Lisbon & Sintra
Portugal isn’t just known for its beaches and sunbathing holiday spots. When looking at Portugal destinations look into the lovely city of Lisbon and the gorgeous countryside town of Sintra, just outside of Lisbon.
Day one:
We arrived around midday (ish) and walked from our hotel towards the city centre to grab some food. Walking along the sea front that is situated just behind a large square was a lovely view however, if the weather had been a bit better we probably would have been able to see a bit further and could have sat there for a few hours with a picnic (be warned of the birds though!). Strolling further on we found the old town and made our way towards the São Jorge Castle which is positioned on top of a hill top. Providing some picturesque views of the colourful mixture of houses below. Walking down from this we weaved in and out of the back streets and small side roads come across little restaurants and cafes as we went. We end up stopping off in one as we were pretty exhausted and in need of a drink. Gin and Tonic for Alex and a Vodka and Diet coke for me. (If you are on a budget I wouldn’t recommend this little stop off) Although the drinks had the full potentional of around three drinks worth of alcohol 15 euros for both was a bit of a stretch. We didn’t even manage to finish them due to the sheer alcoholic scent of them both. After our late lunch and mini adventures around the streets of Lisbon we decided to call it a day with our wake up call having been 6am that morning.
Day two:
We decided to get up at a decent time in order to make the most of our time in this beautiful city of trams and tarts. We walked towards Alfama, which is one of Lisbon’s oldest areas with the castle previously mentioned close to it as well as being home to the beautiful Praça do Comércio square. Here we found a little café to have brunch in. The food was amazing and all fairly priced. It offered a set menu for breakfast and lunch with the breakfast including: a hot drink, orange juice, granola and yogurt, honey and fruit, scrambled eggs and salad and a side of bread for just 9 euros each. To say that is a deal is an understatement.
Due to the rain that we encountered we decided to take a trip to the aquarium ‘Oceanário de Lisboa’, while also getting an uber there. Once we arrived we realised that everyone in Lisbon had clearly had the same idea as us and we had to queue for 20 – 30 minutes. The prices were fairly decent as well with it costing 18 euros each to see both the permanent and temporary exhibits with it only costs 15 just for the permanent. This being the largest indoor aquarium in the whole of Europe, who could resist. The only trouble we had while here was that the permanent exhibition was pretty cramped due to that being the one that everyone was walking through and looking at but the tanks were massive and one of them circled around so everyone could have a view of the fishes. Once we had completed both exhibitions we decided on a cheap snack at McDonalds as the cafes in the aquarium were heaving. From here we got the tram back towards the city centre. We had to get the red line and then swap over to the green getting off at ‘Martim Monizo’. After which we boarded the 28 tram which we had heard was one of the best ways to view the city other than walking. We found a seat and were soon on our way down the creaky lines. The trams definitely have the old fashioned sense to them with a few of them even dating back as far as WWII. The breaks were squeaky and the seats rattled but it was an amazing experience none the less. The atmosphere of the whole experience was something to tick off the list. It went through many tiny streets and we managed to see a lot more this way and it is also a pretty easy way to get around if you’re not a fan of the whole walking thing. The tram stopped around the corner from our hotel so we got off there and found a little café to have the famous Nata tarts. It is incredibly easy to find a little café that sold these as there are about 4 of them on each street (at least). We had a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice and it was lovely.
For the evening we had signed on to a Pub/ bar crawl, so we headed back to get ready. The pub crawl was a good way to spend the evening, we did have trouble finding the meeting point but finally found a group that looked like they were probably out for the night and it all worked out. If you do go on a pub crawl such as this make sure that you can make phone calls so that if you are a bit lost like we were you can get in contact with the person running it to ensure no money is lost. We hit about 3 or 4 different bars before finishing off in a club and even got to do a fiery shot In one of them. This consisted of one of the leaders pouring cinnamon into your mouth while you have the alcohol in there and then they set it all alight. It was an intense feeling waiting for your mouth to be set alight but a cool experience as well.
