(17JAN25) It’s madness that after 2 days of landing in the UK, I went on a weekend trip to Lisbon, Portugal! This marked my 17th EU Schengen country (and my last, for now before I go on a travel break) and it’s certainly another different experience from other Euro trips that I’ve been. Lets say, that this capital should be on your list of go-to cities in Europe.
So here’s my 4-day itinerary of riding vintage trams, tasting unlimited pastel de natas and climbing several inclined steps to see the beauty of Lisboa.
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FLIGHT
We got cheap tickets from Ryan Air and we flew via Stansted airport. For those who live far from STN airport, you can either take a coach or train which you can purchase in OMIO or Trainline. Believe it or not, Winter can be an off-peak season in some EU countries (which includes Portugal!)—but the downside? It is rainy on most days ☹️ So take note of the weather before booking the flight!
Lisbon airport can be easily navigated through Metro and tram lines whilst an Uber ride going here can cost approx €6-7.
HOTEL
I recommend EasyHotel Lisboa as a budget-friendly accommodation.
We had a room suitable for 3 pax and it was very spacious. They have daily refills of amenities. Plus, this is situated near public transport and high street shopping.
E-SIM & TRANSPORTATION
Download the Airalo app then use my referral code: JULIA2362 to get GBP2.50 off on your first purchase!
You will definitely need mobile data for navigational purposes especially when using public transport. We found it confusing to ride the trams and buses as they do not announce each stop!
It is a beauty (and a must) to ride these vintage trams but remember to be street smart! In some occasions, they divert the route or stop unannounced.
A budget tip for using public transport is to buy a Navegante card which you can purchase in Metro stations. We bought a 24hr pass that entails unlimited rides in all public vehicles for a day. Additionally, the card is reloadable once it expires.
Another option is to buy a Lisboa Card which includes unlimited rides and passes to some museums.
ITINERARY
Is Lisbon safe to travel/solo travel? Just like in every main city in the world, it’s best to remain vigilant especially around the city center. Even our tour guide gave us a warning that pickpockets are usually rampant in most areas; Let alone, that they have tactics of blending in during a walking tour. Hence personally, I think it’s best to travel here as a group.
Lisbon is one of my top EU city bucket list because of its classy vintage landscapes. ♡ And truth be told, the reality did not lie about it!
I’m in awe with these tiled ceramic buildings. They are so pretty no matter how simple or old-fashioned they looked like.
However, you got to prepare yourself for a lot of inclined steps!
We joined a free walking tour hosted by Guru Walks that took us to all the main neighborhoods of the capital. Our tour guide(Joana) was very informative as she gave us tips of where to eat, a brief history of Lisbon and where to take a great landscape photo of it(for free!).
Or you can see the birds’ eye view through going up the Santa Justa Lift for €6. The queue can be a little time-consuming.
Livraria Bertrand in Chiado is known as the world's oldest bookshop (est 1732);You can have your book stamped as a memorabilia here if you buy something there ☺️
This tiled ceramic design simply describes Portuguese culture which is their love for wine, music and fish (sardines).
One of the must-experience is to dine-in on a restaurant with Fado music or a live opera show. Despite that they were sung in Portuguese, most tunes are about the singer’s expression of missing someone or longingness (a feeling of Saudade). I wish I could learn what the lyrics were but it was really good to listen to.
It is prohibited to record the show so I took a picture instead.
We went to Café Luzo to experience this and it was an ‘okay’ 3-course meal deal.
One of my friends had Porto wine which I got to taste a bit and I find it too sweet and strong. And since I’m not much of a red wine drinker, this is a hard pass for me.
Another thing that you need to know about restaurants in Lisbon is that:
1. Most of them requires a reservation in advanced
2. Those with fado shows might have a minimum charge of €25/person
3. Dinner in Portugal ideally starts from 8 or 9PM onwards. I appreciate that restaurants are open until 1am here.
There are a lot of fado restaurants in this minimalist neighborhood of Alfama. It takes a lot of inclined steps to arrive here but it’s worth to see it. I like the fact that there are portraits and a mini biography of the person/family living in this town.
