What to Expect Your First Time visiting Lisbon, Portugal

Visiting Lisbon for the First Time
View of Lisbon from a street in the Alfama neighborhood.

Lisbon is a gorgeous city, there’s no doubt about it. But what can you expect when visiting Lisbon? Ever since I saw an Instagram reel of one of the famous yellow trams on the mystical cobblestone streets, I’ve wanted to go there.

In the spirit of the late great Anthony Bourdain, we ventured to Lisbon with no reservations. We were pleasantly greeted by the coastal city’s laid back atmosphere, Southern California-esque weather and friendly inhabitants.

How many days should you stay in Lisbon? 

We spent 6 days visiting Lisbon, but we wished we could have stayed longer. We didn’t get to experience the popular nightlife areas such as Pink Street as much as we wanted, and we missed out on visiting the National Tile Museum, Jerónimos Monastery, and the Igreja de São Roque church. 8 days in Lisbon would have been perfect.

Despite being fairly large, Lisbon has a beach-town atmosphere. If you are someone who craves the hustle and bustle of a big city like Paris or New York City, you may find the pace a bit slow. It that’s you, I would recommend staying for 4 or 5 days.

Where we stayed in Lisbon 

The view from our Airbnb of Castelo de São Jorge

We stayed in the Alfama neighborhood; we had a view of the Saint George’s Castle from our balcony. The Alfama neighborhood was the perfect area. I would suggest taking a walking tour of Alfama so that you don’t miss anything! Our place was directly above a bunch of restaurants, wine bars, and markets. We almost stayed in the Bairro Alto area but I’m glad that we didn’t because when we went over there it seemed super touristy. 

Activities in Lisbon 

Visit Saint George’s Castle  

visiting lisbon - São Jorge Castle

Castelo de São Jorge (Saint George’s Castle) is in Lisbon, perched on top of a hill with the Portuguese flag flying proudly. Another great place to see the castle was the Miradouro da Senhora do Monte overlook. This viewpoint was only a five minute’s walking distance from where we stayed. To see more castles, you will definetely want to take a day trip to Sintra. Read about our trip to Sintra in a section below!

We had a great time visiting the Saint George’s Castle; we climbed up the stairs and went into all the towers. Saint George’s Castle had the vibe of a park rather than a historical monument. We also saw people playing cards, having picnics, and kids were playing on the cannons. This was fun to see. However, were were a TON of people having photoshoots rather than appreciating the monument. This was disruptive when trying to hike through the castle. I really enjoyed our hike through the Castle of the Moors in Sintra rather than visiting Castelo de São Jorge. 

Our favorite museum 

MAAT Museum Lisbon Portugal
View of the 25 de Abril Bridge from the MAAT

We visited the MAAT: Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology. The building was super cool, it was built like a wave and was right by the bay with a beautiful view of the water and the 25 de Abril Bridge.

Interesting Fact: though the fact that this bridge resembles the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, this is mostly just coincidence. The same construction company that built the Golden Gate Bridge participated in the construction of the 25 de Abril bridge however.

We enjoyed the The Electricity Factory exhibition which is a permanent exhibition at the museum. It features the remaining equipment from The Tejo Power Plant which supplied power to the entire region of Lisbon from 1909 until 1972. This was a very cool exhibition as we were able to climb through the machine and learn about how it burned coal. The exhibition covered how electricity is produced in the modern age and how it has changed over time. The museum also had a water-facing restaurant where you could watch the sailboats go by while enjoying your meal. 

Finding a beach club in Lisbon 

beach clubs visiting Lisbon

Since we made no reservations or plans before visiting Lisbon, we had limited options when it came to the beach clubs (that could be found online). We were able to make a lunch reservation the night before at Casa Reia, a beach club recommended to us by a friend.

We assumed that after enjoying lunch we would have access to beach chairs. When we arrived, we were told that there were no beach chairs available. Then, we looked at the prices on the menu, which was not available online beforehand, and discovered that it was outside of our price range.

We ordered conservatively, filling up on potatoes and bread, before wandering down the beach to find somewhere else to lay out. Low and behold, there was a beach club called Praia do Rei with rental sun beds available for 12 euro each! 

Although we enjoyed our beach day, we were somewhat disappointed by the strong winds and incredibly cold ocean water. The climate is very similar to Southern California since both regions have a similar latitude, elevation, and arctic ocean current running down the coastline. This means it never gets THAT hot, and the water is always cold enough that you may need a wetsuit.

The Dining Experience in Lisbon 

Lisbon had a very relaxed attitude when it came to eating at a great restaurant. Every time we entered a nice restaurant in Lisbon, the host asked us if we had a reservation. Then after we said no, they asked us where we would like to sit. In order to eat at a good restaurant in Paris or many other European cities, you have to make a reservation months in advance. But Lisbon was a bit more casual. 

I would still suggest taking a food tour so that you can try all of the local cultural cuisine! I am sure that we only saw the tip of the iceberg while we were there.  

Lisbon has a lot of restaurants and bars that aren’t on Google Maps and don’t have websites. The only way that they can be found is by coming across them on the street. These restaurants are called tascas, they are mom and pop restaurants that serve incredibly cheap food that is supposedly really tasty. There was one behind our Airbnb that was on a basketball court. There was a grill outside and picnic tables set up under umbrellas. 

Lisbon also has a lot of restaurants that play Fado music. To find these, search Casa de Fado and there will be a list of them. There are a bunch of them that do require reservations but it is easy to wander around the street until you hear Fado music and then go in there. 

