Santo Espírito: Museums, Churches and Trails

Discover Santo Espírito through its cultural landmarks, craft traditions and named trails. At the heart of the parish is the museum unit of the Santa Maria Museum. Churches, a chapel and a viewpoint add architecture and landscape to the historical themes. The routes follow different courses; the Santo Espírito–Maia trail is also currently closed.

Museum and Local History

The Santo Espírito museum unit of the Santa Maria Museum is housed in a building in the centre of the parish. The museum is located in a former rural home dating from the 20th century. Its collection includes furniture and traditional household items from the island, and there is also a section on everyday life. This brings both tangible household objects and the life associated with them into focus.

The history of the Santa Maria Museum goes back to a community collecting initiative launched by José Maria Amaral, parish priest of Santo Espírito, in the late 1960s and early years of the following decade. The collection’s history and the museum’s themes thus point to different aspects of everyday life: its objects and the local initiative that gave rise to the collection.

Churches, Chapel and Crafts

The Igreja de Nossa Senhora da Purificação was built in the 16th century and extended in the 18th century. An old local tradition, which is mythologised and possibly distorted, places the first Mass of the Holy Spirit on Santa Maria in Santo Espírito. It therefore remains a story from local tradition, not a verified event.

The Ermida de Nossa Senhora dos Prazeres faces the sea and is surrounded by vineyards. Its altar has an antependium—that is, a covering on the front of the altar—with blue and white azulejos and yellow accents. The church and chapel thus offer different points of interest: the Igreja is notable for its sequence of construction and extension, while the Ermida stands out for its orientation and the colourful altar detail. The Moinho da Lapa is classified as an Imóvel de Interesse Público (IIP), a Property of Public Interest.

At the Cooperativa de Artesanato de Santa Maria, you can watch weaving and purchase the work. The cooperative is certified with the Artesanato dos Açores quality seal. Here, weaving takes centre stage both as an activity and as a handmade product.

Views and Whaling History

The Miradouro da Vigia da Baleia is located at a former whale-watching station. From there, you can take in the landscape of Maia Bay. Information panels cover the history of whaling on Santa Maria. The viewpoint thus combines views over the bay with the site’s former use and the island’s whaling history.

Hiking Trails and Their Routes

The Santo Espírito–Maia trail starts at Santo Espírito church, passes the Santa Maria Museum and heads east towards the sea. It runs through a forest of Australian cheesewood trees (Pittosporum undulatum) and, after a stretch along the road, reaches an old windmill. The trail is currently marked as closed. Check its status before including it in your plans.

The Santa Maria Great Route follows a different described course: within the parish, it runs along an unpaved passage from Rua do Museu to Caminho do Pico. After passing the ruins of a windmill, the route reaches the area around the parish of Santo Espírito. The two trails are therefore clearly distinct: the Santo Espírito–Maia trail heads east towards the sea, while this section of the Great Route is defined by an unpaved passage and the stretch beyond the windmill ruins.

Discover more destinations: Almagreira, Vila Do Porto, São Pedro.

Return to the main travel overview: Santa Maria.