Lisbon is a city best read at street level. Its hills force the streets to bend, climb and suddenly open onto the Tagus, and its squares — laid out after the great earthquake of 1755 — are among the most elegant in Europe. Here are the ones worth building a walk around.

Key facts

  • Lisbon is built across steep hills, so many streets double as viewpoints
  • Much of the centre was rebuilt on a grid after the 1755 earthquake
  • The city's famous calçada portuguesa — patterned limestone paving — covers most of these streets
  • Historic trams and funiculars still run through several of them

1. Praça do Comércio

Lisbon's grandest square opens straight onto the River Tagus, framed on three sides by ochre-yellow arcades. Ships once unloaded here at the gateway to an empire; today it is the city's front porch, best at golden hour when the stone glows and the ferries cross the water behind it.

2. Rua Augusta

The pedestrian spine of the rebuilt Baixa district runs from the river to Rossio beneath the triumphal Rua Augusta Arch. Mosaic paving, street performers and a straight, theatrical sightline make it the classic Lisbon promenade — walk it early, before the crowds, for the full effect.

3. The lanes of Alfama

Alfama is less a street than a tangle of them: whitewashed alleys, laundry strung between windows, tiled facades and sudden staircases that end in miradouros overlooking the river. The famous tram 28 rattles along its edge, but the beauty is in getting mildly lost on foot.

4. Rua da Bica de Duarte Belo

Arguably Lisbon's most photographed street: a steep, narrow channel of houses with the yellow Bica funicular climbing its centre and a wedge of the Tagus glittering at the bottom. Come in the morning for soft light and space to stand.

5. Rossio

Officially Praça Dom Pedro IV, Rossio has been Lisbon's living room for centuries. Its wave-patterned mosaic paving seems to ripple underfoot, and the square is ringed by cafés, theatres and the extravagantly romantic facade of Rossio station just beyond.

6. Rua Garrett, Chiado

Chiado's most elegant street is lined with bookshops, historic cafés and tiled townhouses. The bronze statue of the poet Fernando Pessoa sits outside the famous café A Brasileira — pull up a chair nearby and watch literary Lisbon go by.

7. Avenida da Liberdade

Lisbon's answer to the great nineteenth-century boulevards: a broad, tree-shaded avenue of mosaic promenades, kiosk cafés and grand facades running uphill from the centre. It is the city at its most cosmopolitan, and the leafy central walkways make it a lovely escape on a hot afternoon.

Tip: Lisbon's streets are steep and its mosaic paving can be slippery — wear real shoes, not sandals, and plan your walking downhill where you can. Trams and funiculars typically accept the same transport cards; check the official Carris site for current fares.