Lisbon is the capital city of Portugal.  It is much larger and commercialized than Porto from what we saw, but still beautiful in its own right.  It also has tiny winding cobblestone streets, with lots of shops, bars and restaurants.  We spent 5 days in Lisbon and could have easily spent another 5 exploring the city and areas around the city because there is so much to do and see.

Top 5 – Lisbon

1 – Sintra

Sintra is a real life fairy tale. It is one of the most amazing places I’ve ever visited. Pena Palace is the city’s crowing jewel and it is architecturally stunning, colorful and massive. The tiny town of Sintra is adorable. We did a day trip through Inside Lisbon, with our tour guide Jaime. He was incredibly knowledgeable and gave us tons of information through the day. We learned on the tour that Pena Palace was never constructed to be a defense castle, but a beautiful castle gifted to one of the Portuguese Queens. It’s an absolute must see when in Lisbon.

We did an organized day tour, but it’s very easy to access on your own, as it is only a 30 minute train ride from Lisbon. If you have the time, I’d suggest staying overnight in Sintra to have adequate time to explore not only Pena Palace, but the other castles and palaces, as well as the town. However, if you are short on time as we were, the day trip is a great way go.  Side note…while you’re there, take note of the air in Sintra. Depending on where you are you smell hints of eucalyptus, cinnamon and/or a variety of flowers.

2 – Óbidos

Óbidos is a medieval, walled town about 40 minutes outside of Lisbon. It was originally founded in the 8th century, however the Portuguese took over the town in the 13th century.  The walled city has remained largely intact and is now a popular tourist destination. We stopped on a different day trip with Inside Lisbon, that also visited Fatima, Nazaré and the Monastery of Batalha.

The other stops were also nice with beautiful sights, however Óbidos was my favorite stop. There wasn’t enough time to see everything and walk the entire castle wall, but we were grateful to be able to visit even for a short time on the day tour.  While wandering through the streets, you have to try the Ginja Liquor, a local cherry liquor, which is served in a dark chocolate shot glass, which you then get to eat after you take the shot.  Very good.  Another tip…Óbidos has some of the cheapest souvenirs shops in Portugal, so I’d suggest waiting to buy any souvenirs there, if possible.

I don’t know how easy it would be to get to Óbidos on your own, however if you could find a way to go and have more time there it would be worth it.  If you could find a tour that only stops at the Monastery of Batalha, Nazaré and Óbidos, allowing more time in those places, I would suggest it. The main attraction in Fatima is the cathedral, which was beautiful, however I would have preferred more time at the other stops if I could have designed the tour myself.

3 – Cascias and Cabo da Roca

We stopped in Cascais after spending the morning in Sintra. It’s a beautiful beach town full of shops and restaurants. It’s less than an hour from Sintra and an included stop on the Sintra day tour with Inside Lisbon.  Along the way to Cascais, we made a quick stop at Cabo da Roca.  Cabo da Roca is the westernmost point in mainland Europe and offers beautiful, endless ocean views and a rugged cliff line.  This stop is a huge perk of the tour, as I think it would be difficult to get here on your own.

Once we arrived in Cascais, we had a few hours to explore and get lunch. We stopped at Chequers for lunch where we had the traditional Portuguese piri piri chicken and of course, a pitcher of delicious sangria. Lunch was amazing and we sat outside on a patio in the sun, which was glorious. We spent the remainder of the time exploring the shops and walking on the beach. It was a quick stop but really beautiful sights.

4 – Walking tours of Lisbon

We did 3 walking tours of Lisbon with Sandeman’s New Europe walking tours; the FREE city walking tour, and walking tours of Belém and Alfama.  The Belém and Alfama tours were €13 each and lasted about 3 hours per tour.  They were a really nice way to see the city and get in some exercise (more room for all the Portuguese pastries you’ll want to eat!) at the same time. The free city walking tour covered a good part of the downtown area of Lisbon and depending on the tour guide you get tons of historical information and interesting facts.

We had Eduardo for the free Lisbon city and Belém tours. He was so knowledgeable and passionate about what he does, that it made the tour that much better. In Belém we saw many places created for the Worlds Fair in 1940 and other places along the water front before making our way to the Monastery of Jerónimos. Be aware that the Belém tour will require you to pay an additional €3.10 for train fare, cash only.  The Belém tour ends at Pastéis de Belém, where you can get the original pastéis, which was life-changing-ly delicious.

We also did the Alfama walking tour with Cuco. Alfama was the only part of the city to survive the devastating earthquake in 1755. The earthquake was followed by tsunamis and then fires, which destroyed 85% of the city. However, as Alfama is located higher and has a different foundation then the rest of Lisbon, it managed to get away unscathed for the most part. The remains of the São Jorge Castle are located in Alfama. However, as it is mostly only walls that remain and they charge €8 to enter, our tour viewed the castle from the outside only. The tour winds through the tiny streets and stops for a tasting of the famous Portuguese cherry liquor and ends with a taste of Portuguese green wine from one of the oldest bars in Lisbon, Antonio’s. The cherry liquor tasting is from the window of a woman who makes her own and sells it for €1 per shot. It was sour and strong and not particularly my taste, but worth trying when you’re there. The green wine on the other hand, was great, and half a glass was €1.50.

All 3 tours were great and provided us with tons of information about Lisbon, and helped us burn lots of calories! I had never done a walking tour before, but am definitely going to look into them in other places I go going forward, as it’s such a nice way to be immersed in the city and the culture while taking in the sights.

5 – Hotel Mundial Rooftop Bar

My friend Megan had recommended the Hotel Mundial rooftop to us before we left on our trip.  Since we love a rooftop we knew it was somewhere we had to check it out. We originally went on Monday night, only to find out it is closed Mondays. It is open all other days starting at either 5:30 pm or 6:30 pm, depending on the season. We went back on Wednesday night for the sunset and, yep, more sangria (We literally couldn’t get enough sangria on this trip). The views from the rooftop are beautiful.  They provide heaters and blankets for use in cooler weather, which was great and allowed us to stay outside more comfortably.

Honorable mention

Dragon square

I’ll be honest, Dragon Square itself is nothing that special. There are food stands, fountains, sculptures, and even a place that offered massages. But it makes my list because we were able to sit in the warm, Portugal sun, while drinking sangria on the first beautiful and warm day of our trip. It was so relaxing that I had to give it a shout out.

Avoid

Tuk tuk rides. They are very expensive and you can do much longer walking tours or other guided tours for about the same price or cheaper. I had ridden in many tuk tuks in Thailand for MUCH cheaper so I couldn’t justify taking a pricy tuk tuk ride in Lisbon.  BUT, if you haven’t done it before I can understand the appeal. If you just want to ride in one it may be worth a quick ride to experience it, but I would avoid the actual tuk tuk tours because you will overpay.

Street beggars. As I referenced in my previous post, Renee’s cell phone was stolen right off our table on our last night by a beggar who walked by asking for money. If you see them approaching, shoo them away and don’t let them close to your personal belongings. We thought we were being extra careful, but unfortunately they have many tricks and are capable of stealing from you before you even realize it happened. Be aware, be observant.

Despite the stolen phone on the last night, we had a great time in Lisbon.  It’s a beautiful city with tons to see and do, but also has so many amazing places within an hour or so outside of the city to explore.  Definitely make time for a day or two in Lisbon and if you are able, visit Sintra and Óbidos as well.  It will be well worth your time as they are some of the most unique places I’ve ever had the pleasure of visiting.