Before I go there myself, I have heard lots of things about Lisbon. I have heard how it has narrow cobbled streets with lots of ups and downs that will leave you breathless and curse if you are wearing high heels. I have heard weather is warm as much as people there. I have heard that even though they are not in best condition and old, houses there looks somehow charming together, yellow trams look nostalgic and lovely and Pasteis de Nata is perfect enough to let go of your calorie count! And for once, what I heard and expected was really fulfilled in Lisbon in a good way! Since it is a packed destination with so many choices on what to do and where to go, it is important that you have a good Lisbon guide at hand for time and cost efficiency! Here is my version where I included my own experiences and things I wished I knew before going there in one big Lisbon guide !
As usual we start with summary version and then we will go into details for Lisbon guide .
Travel: City center and old town itself are pretty easy to get around just by walking. But Lisbon is a big city, so you will want to use public transport especially when switching from one area to another like going to Belem from city center, to save time and energy. Besides Lisbon is famous for its trams and you should definitely get on one. (Tram 28 is the most known one because its route is a tourist pleaser with many major spots), combined with metro and some walking you can cover all point of interest areas in Lisbon. Daily unlimited public transport is 6 euro, (though free with Lisbon Card).
Airport Travel: My first time in Europe where I see transport from airport to city center is really really cheap! (Later on, Luxembourg surprised me as well!) Most convenient way is to use Airport express bus which you pay 3 euro. You can also use metro, one way ticket is 1,5 euro but you should get a loadable transport card first for 0.5 euro. You can actually preload this card with cash and use it for rest of your public transports as well.
Visa & currency: Portuguese is part of Schengen agreement so any European union member can get in without visa, Canadian, USA, Australian, and UK citizens also don’t need a visa (Though passport is needed!). But please check latest situation for your country! Currency is euro.
Food-Drink: Lisbon is famous for its all kinds of seafood and of course signature egg tart dessert – Pasteis de Nata. I’ll add ginja to must try list, which is a cherry liqueur. Try Brunch Cafe for breakfast, cheap, delicious and good portion food you can find in Pao Pao Queijo Queijo, meat lovers should check out Restaurante Cabacas, for fresh seafood go famous Cervejaria Ramiro -but make no mistake even though it looks like a cheap place, prices are not cheap here!, if you want multiple options go to LX Factory or Time Out Market. I’ll give more details below.
Where to go in Lisbon: Jeronimos Monastery, Belem Tower, Monument of Explorers, St George Castle, Arc of Rua Augusta, Comercio Square, Santa Justa Elevator, Sé Cathedral, Ajuda Palace, Fado museum, Coleçao Berardo museum, Coach museum, Lisbon Story Center, Porte de Sol viewpoint, Sintra daily trip
I stayed at a lovely Airbnb house
Prices: Lisbon is of one of those cities where you can find cheap and expensive, fitting according to your budget. So it is not as legendary expensive like say Copenhagen but personally I was expecting even cheaper than average Europe prices. Why? I don’t know, I guess just wishful thinking 😀 I wrote prices for each attraction in its detail, but as for the general prices: an average meal in an average restaurant with one dish & one drink cost around 10-15 euros, fast food menus were about 6 euros, coffees 1,5-3 euros, beer 2-3 euros. Famous dessert Pasteis de Nata is usually sold in 5 piece but you can buy it in any quantity you like. One piece is around 1 euro.
Made from combinations of Portegues wine and fruits, these tube jams are good gift idea too!
Lisbon Card: This is one of the good city cards you can buy without thinking as it already covers its cost if you visit couple of main attractions. I got 3 days version, it includes free transport as well (which is daily 6 euro) and compensated its cost much more as I did many main attractions!
2017 prices:
- 24 hours: 18.50 euros
- 48 hours: 31.50
- 72 hours : 39 euro
I’ll mention details in each attraction if this card provides free or discount access.
Bonus part shopping: You will notice many handmade bags and purses made from cork material. Do not be surprised as main ingredient for wine cork, a kind of oak trees are Lisbon’s specialty.
Lisbon Guide – details
Lisbon was bigger than I thought and, it is a city you can enjoy for full 3-4 days. Plus it has many interesting museums though time is not enough for most of them!
Lisbon is always mentioned by its different areas so let me first introduce you to these areas at the start of this Lisbon guide for better orientation. Baixa/Chiado is the part you can consider as city center, Bairo Alto is where to go for a night out, Alfama is the gypsy neighborhood where lots of places to listen Fado, and Belem is the old historical city center where lots of attractions are. Actually when you are in Belem it is better to plan ahead which places you want to see so you can visit them all in one day optimizing your time there.
Many people, especially young people, know English and they are very friendly. Although please do not forget your common sense if you think somebody is being too friendly to you and check your valued possessions!
Alright, time to dive in details of what to do in Lisbon ! Best part of Lisbon guide 😀
I’ll divide this list into two, separating things to do in central and other areas and separating things to do in Belem so you can better use this Lisbon guide when planning your trip there.
What to do in Lisbon – Where to go – Central
I would say best place to start exploring Lisbon is Commercia Square (Praca do Comercio).
