Hi PortuGAF!
My gf and I will be visiting Lisboa for a second time in two weeks. We liked our previous visit so we booked a nice AirBnB for 5 nights (7 to 13 july). Looking for some cool tips! Things we like:
- food / drinks (we ate at Oficina do Duque the previous time, really liked it). We're both beer/wine drinkers as well so a cool bar with a lot of options is always appreciated
If there are any up and coming restaurants we would love to check those out.
- Getting a bottle of cheap sangria and enjoy that at a miradouro
- We already visited the Castelo de Sao Jorge
- I think we walked through most of Alfama but I'm sure we missed stuff.
Things we havent seen/visited yet:
- The Oceanarium (I like visiting zoos and such, so I guess this will be more my thing, hehe). Is the Zoo worthwile?
- Cascai (I believe there should be some good beaches there?). We probably want to make a day trip out of that.
- Had to skip Belem and most of Sintra (only saw Quinta da Regaleira and the garden) the previous time. What would be some of the other "must-see's"?
Olá! I'm BelgianGAF, but I spend a lot of time in Portugal and I happen to love Lisbon.
to eat:
- I love taking the cacilheiro (ferry) to the other side of the Tagus to get sea food. Catch the boat at Cais do Sodré to Cacilhas, and hop in at Cervejaria Farol (very plastic table/barnlike place, but great seafood for little money) or Soltar Beirão (a nicer decor, with quality seafood). Added bonus: you can enjoy views of the city from the other side.
- If you want to eat reaaaaaly fancy, like Michelin-star fancy: Loco is great. Visited it in december when they just got their first star, and it was amazing. Expect to pay up to 250 to 300 euro's for two with drinks though. (18 meal course)
- Mercado da Ribeira is a pretty cool place with lots of little eating joints. The chef from Loco actually has a place there too (Alexandre Silva). It's across the Cais do Sodré station.
Miradouro:
Portas do Sol has some terraces with views across the city and the river.
Alfama is always a cool place to walk trough, even if you've done it allready. I can't give you directions (who can in Alfama?), but if you happen to find an old lady sitting on a corner, under a plaque with her picture on it mentioning ginjinha, ask her if she can let you taste ginjinha. It'll cost you 1 euro a cup. She makes it herself, it's brilliant. She's not always there though...
The Oceanario is a must. Especially if you love zoo's and the like. It's huge, very well designed (the tour snakes around a central tank, and leads you past little biomes and smaller tanks) and worth every penny (though it is expensive to Portuguese standards). Parque de Nações, where it is located, is also a cool neighbourhood.
Haven't visited the zoo yet.
Cascais is great for a day out. You'll mainly do some walking and swimming (the water can be freezing though, but that's Portugal for ya).
Sintra: if you only visited Regaleira, you still have Castello dos Mouros and Palaçio da Pena to scratch of your to do list. The latter is the main attraction of Sintra: the colorfull palace on top of the hill. It's a pretty steep hike, but worth every step (or you can be lazy and take a bus). the Moorish castle is on the way up, and offers amazing views. I loved both!
If you haven't visited Belém, you should. If you want to visit some monuments, buy a combo ticket for the tower and the monastary. Apart it's a bit expensive and not entirely worth it, but combined it is an okay deal. If you want to eat Pastéis de Belém, don't queue like the rest of the tourists. Just go inside, grab a table (there are over 200 seats) and be served in a couple of minutes tops. If you are going to Belém, you can hop of the tram on the way back (or vice versa) at LX factory, under the bridge. It's an old factory terrain that now houses some cool shops, artist ateliers, bars, etc. A bit high on the Hipster schale, but it's worth a visit.
Into art: The Gulbenkian is great.
I also did one of these
tours
They are pretty good, even if you know the city allready. Like all free tours, they ask for a tip afterwards, so you can give what you want.
Bute emborcar umas bejecas pra celebrar!*
