Lisbon
Lisbon is just a great city to walk around. It is very hilly so pack good walking shoes. There are a number of different neighbourhoods in the city which are all wonderful to walk around.
Baixa is the centre of Lisbon it has some lovely squares and lots of pedestrianised streets most of the shops are in this area. Restaurants tend to be quite touristy and there are certainly better places to eat in Lisbon
Alfama is set in the hills and is the old town of Lisbon and is a maze of small streets and is a great place to just wander around.
Bairro Alto is a really fun area with lots of scenic hilly streets, winding staircases, interesting shops and lots of bars and restaurants
Cais do Sodré another area with lots of bars and restaurants. Historically this was the red light district in Lisbon but has now be cleaned up and everything tends to go on late into the night here.
Another feature of Lisbon due to its hilly terrain are the numerous viewing points or Miradors as they are known in Lisbon. Many of these are in Alfama and Bairro Alto and as well as having stunning views they tend to have a really good vibe to them as well.
In addition to just wandering around the city there are certainly some sights that are must vistis as well. I have listed my favourites.
Jerónimos Monastery
This was my favourite place in Lisbon. The cloisters are stunning and definitely worth paying the entrance fee for. There was a small queue but we only had to wait for about 20 minutes which was okay. The price of the ticket is included in the Lisbon card (see practical info page for details). We were not able to see the church as there was a wedding going on but the cloisters are worth the visit alone.
Entrance to the church is free
Entrance to the cloisters €12
Free entry with Lisbon card
Monument to the Discoveries
Close to the Monastery is this monument to celebrate the feats of the Portuguese explorers. This is certainly worth strolling down from the Monastery to have a look at. You can pay to go inside but as there was a queue we decided not to but we loved its structure and location on the river Tagus
Admission price €6
Entrance 20% discount with Lisbon card
National Tile Museum
A surprising highlight! Beautiful collection of tiles – which really are a feature of everywhere you go in Lisbon and definitely worth a visit. It is quite a walk from the centre so it is worth getting the bus. Details of how to get there are included in the guide by clicking on the picture.
Entrance to the museum €8
Free entry with Lisbon card
LX Factory
Another unexpected highlight. This used to be an industrial complex for textiles but has been transformed into a creative artsy village in the city. It has a real good atmosphere with plenty of good eating places along with bohemian shops and independent art studios. It is on the way back from the Belem area to Alfama. We stopped there for lunch having spent the morning in the Belem area and it was a perfect place to eat and spend some time looking at the shops
Belem Tower
Lovely looking building from the outside – all very close to the Monastery and Monument to the Discoveries. However, the queue was about 2 hours and as the temperature was >30° with no shade we decided not to go in. From looking at various sites the only advice that I could find about avoiding the queue is to arrive at the beginning of the day. It opens at 10am except Mondays when it is closed.
Admission price is €8
Entrance is free with the Lisbon card
Sintra
On our third day we took the train to Sintra for the day – another great place. The train leaves from Rossio Station and takes 40 minutes. Trains depart every 30 minutes see timetable
The cost of the travel is covered by the Lisbon card.
On arrival at Sintra station there are two circular bus routes that cover all the attractions. A day ticket with unlimited travel costs €12.50 each. You are given a map with the tickets which makes it easy to plan your route.
The roads around Sintra become very busy and it takes quite a long time to get to each venue. We took the 10am train from Rossio and had to leave at 5pm to travel to the airport and consequently only saw two of the palaces which was a shame. If I was going again I would get an earlier train as the Pena Palace opens at 9.30 am and getting there earlier would have allowed us to visit more places. Having said that the two places we saw were both splendid.
Pena Palace
Pena Palace is an extraordinary place being a colourful majestic palace straight out of a Disney film. It is definitely worth getting tickets in advance and they sell them in timed slots and it is important to be there on time for your slot. I would have this as my first place to visit as it is quieter first thing in the morning. We visited at 12noon in mid September and despite our timed slot we were in a queue for almost all of our visit inside the palace which was a bit tedious. It was only when we were out on the ramparts that we had any space to ourselves. There is a café and restaurant there which was most welcome as it was pretty hot.
Cost of entrance €14
10% discount with Lisbon card
Quinta Da Regaleira
This is another very surprising building in Sintra. Built between 1904 and 1910, it is a mixture of gardens, tunnels and the intriguing and spectacular initiation well. We had to queue for about 20 minutes to go down into the well but it is certainly worth doing as it the highlight of the gardens.
Cost of entrance €10
Cost with Lisbon card €8
We didn’t have time to go to any other of the venues but enjoyed our last Pasteis de Nata in the very pretty square of Sintra. We then ordered an Uber to take us to the airport which took about one hour and cost €19