Our Favorite Restaurant 

Fado band in Fama d’Alfama Fado Restaurant

Fama d’Alfama was our favorite restaurant in Lisbon. The atmosphere was intimate and the food was incredible. There was also fantastic Fado music. We drank a bottle of their house red wine for 18 euros. I got the sea bass and my boyfriend ate their steak with chimichurri sauce. After eating dinner for an hour and a half, the servers were sad to see us go! They tried to get us to stay longer to enjoy the next fado band. 

Our Favorite Cocktail Bars in Lisbon 

Onda’s Cocktail Room 

cocktail bars lisbon, portugal - Onda Cocktail Room

Onda’s Cocktail Room was a standout of our trip to Lisbon. It is no wonder that the cocktail bar has five stars on TripAdvisor. The bar has ten seats in it and only three people work there. It is owned by a married couple who both work there and they only have one employee. Joanna, one of the bar owners, said that she calls it a cocktail room because it is small enough to invite conversation with strangers. Their most popular drink and menu mainstay is the Tommy’s Smokey Margarita with Mezcal, Tequila, triple sec, lime, agave, olive wood smoke. 

Some of the other cocktails we enjoyed were the… 

Nikkei Milk Punch (tasted like a clarified milk cocktail with caramel undertones) 

Ta Krai Mao  (tasted like green curry!)

These were some of the best drinks that we have ever had. We loved them so much that we came back to the bar two nights in a row. On our second night, they gave us a complimentary taste of horseradish infused vodka with caviar. The cocktails were affordable at 12 euro each. 

Vago 

Cocktail bars Lisbon, Portugal - Vago

Vago cocktail bar was another favorite of ours with its unique seating arrangement and tasty cocktails. The seating was tiered with booths at the bottom, tables up a small set of stairs, and window seats at the top level. The service at the bar was timely and great. The vibes were even better with their being a ton of young locals wearing interesting fashion. We went to the bar early in the evening and when we left there was a giant line outside. I had The Golden Week, a mezcal cocktail with whiskey, aperol, orange jam, lemon and thyme. It was very tasty but nothing special in comparison to the cocktails at Onda’s. 

Day trip to Sintra

sintra palaces and castles - pena palace
Pena Palace (left), Initiation Well in Quinta da Regaleira (middle), Castle of the Moors (right)

Sintra is a picturesque town located outside of Lisbon, Portugal, and nestled in the foothills of the Sintra Mountains. Known for its romantic 19th-century architecture, Sintra is home to a number of palaces, estates, and gardens, making it a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The town is famous for attractions such as the colorful Pena Palace, the medieval Castle of the Moors, and the Gothic-style Quinta da Regaleira. Its lush landscapes, historic buildings, and enchanting atmosphere make Sintra a popular day-trip destination from Lisbon, offering visitors a glimpse into Portugal’s rich cultural and architectural heritage.

To see all there is in Sintra, we recommend taking a day tour. Context travel has an excellent one, which you can check out here!

The highlight of our trip was our day trip to Sintra. Sintra is about an hour outside of Lisbon. To get there, I scheduled a Bolt to come pick us up the night before. Bolt is similar to Uber but it is better. The driver will wait outside for 15 minutes and it was only 20 euros for our one hour car ride. 

I felt like a day trip was enough time to do what we wanted to do. Granted, we’re in our early twenties. We walked eight miles that day and took no breaks between castles. If you don’t want to move at that pace, you may want to stay a night or two in Sintra. We went to the Castle of the Moors, Pena Palace, and Quinta da Regaleira. 

Castle of the Moors is an old Medieval fortress built in the eighth and ninth century. It is made out of stone and has stairs that you can climb up. There is an incredible view of Sintra and there’s a hike going all the way around the castle. It took us around 45 minutes. 

Pena Palace is the most famous castle in Sintra with its uniquely colored pastel towers and stone work. The inside of the castle has been preserved so that you can see how the royals lived. I would recommend buying these tickets beforehand because there are specific time slots. We showed up and realized that we would have to come back later. 

castle at QUINTA DA REGALEIRA
Castle at Quinta de Regaleira
The Caves at Quinta da Regaleira

Quinta da Regaleira was my favorite castle. It was essentially a large park with many different elements to it. There was an entire garden with a castle, caves, an initiation well, a chapel, small fortresses, a pond, a fountain, and endless trails through the forest. The initiation well was incredible, they used to initiate stone masons there. There was green moss growing on down the spiral stairs, at the bottom— you find yourself inside of a tunnel. There was then one tunnel that led to a waterfall and the other led to another well. It was one of the craziest things that I have ever seen. It felt like it came straight out of a storybook. 

The Culture of Lisbon 

Lisbon is a very young city with a lot of artistic young people. From our brief exploration of the nightlife, we found great cocktail bars and have heard that there is a thriving club scene near the Bairro Alto. If we got to go back, we would definitely check this out. However, this time we focused more on relaxing and sightseeing than going out at night. 

Overall impression after visiting Lisbon

Traveling to a large European city can be overwhelming. When you’re in London or Paris you’re left wondering what to do with your day because there are so many options. When you’re in Lisbon, there are just enough options that you don’t feel overwhelmed. You go to the beach, you check out a castle, you go to a museum, and then you wander the streets until you find a restaurant playing fado music. I really enjoyed my time there as it was equally as relaxing as it was culturally enlightening.

Hey there! Some links on this page are affiliate links which means that, if you choose to make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We greatly appreciate your support!

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top