4min on foot
Príncipe RealBest
The reception's own neighbourhood. Wine bars, garden cafés, boutique hotels and leafy squares. Quiet at night without being dead.
Worth knowing
The priciest area on this list — but you'll never pay for a taxi.
Travel & where to stay
Book somewhere you can walk home from
Lisbon is small, cheap to move around, and a good deal hillier than it looks on a map. The one decision that really matters is which neighbourhood you book. Everything else sorts itself out.
- Walk home
- 4–21 min10 places
- Long walk or short taxi
- 28–38 min4 places
- Lovely, but too far
- 65–120 min4 places
Neighbourhood by neighbourhood
Walking times are from the middle of the reception area, on flat ground. Add half again for anything marked as a climb, because Lisbon rarely is.
Under about 25 minutes on foot. Book here and you never need a taxi.
7min on foot
Rato & AmoreirasBest
Right on top of the reception, and home to the nearest metro station (Rato, yellow line). Less charming than Príncipe Real, better value.
9min on foot
Bairro AltoBest
The old-town grid that turns into a street party after 10pm. Bars, tascas and fado houses on every corner.
Worth knowing
Genuinely loud until about 2am on a Friday. Brilliant if you're out in it, rough if you want to sleep.
11min on foot
Avenida da LiberdadeGood
Lisbon's grand boulevard — the full-service hotels are here, along with smarter restaurants. The walk is gentle, which matters more than you'd think.
13min on foot
Santos & MadragoaGood
Villagey and far less touristy, with a lot of small restaurants and bars. Good value apartments.
14min on foot
ChiadoBest
Elegant shopping and restaurant district — cafés, theatres, the good bookshops. Very central and quieter than Bairro Alto.
Worth knowing
Downhill on the way out, a proper climb on the way back.
14min on foot
Estrela & LapaGood
Quiet, handsome and residential, with a big garden and very good bakeries. Mostly flat walking, calm nights.
16min on foot
Baixa & RossioGood
The flat grid between the river and Rossio square. Unbeatable for transport — the Sintra train leaves from Rossio station, and three metro lines meet here.
Worth knowing
Restaurants are touristy, and the walk back up to Príncipe Real is a real climb.
17min on foot
Cais do SodréGood
Riverside, with the Time Out Market, the Pink Street bars and late-night everything. Metro, the Cascais train and the ferry all leave from here.
Worth knowing
Allow 25 minutes coming back — it's uphill the whole way.
21min on foot
Campo de OuriqueGood
Where Lisbon locals actually eat. A proper market hall, family restaurants, cafés everywhere and pleasantly flat walking.
Worth knowing
No metro station, though buses and taxis are plentiful and cheap.
Roughly 25–45 minutes on foot, or a €6–10 Bolt. Fine by day, less appealing at 2am.
28min on foot
Alfama & Graça
Fado, viewpoints and tangled medieval lanes. Beautiful, and full of restaurants.
Worth knowing
Two hills between you and the reception, so realistically a taxi. Many doors are up flights of stairs with no car access — miserable with luggage.
30min on foot
Saldanha & Avenidas Novas
The business district: reliable big hotels, decent restaurants, not much charm. Ten minutes on the metro. Good value if the centre is booked out.
30min on foot
Intendente & Anjos
The hip end of town — natural wine bars, new restaurants, cheaper stays, green line metro.
Worth knowing
Changes character street by street. Check the exact address before you book.
38min on foot
Alcântara & LX Factory
A converted industrial quarter under the bridge, with great restaurants and bars.
Worth knowing
Taxi territory in both directions, every time.
Genuinely nice places to stay — you'll just be riding in and out every time.
65min on foot
Belém
Monuments, pastéis de nata and museums — a lovely half-day out.
Worth knowing
5 km west and completely dead after dark. About 20 minutes and €12 each way.
90min on foot
Airport hotels
Convenient for a flight and nothing else.
Worth knowing
7 km from the reception. Only worth it for a very early departure.
95min on foot
Parque das Nações
Modern riverside district by the Oceanário.
Worth knowing
7 km out, no atmosphere at night, roughly €15 by taxi.
120min on foot
Cascais & Estoril
Seaside towns, gorgeous for a few days either side of the wedding.
Worth knowing
30 km away. The train to Cais do Sodré takes 40 minutes and stops around 01:30.
From the airport
Arriving
The airport is unusually close
Humberto Delgado (LIS) is only 7 km from the centre. A taxi or Bolt takes about 20 minutes and costs €15–20. The red metro line runs from the terminal — change at Alameda onto the green line — around 35 minutes for about €2.
Landing late?
The metro stops at 01:00, so an overnight arrival means a car. There's always a taxi rank outside arrivals, and Bolt and Uber both pick up from the airport.
Getting into town
If you're staying in the walk-home zone, ask for Príncipe Real, Rato or Bairro Alto — every driver knows them.
After the party
Getting home late
Metro runs 06:30 – 01:00
Last trains leave the ends of each line at 1am, so plan to be on one by about 00:40 from the centre. A single ride is around €2, a 24-hour pass about €7.
After that, it's the apps
Bolt, Uber and FreeNow all work well in Lisbon. Expect €5–10 for anything central, more with surge pricing between 2am and 4am on a weekend.
Night buses exist
Carris routes beginning with N run roughly midnight to 5am. They work, but they're slow and infrequent — fine as a backup, not a plan.
Lisbon is steeper than it looks
Distances lie here. A 1.2 km walk back from Baixa or Cais do Sodré is a serious climb — add half again to any journey heading uphill. The calçada cobbles get slippery too, so a flat pair in a bag is a good idea.
Euros
Money
Portugal uses the euro
Cards and phone payments work nearly everywhere. Carry €20 or so in cash for small cafés, markets and tips.
Always pay in euros
If a card machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That conversion rate is consistently worse than your own bank's.
Tipping is light
Rounding up is normal; 5–10% for a good dinner is generous.
What that costs at home
Fetching today’s rates…
Roughly what things cost
- Espresso (uma bica)
- €1
- Beer
- €3–4
- Glass of wine
- €4–6
- Dinner out
- €25–35
- Metro ride
- ~€2
- 24-hour transit pass
- ~€7
- Taxi across town
- €8–12
- Taxi from the airport
- €15–20