We arrived around midday (ish) and walked from our hotel towards the city centre to grab some food. Walking along the sea front that is situated just behind a large square was a lovely view however, if the weather had been a bit better we probably would have been able to see a bit further and could have sat there for a few hours with a picnic (be warned of the birds though!). Strolling further on we found the old town and made our way towards the São Jorge Castle which is positioned on top of a hill top. Providing some picturesque views of the colourful mixture of houses below. Walking down from this we weaved in and out of the back streets and small side roads come across little restaurants and cafes as we went. We end up stopping off in one as we were pretty exhausted and in need of a drink. Gin and Tonic for Alex and a Vodka and Diet coke for me. (If you are on a budget I wouldn’t recommend this little stop off) Although the drinks had the full potentional of around three drinks worth of alcohol 15 euros for both was a bit of a stretch. We didn’t even manage to finish them due to the sheer alcoholic scent of them both. After our late lunch and mini adventures around the streets of Lisbon we decided to call it a day with our wake up call having been 6am that morning.
Day two:
We decided to get up at a decent time in order to make the most of our time in this beautiful city of trams and tarts. We walked towards Alfama, which is one of Lisbon’s oldest areas with the castle previously mentioned close to it as well as being home to the beautiful Praça do Comércio square. Here we found a little café to have brunch in. The food was amazing and all fairly priced. It offered a set menu for breakfast and lunch with the breakfast including: a hot drink, orange juice, granola and yogurt, honey and fruit, scrambled eggs and salad and a side of bread for just 9 euros each. To say that is a deal is an understatement.
Due to the rain that we encountered we decided to take a trip to the aquarium ‘Oceanário de Lisboa’, while also getting an uber there. Once we arrived we realised that everyone in Lisbon had clearly had the same idea as us and we had to queue for 20 – 30 minutes. The prices were fairly decent as well with it costing 18 euros each to see both the permanent and temporary exhibits with it only costs 15 just for the permanent. This being the largest indoor aquarium in the whole of Europe, who could resist. The only trouble we had while here was that the permanent exhibition was pretty cramped due to that being the one that everyone was walking through and looking at but the tanks were massive and one of them circled around so everyone could have a view of the fishes. Once we had completed both exhibitions we decided on a cheap snack at McDonalds as the cafes in the aquarium were heaving. From here we got the tram back towards the city centre. We had to get the red line and then swap over to the green getting off at ‘Martim Monizo’. After which we boarded the 28 tram which we had heard was one of the best ways to view the city other than walking. We found a seat and were soon on our way down the creaky lines. The trams definitely have the old fashioned sense to them with a few of them even dating back as far as WWII. The breaks were squeaky and the seats rattled but it was an amazing experience none the less. The atmosphere of the whole experience was something to tick off the list. It went through many tiny streets and we managed to see a lot more this way and it is also a pretty easy way to get around if you’re not a fan of the whole walking thing. The tram stopped around the corner from our hotel so we got off there and found a little café to have the famous Nata tarts. It is incredibly easy to find a little café that sold these as there are about 4 of them on each street (at least). We had a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice and it was lovely.
For the evening we had signed on to a Pub/ bar crawl, so we headed back to get ready. The pub crawl was a good way to spend the evening, we did have trouble finding the meeting point but finally found a group that looked like they were probably out for the night and it all worked out. If you do go on a pub crawl such as this make sure that you can make phone calls so that if you are a bit lost like we were you can get in contact with the person running it to ensure no money is lost. We hit about 3 or 4 different bars before finishing off in a club and even got to do a fiery shot In one of them. This consisted of one of the leaders pouring cinnamon into your mouth while you have the alcohol in there and then they set it all alight. It was an intense feeling waiting for your mouth to be set alight but a cool experience as well.
Day three:
Hungover and regretting the 1.5 litre cups of Mojito (very cheap for what we got as well!) we bordered the train to Sintra where we were staying over in order to grasp the real feel of Lisbon as a whole. This train journey only took 30 minutes, so I would recommend going even if its just for a day trip. Our apartment was a bit further out from the centre but we figured out the transport was pretty decent and they had Uber so we were sorted. We end up going to the little café around the station area which did beef steak sandwiches which were delicious. With Alex also getting a slice of lemon meringue cake for afters. We this to fuel us we started our descent in to the town centre. While looking through the city at the many colourful houses and beautiful buildings we stumbled across a free classical music performance in one of the churches. This was pretty cool and it was packed out there, so we were lucky to find it and witness it.
