The freshly caught, local octopus was always excellent. and the local beef was very fine too. The regional soups were robust and very tasty and I can heartily recommend all the local white wines we sampled, which was all of them. Liked the spicy local cheese too! There was a handsome breakfast buffet at the hotel, distinguished by the provision of chilled champagne each morning for a DIY Buck’s Fizz and an auspicious start to the day.

One other small thing was that we couldn’t access wifi in our room. Maybe only geeks like us would care. There was free access to the internet in the computer room above the bar and we could access wifi with our macs, for a charge, from the poolside or by the bar and those were our favourite spots anyway. We liked the small pentagonal pool. We liked the high concept bar where you phone in your order and smartly suited staff would arrive with drinks and nibbles a few minutes later.

I couldn’t find any reviews of this place online and knew nobody who’d been to the Azores before. I needn’t have worried – we enjoyed it all very much. The weather is famously hard to predict but we had six glorious days out of seven, swam every day, and the one day that was overcast was the one we spent touring the island and exploring the “empty volcano” (Algar do Carvao) in the centre and checking out some of the “imperios” - the charming little shrines dedicated to The Holy Ghost that ornament every village.

Terceira feels like a well-kept secret. Perhaps its charm would diminish were it to fill up with hordes of tourists. We spend all year in large cities, so the slow pace of life on a small island was a treat and the peaceful surroundings and good people at the Pousada de Angra do Heroismo were just what we needed.

The accommodation is either in an old Portuguese fort or in a new, modern wing. You either love or hate the blend.
Walk towards the old defensive wall, and you have a superb view of the Atlantic Ocean and the yacht harbour.
The rooms are comfortable and oh so quiet.
The staff are friendly, helpful and speak good English.
The small town of Angra do Heroismo is an easy walk away. It is an UNESCO momunent, but you may well wonder why.
The hotel has a good restaurant.