Every capital city has a big buzz, and Lisbon is no different. The crowds, the shops, the cafes, the tourist attractions, it’s full-on, lively, vibrant and busy. After a few hours exploring, full of excitement, you’ll probably fancy a break. So is there anywhere in town you can chill out, relax, refresh your energies and recharge your batteries far from the madding crowd? Luckily it’s a yes. Here are some of our favourite places to chill out in Lisbon.
Check out the Noise Map for Lisbon
If you’re bothered by noise in general, the Noise Map website lets you check out the noisiest and quietest areas of the world, including cities, and the information is nice and granular, giving you lots of detail.
As you’ll see, the flight path for planes above Lisbon is the noisiest of all, and there’s not a lot you can do about that! The worst affected by aircraft noise are the districts of Campo Grande, Campolide, Alcântara, Campo Ourique, Avenidas Novas, and Alvalade, all on the trajectory of Lisbon airport. It’s something you might want to think about when arranging your accommodation. For a better night’s sleep, book a hotel, apartment or Air BnB that isn’t directly below the flight path.
The same goes for clubbing, pubbing and partying. If you’d like to sleep somewhere lovely and quiet you might want to avoid accommodation in Bairro Alto, Cais do Sodré, Bica in Misericórdia, Praca do Intendente in Arroios, and Santos in Estrela.
Hidden gems and quiet spots – Parks and gardens
The Botanical Tropical Garden in Belem is one of two gorgeous botanical gardens in the city. It’s stuffed with exotic plants and flowers from around the world. The second, the Jardim Botânico da Universidade de Lisboa, offers quiet space bang in the middle of the city, a surprisingly peaceful oasis. It began as a science project in the 1800s, now there are more than 2000 species of trees and plants and there are guided tours to enjoy if you want to know more.
Monsanto Forest Park is popular with families and great for picnics, full of lovely walks. This is Lisbon’s biggest green space, a place of hiking trails and playgrounds with a skate park. The dedicated picnic areas even supply grills for BBQing. Then there’s the English garden, AKA Jardim da Estrela, a pretty gated park with ponds, cafes and a stunning bandstand, all in the romantic setting that’s the garden’s trademark.
If you’re up for a relaxing stroll you’ll love the scenic Corredor Verde de Monsanto walking route taking you from Parque Eduardo VII along a 1.6 mile path through delightful landscapes created by the architect Ribeiro Telles to bring nature closer to Lisbon. The route takes you through some of Lisbon’s best-loved green spaces and parks, and offers dramatic viewpoints for photos along the way.
Parque Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles is Lisbon’s newest park, once a bustling, noisy, traffic-filled hell, now transformed into a place with lakes and streams, trees and playgrounds, cycle paths and walking routes connecting Gulbenkian to Corredor Verde de Monsanto.
Parque das Nações is famous for its amazing modern architecture. It’s the old site of the 1998 World Expo, after which it was turned into the city’s first urban park. It contains the aquarium Oceanário de Lisboa, an extraordinary building, as is the Pavilhão de Portugal, Santiago Calatrava’s Oriente train station, and the Altice Arena, a building that looks like a UFO but actually hosts events and gigs. Observe the whole place from high above via the Telecabine Lisboa cable car if you like, relaxing from high above.
Jardim Gulbenkian is so lovely it’s often called a work of art. The brain child of the famed 1960s architect and Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles, the gardens at the Gulbenkian Foundation have been planned to the smallest detail, even the location of trees and plants have been carefully thought about. The place offers a heavenly slice of green with plenty of shade, secluded areas, streams, a lake and grassy clearings to lounge in. There are cafes to grab a snack. And the two museums on site, the Museu Calouste Gulbenkian and Centro de Arte Moderna, are stuffed with amazing artworks.
Parque Eduardo VII hosts events throughout the year including the world-renowned Lisbon Book Fair. The Estufa Fria greenhouse is stuffed with glorious exotic and tropical plants and the viewpoint at the northern end of the park is awesome, offering Istangammable snaps of downtown Lisbon all the way to the river.
Largo do Carmo, a small square in the Chiado area, is where the country’s 40 year dictatorship finally ended with a military coup, making it the symbolic location of Portugal’s democracy. It’s also full of charm thanks to the lovely old cobblestones, beautiful Baroque fountain, and huge Brazilian rosewood trees. It’s also where you’ll find the ruins of Convento do Carmo, an ancient convent that was trashed by the great earthquake of 1755.
Praça Dom Pedro IV, known as Rossio by the locals, is a quiet spot in the bustling quarter of Baixa, a cool place to sit, relax and watch the world go by. And Ribeira das Naus, the street parallel to the river connecting Praça do Comércio and Cais do Sodré, features big grassy areas to lounge on and is very popular with sunbathers, there being no trees. There’s a little cafe in a kiosk for refreshments.
Head for the Tagus River, find the Alfama area and you’ll find a sweet grassy park there with a playground for little ones. It looks ordinary enough, but behind the peaceful vibe there’s a thrilling story of lost and found treasure. When they were building the park they found almost 60 tons of amazing archaeological bits and bobs including cloth, gold coins and a well-preserved 1800s boat that once hauled cargo across the river.
Stroll the waterfront
The waterfront itself if perfect for a relaxing stroll, alongside the mighty Tagus River with gorgeous views of the city and the hills around it. You’re never short of nice places to sit, snack and watch the world go by en route.
Lounge on a beach
If you’re in the mood for some sun and sand, Lisbon has plenty of beaches to choose from. The most popular is Praia do Guincho, a short drive from the city centre offering lovely clear blue sea, golden sand and scenic cliffs. But there’s more. You might want to test-drive Praia da Conceição, closest to the railway station, or Costa da Caparica, an enormous stretch of coastline split into several beaches. Look out for naturists and the special gay Beach, which comes alive at night with live DJs and lots of partying.
Praia do Guincho is a windy surfer’s haven, Praia do Ribeiro do Cavalo is hidden, secret and popular with locals, and the sand at Praia do Creiro is so white it looks like an exotic beach in the Indian Ocean. Stunning Praia dos Galapinhos, dramatic rocky Praia da Ursa, scenic Praia da Rainha and secluded Troia, which is only accessible by ferry and offers true seclusion, complete the picture.
A lovely leisurely cycle
Rent a bicycle to wind your way around the city at your own speed, discovering quiet spots of your own as you venture further from Lisbon’s busy centre and tourist districts.
The ultimate chill – Have a massage
Not many people know this, but Lisbon is stuffed with spas. So go treat yourself to a massage, anything from a traditional Portuguese massage to Thai treatments.
Day drinking with a difference!
You’re on foot or taking public transport so hey, you can enjoy a few bevies while you sit in the sunshine and watch the world go by. There are countless places to do it, some high above the city with amazing views, others down quiet streets or in pretty squares, where you can create your own little oasis of calm with a glass at your elbow and some snacks to dive into. Live music is popular in the rooftop bars, the local wines and ports are splendid, and there’s always cocktails. After that, wobble your way back to your accommodation to sleep it off!
Seeing the city at your own pace
There’s nothing quite like slowing down, chilling out and experiencing this wonderful city at your own pace. It’s small enough to explore on foot and by bike, and you can escape the crowds to get to know the place a lot more intimately than if you spent the whole time rushing from attraction to attraction. Your only problem? How to choose which spaces to relax in.
If you need an airport transfer – check out Lisbontransfers.co.uk