Portugal is quite a pescetarian and they are popular with sardines! Their souvenir shops sell these tin-canned delight with attractive designs—but don’t be fooled by it! They have similar qualities than those sold in convenience stores and they are cheaper (about €1/can). So we bought 4 random flavors and had our own sardines-taste testing 😆 We liked the spicy tomato flavor the most and rated the olive oil-based as the least. Apart from sardines, they have other seafood specialties like grilled fish or squid however, I personally didn’t fancy it as I find it bland( or raw) 🙇🏻♀️
but what i really like about Lisboa is their pastries especially, pastel de nata 💓 This custard treat is also popular in other countries (which are also delicious!) but this version in Portugal is well-balanced in taste—a salty tart with a creamy filling topped with icing sugar and cinnamon 💯
it’s literally sold everywhere in the city but it’s 100% must to try it in Pastel de Belem, the oldest pastel bakery in Lisboa which is known to live up their secret traditional recipe.
Lisbon Cathedral
As a catholic, I also appreciated that this whole city is full of beautiful cathedrals. I hope I get the chance to visit the town of Fatima on my next visit!
St Anthony is their patron saint and it’s also the saint for lost items-- and a matchmaker! According to our tour guide, the city host a community wedding for June brides together on his feast day.
Besides touring the city’s main areas, we went on a day tour to see Pena Palace, Sintra and Cascais hosted by Modern Tours. I got to commend our tour guide (Diogo) for really taking care of our group on that day as his mini van was well-equipped with water bottles, umbrellas and first aid kit and he was very informative throughout the roadtrip. It wasn’t one of those tours wherein you fall asleep because of history class. 😆 On the other hand, it was just a shame that it was rainy so most of my shots were very gloomy.🙎🏻♀️ I tried my best to cover this up but either way, I shall definitely go back here on a good weather.
Our first stop was in Pena Palace, a gorgeous medieval castle in Sintra.
Then we went to its beautiful town. Just like in Lisbon’s city center, Sintra has several inclined steps to see some crafty shops and bakeries.
They have a lot of interesting souvenir designs here that you might not find in Lisbon so it’s great to look around it.
The queue in this bakery speaks why it’s a must to taste their pastries. I even bought a box to try some of their bestsellers. They also have a pastel de sintra in which the crust is more solid than the original one (the filling tastes the same).I highly recommend the travesseiros and queijadas. These traditional treats are perfect with a cuppa.😉
Additionally, you would definitely have to try Ginjinha or cherry liqueur. This only cost a euro per shot and it’s best served in these dark chocolate cups. We also tried the pastel de liqueur but it was very sweet (similar to Bailey’s) so we preferred the ginjinha.
We had short photo stop to see this scenic coastline view of Cabo de Roca. Again, this would have been much appreciated without the rain.
Then lastly, we had a late lunch in Cascais which is known for its seafood meals. I apologize but the weather at that time went worst so I went from little to no shots at all here.
We ate at O’Pescetaria that has a nice sailor-voyage ambiance. However, we weren’t impressed with the food (this feedback also came from other people in our tour). My friends ordered the specialty which was the grilled squid and prawns—it was ‘okay’ though we needed to add more salt to get a taste. I had seafood pasta which was also on the ‘okay’ level (2-3/5) but I did not eat the squid because it tasted and smelled raw. I don’t know if this is how they really cook it but I just can’t stand bland meals.🙅🏻♀️
In summary, despite the unforeseen rainy weather and my dislike on the cuisine, I would still like to visit Portugal again. For someone who loves vintage architecture (plus a sweet tooth!), then this is the city to go!
I’ve been on a travel hiatus since this month began and fingers crossed that this won’t take long! But in the meantime, I’ll be writing the 2nd part of my New York blog entry with a special collab.😉
