The Bairro Alto, the Upper Town, sits on a hill west of the Baixa. After the 1755 earthquake, the relatively unscathed district became the favoured haunt of Lisbon’s young bohemians. Home to the Institute of Art and Design and various designer boutiques, it is still the city’s most fashionable district. By day, the central grid of narrow, cobbled streets feels residential. After dark, however, the area throngs with people visiting its famed fado houses, bars and restaurants, while the city’s LGBTQ community coalesces around the clubs of neighbouring Príncipe Real. There are impressive monuments too, including the Palácio da Assembléia, Portugal’s parliamentary building in nearby São Bento. This area houses good ethnic restaurants, a legacy of the city’s first black community established by the descendants of African slaves.
Mon–Thurs 7am–11.55pm, Fri 7am–12.25am, Sat 8.45am–12.25am, Sun 9.15am–11.55pm. €3.70 return.
Everyone should ride the Elevador da Glória at least once. From the bottom of Calçada da Glória (off Praça dos Restauradores), the funicular climbs the knee-jarringly sheer street in a couple of minutes, leaving the lower city behind as you ascend above its rooftops. An amazing feat of engineering, the tram system was built in 1885. It was originally powered by water displacement, later replaced by steam, and now runs on electricity.
At the top, pause at the gardens, the Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara, from where there’s a superb view across the city to the castle.
Elevador da Glória
Natascha Sturny/Rough Guides
Largo de Trindade Coelha 
213 235 383, 
www.museu-saoroque.com. April–Sept Mon 2–7pm, Tues–Sun 10am–7pm; Oct–March Mon 2–6pm, Tues–Sun 10am–6pm. Free.
The sixteenth-century Igreja de São Roque looks like the plainest church in the city, with its bleak Renaissance facade. Yet inside lies an astonishing succession of lavishly decorated side chapels. The highlight is the Capela de São João Baptista, for its size the most expensive chapel ever constructed. It was ordered from Rome in 1742 by Dom João V to honour his patron saint and, more dubiously, to gratify Pope Benedict XIV whom he had persuaded to confer a patriarchate on Lisbon. It was erected at the Vatican for the Pope to celebrate Mass in, before being dismantled and shipped to Lisbon at the then vast cost of £250,000. If you examine the four “oil paintings” of John the Baptist’s life, you’ll find that they are in fact intricately worked mosaics. The more valuable parts of the altar front are kept in the adjacent museum (same hours as church; €2.50, free Sun 9am–2pm), which also displays sixteenth- to eighteenth-century paintings and a motley collection of church relics.
Largo do Carmo 213 478 629, museuarqueologicodocarmo.pt. Mon–Sat: June–Sept 10am–7pm; Oct–May 10am–6pm. €4.
Built between 1389 and 1423, and once the largest church in the city, the Convento do Carmo was partially destroyed by the 1755 earthquake but is even more striking as a result, with its beautiful Gothic arches rising grandly into the sky. Today it houses the splendid Museu Arqueológico do Carmo, home to many of the treasures from monasteries that were dissolved after the 1834 revolution. The entire nave is open to the elements, with columns and statuary scattered in all corners. Inside, on either side of what was the main altar, are the main exhibits, centring on a series of tombs. Largest is the beautifully carved, stone tomb of Ferdinand I; nearby, that of Gonçalo de Sousa, chancellor to Henry the Navigator, is topped by a statue of Gonçalo himself. There is also an Egyptian sarcophagus, whose inhabitant’s feet are just visible underneath the lid; and, equally alarmingly, two pre-Columbian mummies which lie in glass cases, alongside the preserved heads of a couple of Peruvian Indians.
The exit to the Elevador de Santa Justa is at the side of the Convento do Carmo – go onto the rampway leading to it for fine views over the city or the partly lawned terrace in front, the Terraços do Carmo, with its handy café.
Convento do Carmo
Natascha Sturny/Rough Guides
Quiet by day, the graffitied central streets of the Bairro Alto buzz with people after dark, especially on summer weekends when the streets become a giant mass of partygoers. The liveliest area is the tight network of streets to the west of Rua da Misericórdia, particularly after midnight in Rua do Norte, Rua Diário de Notícias, Rua da Atalaia and Rua da Rosa. Running steeply downhill, Rua do Século is one of the area’s most historic streets. A sign at no. 89 marks the birthplace of the Marquês de Pombal, the minister responsible for rebuilding Lisbon after the Great Earthquake.