It is one of the historical and main squares of the city and one of the city attractions Arc of Rua Augusta (Arco Monumental da Rua Augusta) is next to it. You can sniff sea air, take pictures of trams with Rua Augusta Arc and then proceed to get your free map and Lisbon Card from the tourist office and visit Lisbon Story Center before you go through Rua Augusta- one of the main streets.
Frankly I haven’t saw Lisbon Story Center mentioned in any of the Lisbon guide I read before my trip so I was skeptical about it. I only went it since it was free with Lisbon card and it was very close by. But I liked it very much! Inside they used realistic decor, videos, animations, sound, light, even 3D movie etc to give you some interesting info about Lisbon without being boring. Actually it was really nice doing it at the start of my trip as it gave me better perspective about city’s history and how big earthquake affected it. Tickets are 7 euro but free with Lisbon Card.
By the way you can also get on top of the Arc of Rua Augusta with ticket but I didn’t do it, so let me know what I missed if you did it!
Another favorite point of interest in Lisbon is Elavator of Santa Justa (Elevador de Santa Justa). It is actually a functional elevator thanks to the city’s high and low structure but many tourists use it just for the view. Tickets are 5 euro but free with Lisbon Card, and Lisbon Card gets you to fast lane.
Rua Garrett is a main street like Rua Augusta.
St George Castle (Castillo San Jorge) is also one of the main attractions as it has over the city position giving you nice views. It may be good idea to bring some drinks and sandwich with you so you can walk around enjoying the view as many people do. Though I personally preferred view from Santa Justa elevator 🙂 What was interesting in the castle, as I didn’t get to see any interior just some walls and city view, there was a tree full of peacocks! I don’t know if it was a special occurrence though! So tickets for castle are 8,5 euro, you can get %20 percent discount with Lisbon Card which brings it down to 6,5 euro.
Lisbon Cathedral or also known as Se Cathedral is one of the big churches and it has a nice look especially at night with lightning. Also you can find many private tour agents outside of this church with special décor cars, tuktuks, bicycles etc! Entry inside is free.
Fado Museum is also one of the addresses that is mentioned in every Lisbon guide as these touching sad music of Fado is simply the soul of Lisbon. In this museum you can hear famous Fado singers, learn more about history of it and get suggestions to Fado places. That being said, I have to admit I didn’t have time to visit this place! Let me know how it was if you visited!
So there are two places I want to mention which I didn’t see in many Lisbon guide but in my opinion really nice and cool places to visit on your trip.
First one is LX Factory → the answer to what happens if an old manufacturing plant is overrun by hipsters! Well obviously the place becomes a hub for interesting cafes, book stores, all kinds of décor and gift ideas, nice shops, graffiti, cool restaurants etc. It was truly one of the places I enjoyed most in Lisbon.
In fact when I ask how to go there to tourist info, the guy in the booth lit up saying `oh glad you know that place, not everyone knows and it is really nice!` I don’t know if that was a reaction after being asked how can I get to Belem question repeatedly and just glad to be asked something else but that turned out to be really highlight of the trip for me. (Address Rua Rodrigues Faria, 103)
Also please get into the second floor of the bookshop here as it has a very special old man upstairs exhibiting his really interesting `inventions` and telling their stories! (Free but you are expected to make a small donation after he spends half an hour explaining and entertaining you!)
Second place is Time Out Market. This is a place where you can find many gastro delicacies side by side with a nice atmosphere. Actually you can also take care of `must do` in Lisbon activity here which is drinking `ginja`, there is a `Ginjinha` just outside of this market! Ginja is a kind of sweet cherry liquor and it is served in shot glasses for 1 euro where locals enjoy it standing up and in any time of the day. You can order it in chocolate shot glasses too! Don’t miss it!
Last item on my things to in center Lisbon guide is Lisbon’s famous café Cafe A Brasileira. This is an old café in service since 19 century and it has a good location where you can see one of the crowded squares. Personally I didn’t find anything extraordinary about food and drink here but the charm is in its old décor, location and the fact that it was a favorite place of famous Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa, which they honored by putting a statue of him showing him as sitting in his favorite table in this café (which is outside). At any time you will see tourist taking pictures with this statue!
You can have a nice break while drinking your coffee and watching people pass by in one of the main squares but that’s about it, just the historical feeling and central location.
What to do in Lisbon – Where to go – Belem
Most important part of Lisbon guide! Belem truly has lots of things to do so it will save you time if you plan them all to be visited in one day. Also important reminder buy Lisbon Card at least for your Belem visit!
Let’s start with the most gorgeous and number one attraction in Lisbon which is of course Jeronimos Monastery (Mosteiro dos Jeronimos). Built in 1500s, this place is incredibly detailed inside and outside and huge scale of this place makes you feel respect and amazed at its beauty! It is one those places where you try to take photo in front of it and if you try to fit the all building to the photo you end up looking like an ant 😀
The detailed embroidery on the walls and columns were so high level you think `Gee this must have taken years to complete` but since scale of this place is too big at some point you get overwhelmed by too many details and just try to walk pass them unless you plan to spend a whole day there!
