Where to Stay in Lisbon: Honest Advice
It's easy to get Lisbon wrongfrom the start. I learned that the hard way when I arrived at my first "central" hotel near Rossio Square and found myself in a cramped room with a view of a brick wall and a 2 a.m. construction crew working on the next building over. I’d booked through a site that promised "charming" but delivered "chintzy," and by 8 a.m. I was already drafting a desperate email to the front desk about moving rooms. After that, I decided to do things differently. I spent my first afternoon wandering the Alfama district, where the streets twist like a maze and the sound of fado music spills out from open windows. I stopped at a tiny café on Rua dos Remédios, where I ordered a bica (a strong espresso) for €1.20 and watched locals sip their morning coffee while chatting over the day’s news. It was there I realized the real secret to Lisbon: the city isn’t about finding the most central hotel—it’s about finding the right neighborhood to matc...