Tram #28.
At the bottom end of the Bairro Alto grid, set on the cusp of a hill high above the river, the railed Miradouro de Santa Catarina has spectacular views. Here, in the shadow of the statue of the Adamastor – a mythical beast from Luís de Camões’s Lusiads – a mixture of oddballs and New Age types often collects around an alluring drinks kiosk, built in 1883, (daily 10am–dusk, weather permitting), which has a few outdoor tables.
Bus #758 from Chiado.
North of the Bairro Alto, the streets open out around the leafy Praça do Príncipe Real, one of the city’s loveliest squares. Laid out in 1860 and surrounded by the ornate homes of former aristocrats – now mostly shops or offices – the square is the focal point of Lisbon’s LGBTQ scene, though by day it is largely populated by families or locals playing cards under the trees.
Praça do Príncipe Real 1. Bus #758 from Chiado 218 100 215, bit.ly/AguaPrincipeReal. Tues–Sat 10am–5.30pm. €3. Tours Sat 11am & 3pm. €3.
The Museu da Água Príncipe Real is accessed down steps in the centre of the square of the same name. Inside is an eerie nineteenth-century reservoir, where you can admire brick and vaulted ceilings, part of a network of tunnels that links up with the Aqueduto das Águas Livres. Not for claustrophobics, the tours (book in advance) take you along one of these, a humid 410m tunnel that exits at the viewpoint of Miradouro de São Pedro.
Lisbon graffiti
Graffiti has long been a feature of Lisbon life – in the form of political protest under the Salazar regime – and the council’s heritage department has given over certain city walls to be part of a Galeria de Arte Urbana, in which street art is encouraged. The annual urban art festival, O Bairro i o Mundo, has been credited with alleviating some of the problems of the Quinta do Mocho district north of the airport. The result is a dazzling array of graffiti all over the city, but particularly around the Bairro Alto and the Alcântara docks. Lisbon’s best-known graffiti artist is Alexandre Farto, aka Vhils, whose large and striking works are often chiselled into brickwork using pneumatic drills.
Rua Escola Politécnica 56. Bus #758 from Chiado museus.ulisboa.pt. Tues–Fri 10am–5pm, Sat & Sun 11am–6pm; closed Aug. €5, combined ticket €6, includes entry to Jardim Botânico.
The nineteenth-century Neoclassical former technical college now hosts the mildly engaging museums of natural history known as the Museus de Politécnica. The Museu da Ciência (whose labs featured in the film The Promise, starring Christian Bale) has some absorbing geological exhibits and a low-tech interactive section where you can balance balls on jets of air and swing pendulums among throngs of school kids.
The Museu da História Natural houses a rather dreary collection of stuffed animals, eggs and shells, though temporary exhibitions can be more diverting.
Jardim Botânico
Alamy
Rua Escola Politécnica 58 213 921 800, museus.ulisboa.pt. Daily: April–Sept 9am–8pm; Oct–March 9am–5pm. €2 gardens or €6 for combined ticket to Museus de História e da Ciência.
The lush botanical gardens are almost invisible from the surrounding streets and provide a tranquil escape from the city bustle. The Portuguese explorers introduced many plant species to Europe during the golden age of exploration and these gardens, laid out between 1858 and 1878, are packed with twenty thousand neatly labelled species from around the world. Shady paths lead downhill under towering palms and luxuriant shrubs past a “Lugartagis” greenhouse for breeding butterflies.
Rua de São Bento. Tram #28.
Below the Bairro Alto in the district of São Bento, you can’t miss the late sixteenth-century Neoclassical facade of the Palácio da Assembléia. Formerly a Benedictine monastery, it was taken over by the government in 1834 and today houses the Assembléia da República, Portugal’s parliament; it’s not open to the public, though you can book a tour by special arrangement (213 919 625, parlamento.pt). Most visitors make do with the view of its steep white steps from tram #28 as it rattles along Calçada da Estrela, though it is worth exploring the earthy streets nearby. This was where Lisbon’s black community put down roots – Rua do Poço dos Negros (Black Man’s Well) takes its awful name from the corpses of slaves tossed into a hole here.
