LisbonTravel Guide

The areas and addresses our writers put first

• Alano Oliveira

  Baixa and Chiado

  The flat, rebuilt grid of Baixa and the elegant shopping streets of Chiado put you within walking distance of almost everything: the river, the squares, the trams.

  Where to Stay in Lisbon: The Right Area for Every BudgetCheck prices

• Bairro Alto and Cais do Sodré

  Lisbon

  Up the hill, Bairro Alto is the party; down by the river, Cais do Sodré has evolved from red-light district to one of the city's coolest corners.

  Where to Stay in Lisbon: The Right Area for Every BudgetCheck prices

• Parque das Nações

  Lisbon

  The regenerated Expo district to the east offers contemporary riverside hotels at gentler prices, with the Oceanário and easy airport access nearby.

  Where to Stay in Lisbon: The Right Area for Every BudgetCheck prices

Tables worth crossing the city for

• Pastéis de Belém

  Lisbon

  Pastéis de Belém, on Rua de Belém a short walk from the Jerónimos Monastery, has been baking to the monastery's secret recipe since 1837, and here — only here — the tarts are called pastéis de Belém rather than pastéi…

  A Pastel de Nata Trail Through LisbonSee on the map

• Manteigaria

  Lisbon

  Back in the city centre, Manteigaria occupies a former butter factory on Rua do Loreto, at the edge of Chiado near Praça Luís de Camões.

  A Pastel de Nata Trail Through LisbonSee on the map

• Confeitaria Nacional

  Lisbon

  On Praça da Figueira, within sight of the castle on its hill, Confeitaria Nacional has been trading since 1829, which makes it older than the Belém shop.

  A Pastel de Nata Trail Through LisbonSee on the map

• Fábrica da Nata

  Lisbon

  Fábrica da Nata has an outpost on Praça dos Restauradores, all painted tiles and theatrical open bakery.

  A Pastel de Nata Trail Through LisbonSee on the map

• Aloma

  Lisbon

  Pastelaria Aloma has been the neighbourhood pastry shop since the 1940s and has won Lisbon's best-pastel-de-nata competition more than once.

  A Pastel de Nata Trail Through LisbonSee on the map

The things that justify the trip

• Linh Nguyen

  Baixa

  Central Lisbon is a set of hills around the flat riverside grid of Baixa, rebuilt elegantly after the great earthquake of 1755.

  First Time in Lisbon: Everything You Need to KnowSee on the map
• Paul Bill

  Alfama

  East of it rises Alfama, the ancient Moorish maze crowned by São Jorge Castle; west climbs to Chiado (shopping, cafés, history) and Bairro Alto (quiet by day, loud by night).

  First Time in Lisbon: Everything You Need to KnowSee on the map
• Andreas M

  Chiado

  First Time in Lisbon: Everything You Need to KnowSee on the map
• Inès d'Anselme

  Bairro Alto

  Sleep on the wrong hill and every evening ends with a climb; sleep on the wrong street in Bairro Alto and it ends at 4am with someone singing beneath your window.

  First Time in Lisbon: Everything You Need to KnowSee on the map
• Bernardo Lorena Ponte

  Belém

  Along the river to the west lies Belém, home to the Jerónimos Monastery and Belém Tower — both UNESCO-listed monuments of Portugal's Age of Discoveries.

  First Time in Lisbon: Everything You Need to KnowSee on the map
• Katia De Juan

  Sintra

  Forty minutes by train from Rossio station, Sintra is a UNESCO-listed landscape of romantic palaces in wooded hills, crowned by the candy-colored Pena Palace.

  First Time in Lisbon: Everything You Need to KnowSee on the map
• João Reguengos

  Praça do Comércio

  Lisbon's grandest square opens straight onto the River Tagus, framed on three sides by ochre-yellow arcades.

  Lisbon's Most Beautiful Streets and SquaresSee on the map
• Alen Karso

  Rua Augusta

  The pedestrian spine of the rebuilt Baixa district runs from the river to Rossio beneath the triumphal Rua Augusta Arch.

  Lisbon's Most Beautiful Streets and SquaresSee on the map