Frommer's Portugal. Paul Ames

      6

      Exploring Lisbon

      Lisbon’s historic center is compact. Most attractions can be reached by foot or by hopping onto the historic streetcars, elevators, and funiculars. Safe and mostly efficient public transport and relatively cheap taxis will get you to farther-flung attractions like historic Belém, modernist Parque das Nações, or the Gulbenkian museum. To really see the city, allow at least 3 days, more if you make side trips to Sintra and Cascais (see chapter 7).

      Suggested Itineraries

      For more extended itineraries, not only of Lisbon, but Portugal itself, refer to chapter 4.

      If You Have 1 Day

      Take a stroll through Alfama, Lisbon’s most evocative bairro (neighborhood). Visit the 12th-century Sé (cathedral) and take in a view of the city and the River Tagus from the Miradouro Santa Luzia belvedere. Climb to the Castelo de São Jorge. Then, head out to Belém to visit the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, stroll along the river to Torre de Belém, and take in the modern art at the Berardo Collection Museum. Be sure to try a pastel de Belém (custard tart) in the historic cafe of the same name.

      If You Have 2 Days

      On Day 2, start by checking out the food on show at Mercado da Ribeira, then stroll along the waterfront to Praça do Comercio to begin a walking tour through Baixa and Chiado to peruse the historic shopping streets. Stop for a shot of coffee at Café A Brasileira before walking up to the ruined Convento do Carmo and gold-lined São Roque church, and take in the view at Miradouro São Pedro de Alcântara. After lunch in the hip Príncipe Real neighborhood, cram in some culture at the Gulbenkian Museum and relax in its delightful gardens. In the evening, go full circle to enjoy the gourmet experience at Time Out Market and some Cais do Sodré nightlife.

If You Have 3 Days

      Head east to spend the morning by the river at Parque das Nações to admire the modern architecture and visit the Oceanário, an awe-inspiring aquarium. Enjoy fish in a different way over lunch at Senhor Peixe before crossing town to admire the magnificent old masters at the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga. Wrap up the afternoon with a visit to the hip LX Factory area of stores, cafes, and bars, and a wander along the Tagus for more cutting-edge design at the MAAT contemporary art museum.

      Castelo & Alfama

      Let’s start in the cradle of Lisbon, its ancient hilltop fortress and the emblematic hillside quarter where a warren of lanes connects Renaissance palaces, baroque churches, and taverns emitting the scent of barbecued sardines and the plaintive melodies of fado.

      Castelo de São Jorge CASTLE This is the best place to get your bearings on a first visit to Lisbon. From its hilltop perch, virtually the whole city is laid out before you, from the medieval alleyways beneath the ramparts to the 18th-century blocks of the Baixa and gleaming modern towers in the distance.

      Nowadays the castle is a peaceful green oasis. Come in the early morning or evening when there are fewer visitors and it’s more like a tranquil garden than a fortress. There are pathways shaded by venerable olive, pine, and cork trees, peacocks hopping among the ruins. The setting sun adds another dimension to the extraordinary views over the city and the shimmering waters of the Tagus. It wasn’t always so serene. Standing on the ramparts, it’s not hard to imagine the mayhem in 1147, when the troops of Portugal’s first king Afonso Henriques joined forces with northern European crusaders to successfully lay siege to the castle and end over 4 centuries of Muslim rule. When Lisbon replaced Coimbra as Portugal’s capital in 1255, the castle became a royal palace, and many of the walls you see today date from that period. Later it served as a military base and a prison.

Within the walls there’s an archeological site where secrets of past centuries are still being unearthed; a neat little museum showing the history of the castle through Roman coins, Iron Age pottery, and Moorish ceramics; and an odd camera obscura in one of the towers, which uses a lens and looking glasses to zoom in on city landmarks. Kids will enjoy the regular weekend re-enactments of battles and medieval pageantry, not to mention the after-dark tours to observe the castle’s abundant bat population. There’s a good restaurant: the Casa do Leão (mains 18€–31€), located in the remnants of the old royal palace, plus a range of snack options inside the castle, although their opening hours can be a little unpredictable. With over 2 million visitors in 2018, the castle was Portugal’s most visited national monument, so buying tickets in advance via the website is advised to avoid lines at the entrance in peak times. Guided tours run up to nine times a day.

      Rua de Santa Cruz do Castelo. www.castelodesaojorge.pt. 21/880-06-20. 10€ adults; 5€ youngsters 13–25; 8.50€ over 65s; free for children under 13. Mar–Oct daily 9am–8:30pm; Nov–Feb daily 9am–5:30pm. Bus: 737. Tram: 12, 28.

      Fundação Ricardo do Espírito Santo Silva MUSEUM If you can tear yourself away from the views at the Portas do Sol miradouro, the crimson-painted palace across the road has something rather special. Behind the baroque facade, the perfectly preserved interior of the Palácio Azurara houses an array of furniture, textiles, tiles, porcelain, and glassware that offers a fascinating insight into 18th-century aristocratic life. Even more fascinating are the workshops where craftsmen and women preserve centuries of knowhow in silver plating, leather book binding, cabinetmaking, and 15 other decorative arts. The collection and the workshops are run by a foundation set up by banker Ricardo Espírito Santo Silva (1900–1955) with the aim of keeping traditional crafts alive. You can book tours of the ateliers to watch the artisans in action, purchase their work, including reproductions of the museum exhibits, even take a lesson in one of the crafts (5€ a lesson, booking required). In 2019, the foundation opened the Manufactum, a store in Chiado (Rua do Alecrim 79) retailing contemporary pieces made by its craftspeople.

      Largo das Portas do Sol 2. www.fress.pt. 21/881-46-00. 4€ adults, 2€ students under 25; free for children under 12. Guided visits 8€; workshops 10€. Both need to be booked in advance. Wed–Mon 10am–5pm. Tram: 12, 28. Bus: 737.

      Igreja da São Vicente de Fora CHURCH Portugal’s first king, Afonso I Henriques, raised a first church here on the site of his camp during his successful siege of Arab-held Lisbon; the tombs of a couple of Teutonic knights who helped can be seen inside. Construction of the current grand late-Renaissance building begun in 1583, during Portugal’s 6-decade Spanish occupation, the involvement of Spanish and Italian architects reflected in the style.

      Ironically, it holds the tombs of the Braganza royal family, who kicked the Spanish out and ruled from 1627 to 1910. Fourteen monarchs are buried there, together with their consorts and children. When you visit the somber pantheon , look for the eerie weeping statue over the caskets of King Carlos I and Crown Prince Luís Felipe, assassinated at Praça do Comércio in 1908.

      The monastery-church takes its name from St. Vincent, one of Lisbon’s patrons, and from the fact that it was outside (fora) the city walls. Its white limestone facade dominates Alfama’s skyline.