Rua de São Bento 193 213 971 896, amaliarodrigues.pt. Daily 10am–6pm. €5. Bus #706 from Cais do Sodré, or a short walk from tram #28.
The daughter of an Alfama orange-seller, Amália Rodrigues was the undisputed queen of fado music until her death in 1999. The house where she lived since the 1950s has been kept as it was, and you can also admire original posters advertising her performances on stage and in the cinema, portraits by Portuguese artists and some of her personal possessions.
Rua das Salgadeiras 10 corkandcompany.pt. Mon–Sat 11am–8pm, Sun 5–9pm.
Portugal supplies around fifty percent of the world’s cork, and this stylish shop displays the versatility of the product with a range of tasteful cork goods, from bags and bracelets to umbrellas.
Praça do Príncipe Real 26 963 309 154, www.embaixadalx.pt. Daily noon–8pm.
Housed in a former pseudo-Moorish palace overlooking Praça do Príncipe Real, this is a beautiful upmarket emporium where boutiques showcase Portugal’s leading names in fashion. There are designer clothes, shoes and crafts along with temporary exhibits and a café-bar-restaurant in a wonderfully ornate room.
Rua Dom Pedro V 70 213 465 522. Mon–Fri 10am–7pm, Sat 10am–1pm. Closed Sat in July and Aug.
A huge treasure-trove of antique tiles, plates and ceramics dating back to the sixteenth century – great for a browse.
Rua da Atalaia 8 213 426 840. Mon–Fri noon–3pm & 7–11pm, Sat noon–3pm.
Naked Chef-style food: simple slabs of grilled fish and meat with boiled veg and chips. You can watch the cook through a hatch at the back, adding to the theatrics of a bustling, traditional adega (wine cellar) with a low, arched ceiling. Mains are around €10–12. Get there early to be sure of a table.
Largo da Trindade 9 210 990 575. Daily 7pm–2am.
In a fine Art Nouveau building with film-inspired decor, Sarajevo-born chef Ljubomir Stanisic produces a fascinating mixture of classy mains, such as sea urchin with scrambled egg or spicy octopus with açorda (€28), plus comfort foods such as salmon burgers and risotto (€18).
Trav da Queimada 37 213 427 959. Mon–Fri noon–2.30pm & 7–10.30pm, Sat 7–10.30pm.
Tavern decorated with old boots (botas) and an eclectic picture collection. It attracts queues for its vast portions of sensibly priced, traditional Portuguese food – including bacalhau com natas (cod cooked in cream) and fine cakes. The tables are crammed in and it’s always packed; arrive before 8pm or book in advance. Mains from €11.
Rua Nova da Trindade 20 213 423 506. Daily noon–midnight.
The city’s oldest beer-hall dates from 1836. At busy times you’ll be shown to your table; at others find a space in the original vaulted hall, decorated with azulejos, depicting the elements and seasons. Shellfish is the speciality, though other fish and meat dishes (from €12) are lighter on the wallet. There is also a patio garden and – a rarity – a children’s menu.
Calçada Engenheiro Miguel Pais 39 213 963 339. Mon & Wed–Sun 12.30–3.30pm & 7.30pm–midnight; evenings only in Aug.
Late-opening Brazilian restaurant serving cocktails and classic dishes such as feijoada a Brasileira (Brazilian bean stew) and a fantastic ensopadinho de peixe (fish in coconut), along with some good vegetarian options. Mains €13–16.
Praça do Príncipe Real 962 311 669. Daily 9am–midnight.
A good range of burgers, salads and tapas (€7–9) makes this an ideal and inexpensive lunch spot. The outdoor tables set under the trees get snapped up quickly, though the glass pavilion comes into its own when the weather turns. It’s also a popular LGBTQ haunt.
Rua Dom Pedro V 18–20 213 425 333. Mon–Fri noon–11.30pm, Sat & Sun 12.30–11.30pm.
