A short 2.5 hour flight from London and I was in Lisbon, the historic and very hilly capital of Portugal. I’d found a gorgeous Air BnB in the Bairro Alto district of Lisbon, right on the famous Tram 28 circuit and central enough for some of the main sights of the City and train station (Rossio) for the day trip to Sintra. The old vintage style trams trundle along the cities streets, winding in and out of the tight corners which I absolutely loved - I ended up becoming one of those geeky Tram-spotters! The trams are very good value for money, around €3 for a single trip, and you can stay on the whole line from start to finish for that price. The Tram 28 route is easily the most popular as it winds through the old Alfama district, but don’t expect you can get on it easily half way around, as i saw it packed each time, despite running around every 10 minutes! A good tip if you want a seat is to jump on it at the start of its journey at Martim Moniz, butI still queued around 30 mins even at this point. Another good spot is the yellow Funicular tram railway starting at Rua da Boavista in Bairro Alto, and ending at Rua do Loreto. It’s steep but offers great views out across the river and a great photo opportunity.
As I mentioned, Lisbon is steeped in history but hilly! A great city to walk around its medieval streets but make sure you bring some comfortable walking shoes. First stop was Castelo de Sao Jorge, the 6th Century fortress overlooking the city with sweeping views from its esplanade. Entrance fees were €10 each for adults and included access to all the areas, ramparts, inner battlements and gardens. After here, I spent the next few hours just walking around the city, watching streets entertainers, visiting the cathedral (Se Cathedral) and national museum, before jumping on another tram back to the apartment.
Lisbon has a very chilled vibe about it, a laid back cafe-culture, quaint boutiques tucked away down the alleyways and full of patisseries! You can easily spend two full days here wandering the streets and doing all the sites if you’re strapped for time.
Late afternoon I got a taxi to the Belem area of Lisbon from the centre (about €7) to visit the Torre de Belem and Mosteiro dos Jeronimos. The Torre de Belem is the Boot shaped defensive tower sitting on the banks of the river Tejo. At the time of its construction in 1514, it was built on an island but the land has since been reclaimed from the river. You can pay a small entrance fee to go inside and climb to the top but it had closed by the time I got there. The area is quite nice to visit early evening when the sun is going down as its surrounded by parkland, there are places to sit with restaurants nearby. A few minutes walk over the bridge and opposite, is the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos, a grand and imposing Monastery building built in the 16th Century, housing tombs of men who helped make the country great. It’s one of Lisbon’s most popular tourist sites so arrive early or late afternoon to avoid the crowds.
The most popular day trip outside of Lisbon is to Sintra, a small hillside town that was the summer retreat for Portuguese kings from the 13th - 19th century, and which is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. It has it’s own micro climate, cooler than Lisbon and about a 45 minute train or taxi ride. I got a taxi there (about €30 one way) and a train back from Sintra station to Lisbon Rossio for €3 one way (bargain!). You need to arrive in Sintra EARLY to avoid the crowds, who tend to start at the Pena Palace. You can get the 434 bus from the station which drops tourists off at the main sites but you’ll be waiting in the queues if you arrive past 10am. Most of Sintra up in the hills to the main tourist sites is one way and very hilly so it’s unlikely you can walk this. Get the bus or an Uber!
I arrived at the Pena Palace at 9am and already the queue was long to get tickets before the 9.30am opening. The Palace itself is eclectic looking, grand and bright in parts, being the home to the royal family when they lived there. Your ticket gives you access to all the grounds, gardens and inside. It was worthwhile visiting but the crowds were frustrating, particularly inside where it was moving at a snails pace! The views from this hill station were amazing and offer some good photo opportunities. Five minutes walk up the road is the Moorish Castle, which is also included in the ticket price (€14 in total). This 8th Century castle hovers high above Sintra and is a mini version of the Great Wall of China, with its walls straddling the landscape and hills in-between outstations. Again the views are incredible here! The castle also has a ruined chapel and a Morrish cistern which you can see.
I then jumped on the bus for the final stop which was my favourite, the Quinta da Regaleira, a lavish palace on the old road to Sintra, built around 1900 for an eccentric millionaire. It’s huge gardens are the main attraction, filled with hidden grottos, caves, sculpture, turrets and lakes. The path to the Wishing Well was my favourite; you can either take the high path and walk down inside the well to the bottom (its very cool!), or cross the stepping stones in the lake to the maze of underground caves and passages which eventually brings you out to the bottom. The view from the top or bottom is pretty awesome.
In a nutshell, that was my 72 hours in Lisbon - I would definitely recommend if you like a mix of history and modernism, exploring the backstreets and a hint of eccentricity!
