Timezone details
- Identifier
- Abbreviation
- —
- Transitioned
- March 29, 2026 at 01:00 AM
Atlantic • Azores
PortugalCurrent local time
04:13:58
Sunday, May 31, 2026
UTC offset
UTC+00:00
Status
Daylight saving
Next transition
October 25, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Azores toggles between daylight and standard time annually. Clocks fall back by one hour in 5 months (October 25, 2026 at 12:00 AM).
Daylight saving since
March 29, 2026 at 01:00 AM
2 months ago
Standard time resumes on
October 25, 2026 at 12:00 AM
in 5 months
30% through the current daylight saving season.
Azores Standard Time (AZOT)
Azores Standard Time (AZOT) is the time zone for the lush, volcanic Azores islands off the coast of Portugal, where the clocks spring forward once a year so islanders can soak up the extra Atlantic sunlight.
The archipelago lies almost 1,500 km west of mainland Portugal, which explains why the islands sit twelve time zones behind the Portuguese mainland except for DST.
Clocks move one hour forward in late March and return one hour back in late October, following the same DST schedule as Western European neighbors.
Visitors often find meals run noticeably later on casual island days, because sipping coffee and watching whales isn’t an activity to be rushed.
When the clocks fall back in October, the shift lets islanders gain another hour of sleep and restores mornings to their naturally darker, misty glory.
While in winter the Azores sit one hour behind Lisbon, they match Lisbon during DST, making instant messaging surprisingly smooth for the summer months.
Almost no other landmass uses AZOT year-round; the most similar winter offset is found along the western fringes of Greenland and Iceland.
Luckily the whale pods and hot springs don’t care about the clock; DST shortens or lengthens the hours humans can enjoy these wonders.
Not really: its daylight saving rhythm keeps business hours aligned with continental Europe and eases calls to the Americas.
Yes, in October, just when the Azores slips back an hour and gains a midnight for late-night storytellers.