The best feature of this Argentinian restaurant is the fantastic back room and terrace offering superb views over the Baixa. The food is recommended too, with steaks, fish and pasta options. Mains from €14, with good-value lunchtime buffets from around €13.
Rua do Norte 46 213 464 265. Tues–Sat 1–3pm & 7–11pm, Sun 7–11pm.
Small and popular, the “canteen of well-being” lives up to its name: get there early to guarantee a place. From the menu, the rice dishes and generous salads are the best bet.
Rua Escola Politécnica 40 213 471 356. Daily 12.30pm–1am.
Traditional pregos are steak sandwiches, but this fashionable restaurant has embraced a whole host of varieties. Choose from the likes of bacalhau, tuna, mushroom or salmon with octopus; all are delicious and around €9–13. There’s a cool interior courtyard and fittings made from recycled materials.
Pharmacia
Miguel Manso/Pharmacia - Chef Felicidade restaurant
Bairro do Avillez, Rua Nova da Trinade 18 215 830 290, www.bairrodoavillez.pt. Daily 12.30–3pm & 7pm–midnight.
Top chef José Avillez has four lively restaurants in this artfully converted former monastery: Páteo is at the heart of the “patio”, a beautiful balconied space beneath soaring roof lights. It specialises in fish and seafood plates, with sublime dishes such as garlic prawns, fish rice and tuna escabeche, as well as a handful of meat and vegetarian dishes.
Rua Marechal Saldanha 1 213 462 146. Tues–Sun 1pm–1am.
Part of the Pharmaceutical Society and Museum, this traditional building on lawns facing the Tejo is a terrific spot for a quirky café-restaurant decked out with retro pharmacy fittings. The speciality here is tapas (from around €7). Enjoy daily specials in the evening, or just pop in for a drink.
Calçado do Combro 28–30 213 420 971. Mon–Fri & Sun noon–3pm & 7–10.30pm.
Here’s a place that’s reliable, good value, has plenty of tables, generous portions – and a local buzz. Recommended are the porco Portuguesa (fried pork cubes with fried potatoes) and the salmon steaks. Leave room for the rich chocolate mousse. Mains from €9.
Rua da Barroca 24 213 463 813. Daily noon–3pm & 6.30–11.30pm.
One of the dying breed of inexpensive tascas, still attracting a largely local crowd for wholesome dishes such as wild boar, grilled salmon or bean stew from around €10–12 with outdoor seats in summer.
Rua Dom Pedro V 137 213 427 578. Mon–Sat noon–midnight.
Go through the stand-up bar and head down the stairs to the tiny eating area for excellent and inexpensive tapas-style meats and cheeses and good-value hot dishes from around €7–12.
Lost In
Alamy
Rua da Palmeira 15 213 421 407. Tues–Sun 12.30–3.30pm & 7.30–midnight.
Attractive vegetarian and vegan restaurant with a lovely patio garden, serving veggie versions of classic Portuguese dishes. The all-you-can-eat buffets are good value at around €16; leave room for the Italian ice creams.
Rua Dom Pedro V 56 917 759 282. Mon 4pm–midnight, Tues–Sun 12.30pm–midnight.
This little Indian-inspired café-restaurant has a great terrace with exhilarating views over town and occasional live jazz. The menu features prawn curry and veggie burgers (€12–14), or just pop in for a drink.
Miradouro do Adamastor, Rua de Catarina 213 465 014, noobaicafe.com. Daily 10am–midnight.
Modern, jazzy café-restaurant with a superb terrace just below Miradouro de Santa Catarina. Fabulous views complement the inexpensive fresh juices, cocktails, tapas, quiches and the like.
Rua Nova da Piedade 15 914 447 383, tease.pt. Daily 9am–8pm.
Specializing in amazing cupcakes and chocolate goodies, this hip, tiled café with jazzy sounds also teases your tastebuds with juices, smoothies and inexpensive light lunches such as quiches and salads.
Trav da Queimada 13–15 915 617 805. Daily 6pm–2am.
Colourful, buzzy Mexican bar with Latin sounds, which caters to a good-time crowd downing tequilas, margaritas and Brazilian caipirinhas.
Rua da Mãe de Água 213 422 079. Tues–Sun 6pm–1am.
