Lisbon

andrew1977 · 16-08-2023 12:44pm #1

Hi

City break booked for Lisbon , towards end of September, Sunday morning to Tuesday evening.

Looking for the usual , best area to stay?/how to get about?/ things to must see in the 2 night trip?.

Best central area for a hotel, looking to spend 150 - 200 euro a night on the hotel , dont intend to spend too much time in it. Any recommendations appreciated.

Thank you !

cloudatlas · 16-08-2023 12:52pm

Sintra is amazing for a day trip. Do a free walking tour around Lisbon as it helps you get your bearings. If you like sea food. I recommend Cervejaria Ramiro, Anthony Bourdain went there. They also do a traditonal steak sandwich called a Prego which is to die for. Frangasqueira Nacional for chicken. The underground is the best way to get around. I stayed in a hostel so no help to you.

DownByTheGarden · 16-08-2023 12:56pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058309540/lisbon

I go there a couple of times a year. You should get flights for about €30 or €40 each way. Airbnb is good for places to stay. You dont have to stay central but stay on one of the tram lines. Day trips out to Sintra and Estoril are lovely. Maybe stay a few nights in Cais Cais, not too far away too. Hotels or airbnb should be well within your €150 per night budget outside the summer months. Probably even in the summer months.

You'll be spoiled for choice of where to eat no matter where you stay. Most of the sight in Lisbon city are central too. The zoo is a bit further out, not too far but the cable car around the zoo is pretty cool. Go down Belem direction too. Its lovely around there and very close to the center.

ancapailldorcha · 16-08-2023 1:02pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058309540/lisbon

I love Lisbon. Very colourful and vibrant city.

Sintra as a day trip is a must. The rest depends on your interests but I thoroughly enjoyed the Belem area where most of the main cultural attractions are. I did Belem Tower, St. Jerome's Monastery, the botanical garden and a modern art musuem in the area. Most of the stuff is closed on Monday so be careful.

Happy travels.

andrew1977 · 16-08-2023 1:21pm

Any recommendations on hotels please? Best area to stay in for exploring by foot/tram etc.

Not looking to go overboard on hotel cost, we intend to be out of the hotel as much as possible, but want something semi decent.

Thanks

jm08 · 16-08-2023 1:27pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058309540/lisbon

Lucky you. Lisbon is a lovely city. I was there earlier in the year. One of the things I did was take the Yellow Bus Tour (which is hop on hop off) and is guided (earphones). The ticket I got was for 3 days, but there are one day and 2 day trips. Included in the one I did were 3 routes - Old City, New City and River Cruise (which lasted about an hour and a half). Using trams was also included (though transport is very cheap anyway and really, really good).

On the tour of the new city (some really fantastic buildings), the The Lisbon Oceanarium, according to Trip Advisor is meant to be the best in the world.

Link to yellow bus tours: https://www.yellowbustours.com/en/lisbon/tagus-river-tour-and-hop-on-hop-off-buses

Oceanarium: https://www.beportugal.com/lisbon-oceanarium/

I stayed the other side of the bridge at a beach, so I don't really know what it is like at night. Oh, and don't forget when in Belem, go to the home of the original Portuguese custard tart. They are out of this world!

https://www.tripadvisor.ie/Restaurant_Review-g189158-d939704-Reviews-Pasteis_de_Belem-Lisbon_Lisbon_District_Central_Portugal.html

Finty Lemon · 16-08-2023 1:36pm

Bairro Alto area is a good place to stay, walkable to downtown and plenty of restaurants etc in the vicinity.

Lisbon is a very hilly city so be prepared for that. Metro is really clean, safe and and cheap to use so get a day ticket straight away. Metro from airport to city centre a very good option (taxis will stiff arrivals for €30 for the short trip to town).

For 3-4 day trip Sintra is definitely worth it but on you tighter timeline the city has enough to do.

Alfama/Castle Sao Jorge worth a visit (by tram 28), Belem for sure, Cafe Brasileira on Rua Garrett for breakfast at least once on your trip.

kev_s88 · 16-08-2023 1:52pm

use Uber. that's the only advice i can give. Was over there for my stag a couple of weeks ago and i dont think we paid more than €10 for a single Uber. most short trips (10-15 mins) were €6-€7

I can't advise on what to see as all i saw were bars :)

andrew1977 · 16-08-2023 4:07pm

Anyone suggest a hotel central / walking distance to the tourist spots ?

Not looking to waste big money on a hotel as we won’t be on it only for sleep . 2 day trip . Out and about as much as possible.

noworries2004 · 17-08-2023 8:45am

Stayed here during the summer :

Lisbon Five Stars Apartments 8 Building

Like a hotel but was perfect. Right beside Timeout market where you can dine every night if you want. Excellent food there and loads of choices.

