Where to stay in Lisbon

In Lisbon you don't choose a district by how close it is to the centre but by how high it is and how many steps run from the taxi to the door: two flats the same distance from Baixa can be one on the flat and the other at the top of a stairway no car can reach.

A hostel dorm bed is €13–22 a night, and a three-star hotel averages €86–100 per person with two sharing. Prices by district are deliberately left out here: the booking sites disagree even on the city-wide average, so choose the district by hill and transport, and compare prices for the same dates.

The funiculars that linked Baixa with Bairro Alto and Chiado — Glória, Bica, Lavra and the Santa Justa lift — have been out of service since the Glória accident of September 2025. If you sleep up top, that means every walk home from dinner in Baixa is by stairs or by tram.

One note before anything else: in Lisbon, '500 metres from the centre' tells you nothing. Look at the address on a relief map or in Street View — if the street outside the building has steps instead of a pavement, the suitcase gets carried and the taxi leaves you on the corner below.

Baixa and Chiado — for a first visit

The lower town, laid out on a grid after the 1755 earthquake, plus Chiado climbing its western edge. Who it suits: a first stay, and anyone who doesn't want to think about transport — Alfama, Cais do Sodré and Bairro Alto are all walkable, and Baixa-Chiado station links the blue and green metro lines. Transport: metro at Baixa-Chiado and Rossio, tram 15E to Belém from Praça da Figueira, trains to Sintra from Rossio. Drawback: this is also the most touristy part of town, with restaurants touting from the doorway — a room facing the courtyard or high up is worth asking for when you book.

3 daysWhat can you reach on foot from Baixa?Lisbon in 3 days →

Alfama — the loveliest and the hardest

The oldest quarter, largely spared by the 1755 earthquake: narrow lanes with no pavement, stairways and squares the size of courtyards. Who it suits: a second visit, couples, and anyone travelling with one rucksack. Transport: trams 28 and 12E run through it, and the metro only touches its lower edge, at Santa Apolónia (blue line). Drawback: taxis and deliveries can't reach most doors, so the last stretch is carried, and tram 28 and the tour groups pass under your window all day.

Bairro Alto and Príncipe Real — nightlife and quiet, one above the other

Two districts on the same hill with opposite timetables. Bairro Alto is a grid of streets that sleep all day and turn into one large open-air bar at night. Príncipe Real sits just above it: 19th-century villas, a park with a cypress spread out like a marquee, and restaurants. Transport: metro at Rato (yellow line) by Príncipe Real; while the funiculars are stopped, you walk down to Baixa. Drawback: at weekends Bairro Alto does not let a street-facing room sleep until late — if you pick this hill, ask for a room on the courtyard or take Príncipe Real.

Hidden gemsWhat can you see from these hills without a ticket or a queue?Lisbon without the queues: tram 12E and the Prazeres cemetery →

Belém — for families and quiet evenings

Six kilometres west, along the river: the monastery, the tower, museums, parks and the Tagus promenade. Who it suits: families with children, and anyone who wants to run along the water in the morning. Transport: tram 15E and the Cascais train from Belém station; no metro. Drawback: every evening in town is a ride there and back, and there are few restaurants in the district itself.

Parque das Nações — the new city, and a good night's sleep

A district built for the 1998 world expo on the eastern edge: glass, concrete, a cable car over the water, the Oceanarium and the Vasco da Gama bridge on the horizon. Who it suits: business travellers, families with small children, and anyone who cares that the hotel has a lift and a room where a suitcase opens. Transport: Oriente station is on the red metro line, the same one that runs from the airport, and trains to Porto leave from the same building. Drawback: not one cobbled street or old facade; if you came for old Lisbon, you ride the metro to it and back every evening.

Day tripsTrains to half the country leave from Oriente:Day trips from Lisbon →

Graça — for people who have already seen Lisbon

The hill above Alfama, with the Graça and Senhora do Monte viewpoints and flats that Lisboetas actually live in. Who it suits: a second or third visit, and longer stays. Transport: tram 28 runs through it, and you walk down to Baixa. Drawback: the hill is a real hill, and the way home to Graça is always uphill.

What to avoid

• A flat whose host won't say which floor and whether there is a lift. In Alfama, Graça and Bairro Alto it is the one question to put before you pay, especially with a big case or a pushchair.
• Street-facing rooms in Bairro Alto and around Cais do Sodré. These are the two districts people go out in, and you hear it until late.
• A listing with no AL number. Every legal short-term rental in Portugal is on the Alojamento Local register, and the law requires its number in every advert. A listing without one is a rental the register doesn't know.

BudgetThe room is only part of the bill:What Lisbon costs →

GuideThinking about Lisbon for the first time?Lisbon →