The tomb of Vasco de Gama is also here. Tickets are 10 euro, 12 euro if you combine it with Belem Tower and free with Lisbon Card.
Belem Tower (Torre de Belem) is also made around same century which was initially meant to be a defense tower for coast line but quickly became obsolete! Frankly it looks prettier as a landmark then a defense tower 🙂 Tickets are 6 euro, combined with Jeronimos Monastery 12 euro and free with Lisbon Card.
Monument of Explorers (Monumento a los Descubrimientos or Padrao dos Descobrimentos) is another point you should visit while you are in Belem. It is a tribute made in 1960s to Portuguese explorations of the world and you can see this route on the huge map in front of it. Monument itself is also big with different statues on each side and actually you get on top of it! Beautiful Belem scenery waits you at the top and there is an elevator to the top so you don’t get tired! Tickets are 4 euro but Lisbon Card provides %30 discount and brings it down to 3 euro.
Here is a free activity in Belem which I’ll suggest visiting Museu Coleçao Berardo. It is true contemporary and modern art is not for everyone but I think you will be surprised to see interesting and funny pieces in this museum and see arts from Andy Warhol, Anish Kapoor and Salvador Dali!
Coaches Museum in Belem is also Lisbon’s favorite museums, though it is small it was nice to see fancy horse carriages of old times in their glory. Though tickets were expensive- 8 euro, but free for Lisbon Card.
National Palace of Ajuda is yet another popular activity you can do while in Belem, you can see many royal rooms inside. Ticket is 5 euro, free for Lisbon Card!
(I’m sure you see the charm of Lisbon Card by now 🙂 also remember it provides you 6 euro of daily unlimited public transport for free too!))
At this point I’ll end Belem part with their famous bakery but since we are at this topic let’s answer it for good:
Lisbon guide mandatory question: where to eat Pasteis de Nata in Lisbon?
It would be a crime to visit Belem and didn’t try Pasteis de Nata, the symbol of Lisbon, in Pasteis de Belem the bakery where it is first originated. You will spot it soon enough with a long queue outside of it! But there is actually another place to try it, which is Manteigaria and actually many prefer it to the original place.
In Manteigaria they only sell this dessert and they are really worth the hype, in Pasteis de Belem they are in business since 1800s and they are the original recipe. I think both should be tried! Do not be intimidated or discouraged with long queues of these two places as it progress really fast.
Though since it is so famous and also a local favorite as much as tourist favorite, many bakeries do it too, so you can practically find this egg tart everywhere! But if you need a third name try at World needs nata, it is a chain I also sawed outside of Portuguese.
Some notes and tips for this dessert worth mentioning in this Lisbon guide is that, locals prefer to order it with a glass of milk (not coffee or tea), and you can additionally put sugar or cinnamon on top. If you are interested to see how it is made, you can watch it in the center store of Manteigaria (they have another in Timeout market).
By the way, that cheap, yummy and fulfilling meal place I told you about, Pao Pao Queijo Queijo, is just in the corner of the same street, a couple of stores before Pasteis de Belem. So if you are there around lunch time you can get their special lunch promotion which is one dish & one drink is just around 5 euro. There are many choices so I’m sure you can find one for your tastes.
How about a day trip to Sintra, is it worth it?
Yeap, one of the most popular route from Lisbon is to make a daytrip to “Sintra”. Sintra has many historical buildings,castles, palaces and good scenery so no wonder it is a tourist favorite. There were lots of tourists even at the off season time (January 2017) so I cannot imagine the season crowd! But that’s the thing, all place was so tourist oriented from the moment you arrive you feel like your every step is turned into money! You first have to dodge (or decide to use) private tour guides in many forms with sport cars, tuktuks, horsecars and any other form actually just outside the train station. Then if you can find local bus ticket it will be 5.5 euro for the 3 most popular place route which is actually not bad price. But then you have to pay 8.5 +11.5 and 6.5 euro for each of these places. (with Lisbon card and combination tickets you can get 1-2 euro discount). Prices are high compared to Lisbon but yeah ok you think you will come once so that’s fine too. But then inside one of these places, I saw a supplementary transport just for 300 m (not kidding, distance was actually written) for 3 euro and that’s where I go “dude, seriously!”. And of course needless to say food/drink prices were higher than Lisbon with less quality. I mean I don’t mind paying/spending money for visiting special touristy places but if I feel like I’m being viewed as a walking cash machine, it really shadows the beauty of the place.
That being said it is indeed nice place to visit, Actually I’ll write Sintra separately later on as this Lisbon guide already became too long! Anyways, please let me know how your experience turned out to be!
Where to listen Fado?
This is both easy and hard answer question, easy because apparently everyone thinks the place they have been to was the best! Hard because singers change, so is the menu so you may not get same entertainment I had when you are there! My advice is, well popular places can be expensive and I think Fado is better if you can experience it really locally. So ask your hotel, local stranger on the street, your waitress in restaurant etc what their advice is on a good local Fado place when you are there!
So that’s about it I guess. I hope this Lisbon guide helps you with your trip, let me know in the comments if you want to make additions, reviews or questions about it!
And yes, final part is gezielciniz in Lisbon video!