November 12, 2020

A guide to Lisboa and day trips

We ended our Portugal road trip in Lisboa and spent 2 days over there. I would say that if you plan on visiting multiple cities and places during your trip 2 days in Lisboa seems a fair amount of time. Of course if you only come in Portugal for Lisboa I would advise spending a bit more time.
We found the city way bigger than any other in Portugal with a lot more going on. Surprisingly Lisboa had a lot more abandoned buildings than Porto and you will have to walk a lot to go from one place of interest to another. Be prepared for a leg workout as this city is famous for its steep streets.
Here is what I would recommend seeing in Lisboa : 

  • Miradouro de Santa Luzia

This viewpoint right over the city and close to the sea was my favorite view over Lisboa. Everyone is sitting under the pergola in the shadow and we enjoyed the musicians playing, it's a wonderful place to surround yourself with the atmosphere of the city. You can see people dancing and all generations gather around here to have quality time 

  • Arco da Rua Augusta

📍Arco da Rua Augusta

This is the heart of Lisboa ! We got very lucky to visit it during the pandemic so we had this place almost for ourselves. I definitely had people telling me that they never saw this place that empty. I can imagine that under normal circumstances this square is packed with people going in and out. Never the less the architecture is really gorgeous and it's worth paying a visit

  • The Pink Street 

📍R. Nova do Carvalho

This a controversial place on whether or not it's worth going to. There is nothing particular in this street except the pink floor that has been painted a few years ago. We learned that this district and this street used to be the meeting point between sailors and prostitutes in Lisboa and that it was not a very appealing part of the city. They decided to bet on tourism to uplift this part of the city and they painted the floor in pink. I think the strategy worked as many people go here just for the floor (as we did). However you can still definitely feel that there is a strange atmosphere around and in real life this pink floor is a bit dirty and not really bright pink to be honest. 

  • Ascensor da Bica 

📍Ascensor da Bica 

This is the photo I dreamed of taking in Lisboa ! These yellow funiculars are so pretty. We decided to ride it to arrive at the top of the street already in the tram. We could then take photos from the inside of the tram without any trouble. The tram stays around for a moment before going down again so don't worry you will have time to take your shots. If you don't want to pay for the ride you can walk up or join its arrival point at the top here. The ride up costs 3,80€. Careful in this place it completely filled up with pickpockets. We only saw them at the top but it was enough to not stay long as it didn't feel safe at a certain point.

We didn't had the time to go to these locations but I would definitely include them as a point of interest 

  • Alfama 

The Alfama district is very cute and famous for its tiny steep streets and the tiles on the houses with the laundry drying out in the streets. This is the image I had of Lisboa 

  • Where to eat the best Pasteis de nata ?

📍Manteigaria Factory

We had Pasteis de Nata over there and we ate them warm coming out of the oven they were delicious ! 

  • Ponte 25 de Abril

📍Jardim Docas da Ponte

 We wanted to take this iconic photo with Ponte 25 de Abril and found it quite hard to access by car. You have to cross a big boulevard which is one way drive. And we never found a way to get close to it easily. So my advise would be to park around and walk to the dock to snap a photo. From what I studied of the place the nicest spots seems to be taken from Jardim Docas da Ponte.

  • Belem Tower

📍Torre de Belém

I would advise to go there early in the morning, as it seems to be easily packed during the day. 

 

  • Mosteiro dos Jerónimos

📍Mosteiro dos Jerónimos

 This was a place I wanted to visit so badly but we tried to visit it on a sunday morning. On Sundays before 2pm locals get free access to the monuments in Portugal so there was a 2h queue line to access it. We didn't plan for it as everything we visited so far was without any queue and so we had to leave. If you want to go I would advise going during the week such as a Monday morning. Look on google maps the timing with the less visits and plan to go at that moment. We were so disappointed to miss it.

  • Castelo de S. Jorge

📍Castelo de S. Jorge

The best view over the whole city especially for sunsets. The entrance ticket is 10€ and 5€ if you are under 26 year old. 

 
@saltinourhair

Day trips from Lisboa 

  • Cascais

📍Cascais

As we were on a rush we only passed though it but I am telling you next time I plan on visiting Lisboa I will stay in Cascais and do day trips to Lisboa ! This place as an amazing vibe with its cute beach the little white houses and the beautiful villas surrounded by nature. It is my go to destination in Portugal for next time. There is so much to visit over there from tiny streets, to the beach, it's the perfect combination destination.

  • Sintra Castles 

 You need to plan a whole day from morning to evening to visit these. We only spent half a day and it was impossible to do everything we wanted. First you need to park you car in the center of Sintra and then use the bus to go around. It's almost impossible to park close to each point of interest and you will end up stuck with your car. Get cash as the buses don't accept cards. If you want a tailor made visit you can also hire a tuktuk. 

  •  Palacio da Pena

📍Palácio Nacional da Pena

The most colorful castle I have ever seen. Take the bus 434 in the city center, this bus is the only one allowed to bring you at the bottom of the National Park right at the entrance of the castle. Other locomotion way can only drop you off at the bottom of the forest and you will need to walk an hour to reach the entrance where the bus drops you off. The ride costed us 3,9€ per person, a hop on hop off ticket costs 6,9€ to visit around so it's very much worth it. 

We decided to go for the simple outside visit and access to the park around the castle as we had very limited time. The visit was 6,5€/person and the full visit with the inside is $14 per person. If you change your mind and want to upgrade to visit the inside you can do it at anytime. 

Before or after visiting I would recommend eating at Cafe Saudade we loved the atmosphere, the food was perfect and the location is perfect to join bus 434.

  • Monserrate palace

📍Parque e Palácio de Monserrate

 Montserrate palace is definitely a must see in Sintra ! We unfortunately didn't had time to visit it but I wanted to see its architecture and gardens so bad. The entrance is 8€/adult.

  • Initiation Well 

📍Quinta da Regaleira

 This well is a beautiful staircase making you feel like Indiana Jones for a few moments. I the entrance of the park is 10€. 

  • Ursa Beach 

📍Ursa Beach

This one is a dream ! It gets very famous. To reach the view point you will have to park your car along the road to the side and hike walking there. This is just a 30min hike from your car. The view is extremely gorgeous you walk along the cliffs in nature. Bring good shoes as it's easy to slip on the little paths.

  • What to bring back from Lisboa ?

    • Pasteis de Nata from Manteigaria It's a national delicacy a little custard tart very sweet and vanilla flavoured. It's a good thing to bring back if you can resist not eating them all !
    • Earthenware / Faience  -  Portugal as a very awesome production of tiles and Faience. You can find beautiful bowls or objects / pottery to bring back 
    • Fish is the food Speciality you will find plenty of Sardines, cod and octopus canned that you can bring home.
    • Pay a visit to Ulisses gloves shop, this is a tiny boutique selling hand made high quality gloves. This shop is from another time with is vintage design and skills.
Written by Cyrielle Goupil