Vila do Porto is the only municipality and the main town and one of the areas on the island of Santa Maria.

The history of Vila do Porto begins in the XV century, when in 1432 arrived on the island gonçalo Velho Cabral, commander of the order of Christ and the captain in the service of Henry the Navigator. In the XIV century, the island of Santa Maria on the maps designated as Ilya doshas, Lobos, which translated means "island of the wolves" because of the special varieties of seals living at the time on the island. The island became part of the first Captaincy of the Azores archipelago, which then included the island of são Miguel. The first settlement was established in 1439.

Today in the municipality, which is the only one on the island, includes 5 areas: Almagreira, Santa Barbara, Santa Espiritu, San Pedro and Vila do Porto. Almagreira is located in the southern part of the island, Santa Barbara is located on the North-East coast and attracts the attention of tourists with its iconic Bay of San Lorenzo. Vila do Porto is the largest district in the municipality and it is home to the greatest number of people. The most sparsely populated area is Santa Barbara.

It will be interesting to visit the parish Church of Santa Barbara, built in the mid-seventeenth century. The monastery of Nossa Senhora de-Lourdes (our lady of Lourdes) is a single-nave Church, known for the main altar, made of volcanic stone similar to the stone from the cave in the French city of Lourdes, where in the 19th century was the famous apparition of the virgin Mary. The monastery of Santo Amaro – coastal chapel is close to Ribeira da Praia. Inside the nave of the chapel are well-preserved wooden pulpit in Baroque style. It is also worth to visit the small and modest chapel, at Imperio-do-Espirito-Santo-de-Santa Barbara, which hosts the annual celebration dedicated to the worship of the Holy Spirit.