Hello all - As I've said in my title, my husband and I are seniors. We are considering going to Lisbon after a small group tour in Andalucia for a week. We would consider staying in Lisbon 5 days?? At this point, the length of our Lisbon stay is negotiable.
I have read that Lisbon is very hillly which would make our stay a challenge. We do a lot of moderate walks but up and down hills all day would be quite a challenge. I've read about taking tuk-tuk tours to see the city and that sounds fine to me.
Might you suggest an area for us to stay in that would include lovely gentle walks in the morning or evening? We love strolling interesting narrow streets, cafes, etc.
Any other suggestions to make this trip enjoyable and doable would be much appreciated. We've never been to Portugal but I'm wary of all the reports regarding hills everywhere.
Many thanks!
Mary
Posted by
Eastern Iowa, USA
7569 posts
While hilly, it is only really two main neighborhoods that require a climb to get to, the Bairro Alta and the Alfama. The Baixa, the central area of Lisbon, is relative flat (sloped to the river), and from central Lisbon all the way to Belem, along the river is flat. If you take a tram or elevator to the Bairro Alta, then walking there is not too bad, it is getting up that initial hill that is the worst. The Alfama I think is a bit more steep and hilly. Uber and Bolt, and even taxis are cheap, we used them last trip, probably will this one, and there is a Metro to help with some hops and buses. Everything though I heard about the tuk-tuk tours is "proceed with caution", they are more "pricey mediocre tourist tour" than transport. Lots of reviews that they are too expensive, some love them.
Others can speak to Sintra, if that is on your list, we just have not been, so not sure what walking is required, but then there are likely some great tours on offer for there.
Posted by
OP
63 posts
Thanks Paul - very helpful information. Also appreciate your advice about the tuk-tuk. Yes, they are probably another tourist trap. So would you suggest we stay in the Baixa area?
Posted by
Michigan
315 posts
Agree with Paul's direction. Easy to see a lot of Lisbon without needing the hike up steep hills. Tuk-tuks in Lisbon and Porto are tours, not transport, and can be fun from that perspective. In Porto, the price varies with the location and number of sites included, I am sure it is the same in Lisbon. They DO camp out at the bottom of the Alfama, for sure, hoping you'll just want a ride up the hill lol. Look for funiculars and elevators - Gloria takes you to Barrio Alta, Santa Justa takes you to Chiado, not sure if there is one servicing Alfama. We have stayed at the Hotel Lisboa Plaza (Av de Liberdade, RS tours stays there), and liked the hotel and location - easy walk to central part of the city for shops and restaurants on Rua Augusta (pedestrian mall), Restauradores metro stop is a few blocks away, as is Rossio train station (if you go to Sintra, etc).
Posted by
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
4114 posts
I can't speak from experience as we're going to Lisbon for the first time next Fall. We've booked an apartment in Baixa and I walked the neighbourhood via google maps and it looked flat or reasonably so. In fact we've decided we're going to rent bikes to ride from Baxia to Belem. What I'm learning from my research is that the subway and bus system is good and an effective way to get from top to bottom if walking will be difficult.
Posted by
OP
63 posts
Thanks Rebecca for the recommendations!
Posted by
USA
91 posts
Baixa is flat and nice grid pattern
Chiado and Barrio Alto have streets of different steepness. Make sense to walk appropriately to avoid going down and then immediately up.
For longer distances just use Bolt
About 3-4 euro per trip.
Uber is also available but slightly expensive as they take huge cut from drivers and they hate it
Tuk tuk are just tourist trap rip offs mainly targeted towards less traveled Western tourists who have no exposure to them (these are very common in Asia, Africa).
Chiado Metro station is quick and easy (also free) way to go up and down between Chiado and Baixa
Departmental store recommended by RS is not as convenient unless you have to go to that part of Chiado.
Whatever you do, never make typical tourist mistake of spending an hour plus in line to go up via San Justa elevator!! Hands down the most stupid mistake a time crushed tourist can do when wait time is anything more than 5 minutes.
(View from the top is very nice but you can reach there free and quickly using other means. That's why RS covers that viewpoint as part of his Chiado walk)
For Alfama:
There is free public Lift to go from Baixa to Castello area. There is also a small bus (737) running every 10 minutes or so from Rossio (plc . Figuera.) to top of Alfama. (Tram is not good alternative as it is crowded, jerky and infested with pickpockets)
Also, cheating by Lisbon taxi drivers is not uncommon (like most places in the world). Bolt is way to go (or Uber)
Posted by
State of Washington, USA
250 posts
We are older, and visited Lisbon in Aug 2023. We often used free elevators/escalators to avoid steep walks. More info in our trip report (part 4): https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/trip-report-portugal-aug-sep-porto-coimbra-lisbon-then-to-spain
Posted by
OP
63 posts
Thanks so much Kenny and Geoff - very helpful information. I appreciate all this help.
Posted by
San Franciso Bay Area, USA
954 posts
Mary,
My husband and I were in Lisbon in October and you have already received great advice. One more thing to consider for walking is wear shoes with good traction, especially if there is any chance of rain. The mosaic stones can be very slippery.
Posted by
Sapulpa, OK, USA
6302 posts
Seconding SandyO's advice about shoes. I bought a pair of grippy soled ankle boots for our recent Portugal trip, and was glad I had them!
We enjoyed our time in Lisbon, and had little trouble with the hills. As others have said, there are elevators and escalators to help you out, and we found that just taking our time going up and down was sufficient. We're in our mid to late 70s, and I do have some problem walking down hills and steps, but not up them.
Pace yourselves, look for the escalators, and have a wonderful time.