Two weeks in Lisbon | Portugal

Lisbon is a modern city where historic Portuguese culture meets an artistic atmosphere. Walking for hours through different parts of Lisbon city center, going through the historic town, to more modern influenced districts, you will come across historic monuments as well as artistic installations. Strolling along the shore, you will have views over the river Tejo, which you can also experience via a boat ride. Heading to beaches nearby and trying out loads of different restaurants and cafés, there really is a lot to do in Lisbon, but all which can be done under a week. Read on to discover more.

Explore the city, where you will find much artistic influence, sculptures or paintings. Walking through the city you will find many statues of historic personas which formed the city. Walking through the historic part of town you will find the biggest castle in the city and walking along the river, you will discover the main areas which were built in the last 200 years with impressive buildings. The three main areas which are to be recommended where you can find completely different environments of Lisbon are Baixa district, Chiado Neighbourhood and the Alfama historic town.

You will find an elevator in the centre which was designed by a student of the engineer who created in Eiffel tour in Paris or the oldest active bookshop in the world with a café at the end. I can recommend to take a walking tour with a local guide, who will passionately tell stories and legends. Now I’m not a believer of what’s written in the history books, but in order to form your own opinion as much research as possible is needed, and by hearing the “general” historic tales, you start with a good base!

Strolling along the river is also a great way to see much from Lisbon. You will once again find historic monuments such as the tower of Belem, the monument of the discoveries further west along the shore, as well as modern influences further east along the shore. Both sides have beautiful parks to walk along, and incredible views over the river and the bridges.

You will also find lot's of different types of artistic installations or paintings all around.

I can highly recommend taking a boat tour along the river where you have a full overview of Lisbon whilst taking a relaxing boat ride. There are many different boat tours to choose from, and the one I took was from FRS which was about 1hour 45 minutes, under 20Euros and dog friendly. You will also float by the shipping port of Lisbon with impressive container ships!

Is it dog-friendly?

Not all places allow dogs to enter them, most shops don't and only some restaurants do, mostly the more modern plant-based ones. Ironically almost everywhere you go, if you ask for water for your dog, they will give it to you, and those restaurants where you can bring dogs will immediately bring water bowls for your dog! You will also find many dog parks around the city, as many people there have dogs.

There is a huge choice on different types of food in this city. From local fish, meat all the way to modern innovative plant-based cuisine! The café scene is also well developed there meaning you have a variety of different coffee shops will modern drinks and food. Whatever type of food you are looking for you will find it here. I can recommend following two restaurants (plant-based) which were truly fantastic: Honest greens and Kong.

Not too far away from the city center you have a bunch of different beaches, with beautiful views and a few of them even dog friendly! As a side note, you will find many jellyfish everywhere.

How to explore Lisbon

• Take a ferry to explore Lisbon from the river

• Take a walking tour with a local guide

• Walk through the city (Baixa district, Chiado Neighbourhood and Alfama historic town)

• Stroll along the port at various locations

Watch my vlog of the two weeks I spent in Lisbon by clicking the video below 😊

Overall, it's a beautiful city to explore for about 3 days, but to live, I’m not sure about. I definitely think it’s important to try out different places to see what a city is like, how you feel about it when you are immersed in it for a while. P.s. Driving in Lisbon is really survival of the fittest, so it might be more enjoyable to explore this city by not driving in it.

Stay tuned for my next adventure!

Much love,

Isa xxx