Ribeira Grande's historic centre is small and easy on foot. For anything outside town — Santa Bárbara beach, Caldeira Velha, the tea plantations, the Sete Cidades crater — a rental car is by far the easiest option, and São Miguel's roads are good and lightly trafficked.
Local buses run between Ribeira Grande and Ponta Delgada several times a day, take around forty-five minutes, and cost a couple of euros, but services to the more interesting sights outside town are sparse. Taxis are available from the main square and are reasonable for short hops.