This extraordinary wine bar is set in the bowels of a nineteenth-century bathhouse whose underground tunnels once piped water into Lisbon. The bar offers a long list of Portuguese wines, which you can enjoy with regional breads and assorted petiscos (snacks) such as oysters or dates with bacon (€6–11). It gets busy at weekends so it’s best to reserve if you want to eat, though you can always squeeze in for a drink or sit at one of the outside tables.
Chafariz do Vinho Enoteca
Demetrio Carrasco/Rough Guides
Rua Ruben A. Leitão 17a cincolounge.com. Daily 9pm–2am.
A New York-style cocktail lounge run by Brits in the heart of Lisbon – there are over a hundred cocktails to choose from; go for one of the wacky fruit concoctions (anyone for gin, lime and dandelion?) while sinking into one of the enormous comfy sofas.
Rua da Barroca 30 929 092 742. Mon–Thurs 7pm–2am, Fri & Sat 7pm–3am, Sun 9pm–2am.
Buzzing little corner bar with ancient radios on the walls and DJs spinning discs. Attracts a young crowd enjoying vast measures of spirits.
Rua da Atalaia 160 213 465 988. Mon–Sat 7pm–3am.
A fine old bar with two rooms, inexpensive drinks and laidback sounds, usually world music. Most Wednesdays there’s a band, often salsa/Brazilian.
Rua da Atalaia 3 213 421 039. Daily 8pm–2am.
At the bottom of the Bairro Alto and traditionally a place to start an evening before moving on up. It’s a great space, with plain white tiles and a rough wooden bar juxtaposed with modern Chinese motifs – the clientele are similarly eclectic.
Rua da Barroca 12 965 039 094. Mon–Sat 6pm–2am.
This arty lounge-bar has plenty of space for big sofas and eclectic decor – including record players and aged machinery – though these get lost in the crowds when the DJ pumps up the volume as the evening progresses.
Calçada do Combro 58 215 914 011. Tues–Sat 1pm–2am, Sun 1pm–8pm.
Reached via a poky entrance inside a car park, this chic rooftop bar comes as quite a surprise. There are potted plants and trees, great cocktails and bar snacks, and a stunning view across the river. At weekends there are often guest DJs and cultural events.
Pavilhão Chinês
Alamy
Rua Dom Pedro V 89–91 213 424 729. Daily 6pm–2am.
Once a nineteenth-century tea and coffee merchants’ shop, this is now a quirky bar set in a series of comfy rooms, including a pool room. Most are lined with mirrored cabinets containing a bizarre range of 4000 artefacts from around the world, including a cabinet of model trams. There’s waiter service and the usual drinks are supplemented by a long list of cocktails.
Rua da Atalaia 103–105 218 466 379. Daily 8pm–2am.
The bar’s portas largas (big doors) are usually thrown wide open, inviting the neighbourhood into this friendly black-and-white-tiled adega (wine cellar). There are cheapish drinks, music from fado to pop (sometimes live), and a young, mixed gay and straight clientele, which spills onto the streets.
Solar do Vinho do Porto
Alamy
Rua de São Pedro de Alcântara 45 213 475 707, www.ivp.pt. Mon–Fri 11am–midnight, Sat 3pm–midnight.
The eighteenth-century Palácio Ludovice is home to the Lisbon branch of the Port Wine Institute, responsible for promoting one of Portugal’s most famous exports. Visitors are lured in with over three hundred types of port, starting at around €3 a glass and rising to some €25 for a glass of forty-year-old J.W. Burmester. Drinks (as well as hams and cheeses) are served at low tables in the mansion’s stylishly designed interior. The waiters are notoriously snooty, but it’s still a good place to kick off an evening.
Rua do Norte 96 213 433 293. Daily 4pm–midnight.
This quirky little café-bar is housed in a former printworks. Now part of a hostel and filled with retro chairs and artefacts, its high ceilings and comfy sofas make it an ideal place to hang out for live jazz and blues, daily from 9pm.
Rua do Diário de Notícias 39 961 339 696. Daily 7pm–1.30am.
Atmospheric little bar filled with football scarves (a fine spot for a drink), which morphs into a very popular fado bar on Mondays and Wednesdays, when crowds pack in to hear moving fado from 8pm.