Lisbon is beyond stunning and I’m so excited to share with you all of the incredible places I discovered on the trip. This trip was to celebrate Cj’s mom’s 60th birthday and I had so much fun planning the perfect trip for her first adventure outside of the US. Needless to say, we all fell in love and had such an incredible trip.
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Where to stay in Lisbon:
We had five people in our group so we chose to stay at an Airbnb in the Baixa-Chiado neighborhood. While the area is a little crowded, it is the historic district of Lisbon, very central, and walking distance to many attractions making it a great place to stay if it’s your first time in Lisbon.
Here is our Airbnb listing – I absolutely loved this apartment. If you’ve never booked through Airbnb before, click here to sign up and receive $40 off your first booking. If you’d prefer to stay in a hotel, check out some other hotels in Lisbon. Some other neighborhoods that I’d recommend are Avenida da Liberdade, Bairro Alto, Baixa, Chiado, and Principe Real. We spent some time in Barrio Alto and loved it. It’s just north of Chiado, a bit less touristy, and has a ton of great shops/restaurants. Next time we go back we’ll stay there.
What to Eat + Drink in Lisbon:
- Time Out Market – I can’t say enough good things about this place. It was the first place we ate and was such a great intro to so much incredible food. We probably tried 6-7 different spots between the 5 of us. We each grabbed a few dishes we wanted to try and shared them family style. Would highly recommend.
- Quiosque Ribeira das Naus – Awesome place to get a Sangria! The most refreshing sangria I’ve ever had. I keep ordering sangria in hopes of it tasting like this one. It’s on a terrace overlooking the river. We stumbled upon this place on our way to the timeout market.
- Nicolau Lisboa – Great spot for brunch, also very “instagrammable”. Food was good, one of the few traditional “American” breakfasts we had. Definitely get there early to avoid a line.
- Pink Street – This is a lively street to bar hop and party. We went too hard during the day so didn’t get to check this out, but I’ve heard great things.
- Pastéis de Belém – Best Portuguese Egg Tarts we had the entire trip. It was packed, super touristy, and the staff was a little rude but it’s worth it for these tarts.
5 Oceanos – Great Portuguese style seafood restaurant! Perfect place to get dinner after the river cruise. There are lot’s of great restaurants on the pier near the river.
A Padaria Portuguesa – These are seriously everywhere. Quick and delicious bakery serving snacks/sandwiches. We probably went 4-5 times during our trip.
Things to do + Day Trips in Lisbon:
- Tram 28: vintage trams take you on a scenic ride through the city. It’s such a great way to familiarize yourself with the city. Pick up the Lisbon Card to get free transportation.
- Take a sunset cruise on the Tagus river. This is the excursion we booked through Viator. They served wine/snacks. It was incredibly intimate and we got lucky with clear skies and a beautiful sunset.
- St George Castillo – take tram 28 and get off at the stop closest to the steps of St. George on the east side of the castle. It’s a short trek up to the top but the views are stunning. There is also a wine truck up top and you can buy a bottle of wine to sit and enjoy the view.
- Padrão dos Descobrimentos and Torre de Belém– beautiful 16th-century monuments overlooking the Tagus River. We went at noon the area was packed. I’d recommend getting here early in the morning or closer to sunset.
- Sintra – check out the full blog post here. A must do during your time in Lisbon. It’s a quick 45-minute train from the Rossio train station (Lisbon city center). It’s everything fairytales are made of and a completely stunning city full of castles. I would recommend going right at opening or later in the day (~2 hours before close). We went to the Pena Palace and Castelo dos Morous, but I wish we had time to go to Quinta da Regaleira. I’d plan to spend an entire day or at least 1/2 day in Sintra. If you only have time for one castle, go to Pena Palace.
Money Saving Tips
Traveling to Europe doesn’t have to be expensive. I wanted to share a few money saving tips for your trip!
- Say no to bread – When eating out, your server will bring out a selection of bread and olives before your meal. These aren’t free, so make sure to say no!
- Take a free walking tour: Walking tours are a great way to save money and learn about the history of a city.
- Use rideshare/public transportation:– Taxi’s are generally just more expensive than rideshare or public transportation. Lisbon and most European cities have extremely reliable public transportation and are easily walkable.
- Get the Lisbon Card – If you’re planning to visit multiple attractions, it’s a good idea to get a Lisbon Card which offers free and discounted entry to over 80 sites and also gives you free public transportation.
I hope you have the most fun adventure and these tips are helpful in planning your trip. Please feel free to leave any questions below that I may have missed! I am always happy to help! xx.
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