We decided to call it a night earlier due to our previous evening. We stopped off at a Pizza Hut for dinner however, the experience completely taunted the brand name as it really wasn’t nice. The food just seemed rushed even though they lacked the excuse of being busy. After this we just laid in bed and watched some reality Tv before falling asleep promptly.
Day Four:
Today we went to main reason people go to Sintra, The park and national palace of Pena a Romanticist park and palace. Although amazing, it didn’t seem to be that old and almost looked like it was made from plastic. The parks around the castle were beautiful as well and held little ponds and archives. For all nature lovers and to get some beautiful pictures of the scenery I would highly recommend this. On a clear day it is also possible to see the castle from Lisbon city. However, when going to the castle remember to get there earlyish and the previous day we had been too late to get the bus to the castle. We then went on to another park space called ‘Quinta da Regaleira’. This had a palace in it and also had underground passages, wells, chapels and a lot of other cute inputs. Built in the early 20th century it isn’t historically that old but it is beautiful and I would suggest going to this or one of the other palace/ garden spaces that they have in Sintra. Although, this is probably one of the easier ones to get to as it is positioned close to the centre of the town.
Following this we went to the coastal bit of Sintra. ‘Sintra-Cascais Natural Park’ was pretty easy to get to with a bus going directly there from Sintra centre. Here there was a lovely lighthouse and a hillside down to the sea. However, my shoes lacked the grip needed to get down, so we ended up sitting along these bits looking across the sea. This is a lovely thing to do if the weather is nice as it had been on this day and doesn’t cost a lot. You could even take a pack lunch down with you and make a day of it. Going back into the centre we decided to head back and get ready for our last meal in Lisbon as we prepared to fly back home tomorrow.
Hungover and regretting the 1.5 litre cups of Mojito (very cheap for what we got as well!) we bordered the train to Sintra where we were staying over in order to grasp the real feel of Lisbon as a whole. This train journey only took 30 minutes, so I would recommend going even if its just for a day trip. Our apartment was a bit further out from the centre but we figured out the transport was pretty decent and they had Uber so we were sorted. We end up going to the little café around the station area which did beef steak sandwiches which were delicious. With Alex also getting a slice of lemon meringue cake for afters. We this to fuel us we started our descent in to the town centre. While looking through the city at the many colourful houses and beautiful buildings we stumbled across a free classical music performance in one of the churches. This was pretty cool and it was packed out there, so we were lucky to find it and witness it.
We decided to call it a night earlier due to our previous evening. We stopped off at a Pizza Hut for dinner however, the experience completely taunted the brand name as it really wasn’t nice. The food just seemed rushed even though they lacked the excuse of being busy. After this we just laid in bed and watched some reality Tv before falling asleep promptly.
Day Four:
Today we went to main reason people go to Sintra, The park and national palace of Pena a Romanticist park and palace. Although amazing, it didn’t seem to be that old and almost looked like it was made from plastic. The parks around the castle were beautiful as well and held little ponds and archives. For all nature lovers and to get some beautiful pictures of the scenery I would highly recommend this. On a clear day it is also possible to see the castle from Lisbon city. However, when going to the castle remember to get there earlyish and the previous day we had been too late to get the bus to the castle. We then went on to another park space called ‘Quinta da Regaleira’. This had a palace in it and also had underground passages, wells, chapels and a lot of other cute inputs. Built in the early 20th century it isn’t historically that old but it is beautiful and I would suggest going to this or one of the other palace/ garden spaces that they have in Sintra. Although, this is probably one of the easier ones to get to as it is positioned close to the centre of the town.
Following this we went to the coastal bit of Sintra. ‘Sintra-Cascais Natural Park’ was pretty easy to get to with a bus going directly there from Sintra centre. Here there was a lovely lighthouse and a hillside down to the sea. However, my shoes lacked the grip needed to get down, so we ended up sitting along these bits looking across the sea. This is a lovely thing to do if the weather is nice as it had been on this day and doesn’t cost a lot. You could even take a pack lunch down with you and make a day of it. Going back into the centre we decided to head back and get ready for our last meal in Lisbon as we prepared to fly back home tomorrow.
Author,
Written by Elly Babe & Photo's by Alex Hood
Written by Elly Babe & Photo's by Alex Hood