Lovely Lisbon

We spent a long weekend in Lisbon around Thanksgiving and definitely could’ve spent more time exploring Portugal’s capital city. There are a lot of similarities to Porto — lots of hills!, amazing food, being situated on the water, beautiful buildings, and friendly people. Lisbon definitely felt bigger, more bustling, and a bit more impersonal.

The city is super fun to just wander and explore. The architecture is really charming and the views do make climbing all of those hills worth it!

We did encounter some cool street art in our wanderings though it was a bit lackluster compared to the stunning quality that exists in Porto.

We did a free walking tour through Chill Out Lisbon and we were so glad we did. The tour purposefully avoids a lot of the main sites and instead takes you through more hidden, off-the-beaten path, places. The guide was fantastic — one of the best guides I’ve had thus far.

On our own, we went to a few of the main sites (Belem Tower, Jerónimos Monastery, Arco da Rua Augusta). They were quite impressive, architecturally stunning, and most of them were on the water. It was nice to walk along the esplenade and admire these magnificent pieces.

Of course, we had some delicious food in Lisbon. Our favorite meal was at Sucolento, a small, family-run spot where the menu is displayed on a large chalkboard mounted on the wall and every dish is beautifully composed. Since we were limited on time we also did a food tour in Lisbon which was a great way of sampling a lot of different dishes at a bunch of different places. The guide was very knowledgeable and it was a fun way of exploring this side of Lisbon.

We also stopped into Time Out Market Lisbon which was quite the scene. We only got dessert during our visit but there were plenty of options for a full meal or a drink as well.

Overall, Lisbon was a lovely city to explore and a few nights was enough to just barely scratch the surface. It is lively with tons to do, see, and eat. Lisbon also contrasts nicely with Porto so visiting the two in tandem would make for a nice trip!

Tips:

• Definitely do a walking tour of Lisbon. It’s a great way of learning more about the history and culture of the city.
• The city does Christmas time well and it’s a fun time to visit. There are a lot of street markets and tons of decorative lights in the center of the city.
• Public transit is a great way of getting around but the payment card can only be purchased and refilled in metro stations (not on buses or anywhere near bus stops). Add some extra money to your card if you think you may take a bus.
• FlixBus is a cheap and convenient way of getting to Lisbon from other parts of Portugal.