Hey guys! Im planning a backpacking trip through Europe with two other friends at the end of January and was planning on flying into Lisbon when I noticed that the flight from Toronto – Ponta Delgada was about $100 cheaper. So Ive been debating the benefits of flying there for about ~5 days and exploring the Azores islands before flying into Lisbon and beginning the trek throughout Europe. My question is–would it be worth it? Or should I skip it and fly right into Lisbon? After Europe we are headed to Southeast Asia and Australia so we need to budget carefully to make sure we have enough money left for our entire trip so were looking for activities that are free or on the cheap and were into basically all outdoor exploration activities, ocean activities, partying, good food, meeting people, etc. So will there be opportunities for us to have a good time for 5 days or should we spend a little more on the flight and fly straight to the mainland?

Thanks so much and I appreciate any help anyone can give!