Also this place is beside the train station so very easy to get out to Cascais/Estroil etc.

Def recommend trip to Sintra do the palaces and Quinta De regularia gardens(not into gardens but class buildings/underground tunnels etc there.

We did Tuk Tuk tour of Lisbon and showed all the great area. Also did the Benfica tour which was very good.

sterz · 19-08-2023 5:34pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120985998#Comment_120985998

For work or leisure? Lisbon is lovely and I'd like to go back again, but always feel like I should visit somewhere new instead of going back to the same spot.

DownByTheGarden · 21-08-2023 10:05am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121001058#Comment_121001058

Leisure of course :)

There are a few nice places you can get to from Lisbon too. Not cites but more resorts if its relaxation rather than the city you are after.

Porto is a nice spot too for a city break. Flights much the same price as flights to Lisbon.

AyeGer · 21-08-2023 10:20am

We stayed in the Baixa area near the Santa Justa Lift. Lovely area.

The Nal · 21-08-2023 3:39pm

Any restaurant recommendations? Also going in a few weeks and havent been. Looking for local type food preferably.

sterz · 21-08-2023 5:09pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121006295#Comment_121006295

Porto is on my list as well. Any hotel recommendations for Lisbon? I've stayed in a couple but open to other suggestions.

tayto lover · 21-08-2023 5:57pm

Like any other city be careful of pickpockets as Lisbon seems to have more than their fair share of them. Friend of mine robbed at outdoor restaurant. Definitely visit Sintra and do the bus trip around the castles, Pena for sure and the Moors battlements are well worth a visit. Also do the Tram 28 trip in Lisbon.

21-08-2023 6:01pm

Setubal is worth a trip for the fish restaurants and a boat trip over to Troia for the golden sands

andrew1977 · 21-08-2023 6:42pm

Thanks for all the recommendations, a lot to cover in just 2 full days .

We still havnt booked a hotel , not sure which area to base ourselves in and not overspend on the hotel , our intention is to spend little time in hotel .

Anyone with any other recommendations for hotel around the 150 euro mark a night ?

WishUWereHere · 21-08-2023 6:58pm

Apologies for only commenting here now, and apologies if I’m repeating some places:

Lisbon is an amazing city for a break, couple of comments:

The Oceanarium is really great, but I’d say go on a day when the weather is inclement, but be early as the queues can be long

TimeOut Market: it’s only okay. The day we were there ( evening time ) it was packed, and while it’s cheap by Irish standards, it’s not the cheapest in Lisbon.

You must go to Belém & when there You must go to Pastéis de Belém ( it’s a cafe ). Anytime we were there there was a queue, but that is for the take-away of the custard pies. There is a large cafeteria at the back where there is loads of seating. And the pies are delicious.

Tram #28 is a must. Yes it gets very busy but it’s one amazing experience.

If time allows, take a trip out to Sintra - stunning castle, though there is a bit of walking. Also great restaurants in the town under the castle.

We also took the train across the bridge to go up the Statue. Highly recommended!!!

There are amazing tile works in some of the stations, which are really worth seeing Rossio is one that we found stunning. We got the train from Rossio out to the National Palace of Queluz. The palace is about a 15 minute walk from the train station but well worth the effort.

Lisbon has some amazing churches, but one I highly recommend is ‘Igreja de Sao Dominges ( Santa Justa e Rufina )’. There was a fire in this church in the 1950’s and some of the scorch marks are left there. I cannot speak highly of this Church.

One thing I would advise: as already mentioned, Lisbon is very hilly. Make sure to bring a pair of runners with You as the tiling on the hilly streets get very slippy in the rain.

And as mentioned elsewhere, beware of the pickpockets. You will see plenty of beggars there but they are not aggressive ( at least we didn’t have any hassles).

We stayed in an Airbnb in Alfama so cannot recommend a hotel.

Otherwise - go and enjoy it

veryangryman · 23-10-2024 9:21pm

Going for a short weekend break in January. Any 4 star hotels you would recommend anyone who has been. Just looking for somewhere central but not where I can hear busy street outside

mfceiling · 23-10-2024 9:36pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122756062#Comment_122756062

We stayed in the Portobay Liberdade. It's a 5 star but still quite reasonably priced.

Beautiful and luxurious and very quiet. Also very central.

BraveDonut · 25-10-2024 11:02am

We stayed in Hotel Mundial - which we found to be in walking distance to pretty much everything.
It has the most amazing rooftop bar with stunning views over the city

Hotel Mundial, Lisbon

Lisbon

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Lisbon Five Stars Apartments 8 Building