The Azores have mild temperatures year-round — rarely above 25°C in summer, rarely below 14°C in winter — and a lot of rain, especially on the north coast where Ribeira Grande sits. Plan for sun and showers in the same day in any season.
June to September is the driest, warmest stretch and the best time for the beach at Santa Bárbara and for hiking. April and May are wetter but the island is at its greenest, the hydrangeas are flowering on the roadsides, and visitor numbers are lower. Winter brings the big Atlantic swell that draws serious surfers to the north coast, and the rest of the island is quiet and cheap.
The town's main celebration is the Festa do Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres in Ponta Delgada, a fifteen-minute drive away, on the fifth Sunday after Easter — the biggest religious festival in the Azores and worth timing a visit around if you can.