Phuket – party and shop till you drop
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Sintra, Portugal: beautiful castles & palaces in nature 🏰🌳
November 26, 2018
An all-encompassing city! Lisbon has beautiful places to visit and a lot of things to do. Looking for a European city with good weather and a relax vibe to it? Undoubtedly Lisbon, or Lisboa in Portugese. Without doubt, from shopping and history to eating delicious pastry’s and ice-cream, visit Lisbon - the capital of Portugal. Due to the location, the weather is much better than in Lisbon’s more northern European siblings. Lisbon has the most beautiful places to visit and things to do. To rephrase it: experience different areas of the city, get impressed by the traditional fado music, enjoy fishy dishes and – although not in Lisbon but close – I recommend a daytrip to Sintra: castle paradise in Portugal!
Travel to Lisbon
Evidently, Lisbon is located at land in the south west of Europe, in Portugal. You can travel to Lisbon by bus, night bus, by car, or plain and Lisbon has a lot of beautiful places to visit. Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal offers a lot of attractions and multiple places for sightseeing.Fly to Lisbon airport Portugal
For the most part, flying will be the answer on how to go to Lisbon. It’s often cheap for short distances within Europe and won’t take much time. The airport of Lisbon is located very closely to the city, hop on the metro and you’re in the city centre. Airlines that fly to Lisbon are e.g. Tap Air Portugal, Ryanair, Vueling, Transavia and EasyJet.Get to Lisbon by train
Considered the train? After all, when you try to minimize your footprint on the world taking the train to Lisbon is a great alternative. Traveling by train in Europe is comfortable and well-organised. For the best details about taking the train please take a look at the website of Seat 61. Credits for this website go to Mark Smith who by all means helped a lot of train travellers with his detailed website.Get to Lisbon by bus
Bus is the often-cheaper alternative, but can be time consuming. Prices and times differ of course depending on where you come from. For instance, look at the website of Flixbus and Eurolines. Also, the website Rome2Rio is a good one to check what travel options you have between cities.
Things to do in Lisbon: Places to visit in Lisbon
Lisbon, the city in Portugal that is built on 7 hills has a lot for you to offer! Lisbon has great places to visit and a lot of things to do. You really will have a rich city trip experience. I will tell you more about the places to visit in Lisbon and things to do.Attend a Fado night
Fado is the melancholic Portugese music, where the longing or feeling of a loss is sung. Fado is part of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists, so a must see/feel when in Portugal. A man or woman is the passionate singer accompanied by two people playing the guitars, that is, one Portuguese guitar and one classical guitar.Where to see the Fado
There are a lot of – touristic / expensive – Fado houses. You can find them by Googling. I won’t say they are bad, but too expensive for our budget (they often have minimum table charges).We managed to find one that wasn’t too touristy or expensive and we had such a great night! The name of the place to visit in Lisbon is: Estaca Zero. You can find them on Google Maps, they don’t have a website but I recommend calling to make a reservation. We spent 45€ for 2 persons for dinner including dessert and drinks. The lady who works there is só kind, and the ambiance is stunning.
A guided tour: see the best places to visit in Lisbon with an experienced guide
Above all, I would recommend doing a tour with a guide, to experience Lisbon in all it’s glory ánd know what history there is. During the tour they will show you the best places to visit in Lisbon. I would recommend picking a tour where different neighbourhoods are included, so you really learn what Lisbon is made from. I can recommend pay-what-you-wish Lisbon walking tour from Tours of my life. It’s a free tour but at the end you pay the guide what you thought it was worth. A pastel de nata (pastry) is included in this tour 😊<3Thé highlights of Lisbon
When you do a tour these will probably be included or referred to. Make sure you check all these places to visit in Lisbon!Stunning old elevator
But make sure that you take a look at the old elevator in Lisbon that is called the Elevador de Santa Justa. Taking the elevator, you will be charged, but you can walk (just follow the road) to the top of the elevator and take good view photos from there 😊Monastery of Jerónimos
UNESCO obviously doesn’t protect for no reason; the most beautiful sights are included. One of them is the Monastery of Jerónimos. It’s a beautiful big monastery, a landmark not to be missed. It is close to the Tagus river.Torre de Belém
This big beautiful tower at the Tagus river was built in the 16th century, just imagine what this tower has ‘seen’ during all these years. The architectural style is interesting as it has Moorish, Gothic and Romanesque influences to it.Take a daytrip to Sintra
When you visit Lisbon, make sure to include one day for a trip to Sintra, what undoubtedly is castle paradise. Just take the train from Lisbon. I’ve written an article about Sintra to make the most of your one day, make sure to check it out.St George’s Castle
Yes, this is thé castle in Lisbon that you can see from all throughout the city. It’s located in the old Alfama district, so some climbing is included 😉 If you are into beautiful castles, sure check this one out.
Experience various neighbourhoods of Lisbon
Baixa and Rossio make up the city centre and you will probably unintendedly end up in this downtown area.
Bairro Alto is the restaurant, café and nightlife area of the city. In the morning you won’t experience much here, but at the evening the bohemian vibe will come alive.
Alfama is the oldest part of Lisbon, it reminded me of the medina’s in Arabic countries, with its narrow medieval labyrinths. Definitely go here to experience a great vibe. Also, the most Fado houses are located here.
Walk along the riverside - Praça do Comércio & Mercado da Ribeira
Undoubtedly you will end up strolling the Tagus riverside. To begin with, look at the beautiful building and statue at Praça do Comércio. You will also see a tiny beach at the Tagus with some sand art. Strolling further to the west you encounter the Cais do Sodré train station where you can also take the boat to the other side of the Tagus. It’s fun to check out the Mercado da Ribeira, a big market hall where you can also eat.
Where and what to eat in Lisbon
Lisbon has a lot to offer in terms of good food, and drinks of course. Don't skip the pastel de nata / pastei de nata and other delicious pastries. Also make sure to taste some wines, ginjin and surely eat sea food.Pastel de Nata – thé Portugese pastry
Even if you only visit Lisbon for a quick trip – please, promise me – you need to try the Pastel de Nata. Pastel de Nata is a sweet little custard cake and it is só good! Under those circumstances, make sure to set a personal pastel maximum a day, ha-ha, because they are really delicious. Best place to buy them is just outside the tourist area at some little bakery. These bakeries are called Pastelarias.Dishes with fish
I learned in Portugal that Portugal is the 3th country in the world with regard to fish consuming! To illustrate, only in Japan and Iceland they eat more fish. The love for fish is reflected in the menu of every restaurant. Bacalhau, codfish, is one of the countries favourite dishes. Therefore, make sure to try this.Wine and Ginjin
As Portugal produces a lot of wine, you of course need to do some wine tasting. A place I can recommend for this is ViniPortugal, rather located closely to the Praça do Comércio.Ginjin isn’t really something to go looking for, as you will find it at every street corner 😉 Make sure to taste is. Sip it! Don’t shot. It’s like a sweet strong red wine.
