From lisbon with love

One of the (many) things on my bucket list is to tick off every single capital city in the world and I recently got one teeny tiny step closer to that as I just got back from a trip to Lisbon in Portugal! To be honest, we had a bit of a nightmare with the booking of this trip. We knew we wanted to go for the early May bank holiday and after a bit of searching online, we booked a hotel and flights from Birmingham for a fairly reasonable price. Then Ryanair cancelled the flights from Birmingham, so we rebooked to go from Manchester. Then Ryanair moved the outbound flight by a whole day, cutting our trip short by 25%! So giving up on the airline altogether, we rebooked with Easyjet from Luton and it was third time lucky (although the queues at Luton were insanely long and arduous).

Once we arrived in Lisbon though, all the stresses of the flights melted away. It was absolutely beautiful! We’d chosen our hotel, Le Consulat, for its authentic-feeling Portuguese style while still having lovely, fresh, modern interiors. When we arrived at our hotel, we couldn’t quite check in yet but they still managed to get our room ready early so after a drink and pastel de nata at a Qioske just outside (lots of these outdoor bars in Lisbon), we were in. And we were not disappointed! Our room was so beautiful with a big four poster bed and wrought iron Juliet balcony - the view was definitely the main selling point! We were also in a great location, right in the thick of it. Although we found this had its pros and cons; perfect for exploring and for finding lovely food and drink spots right at our fingertips, but not so perfect for sleeping as it was super loud 24/7!

After we’d unpacked and got changed, we were off to start exploring! I wore black bardot top, longline zebra print shorts and black espadrilles because it was forecast to be about 20 degrees or so, so I wanted to strike the right balance between spring and summer. My first impression of Lisbon was that it was actually kind of sprawling and pocketed into different areas in the same way that Barcelona and London are. So we figured we’d tackle one section at a time, rather than trying to go here, there and everywhere. We were staying in the Bairro Alto district, so we started by heading south to tick off the Cais do Sodre district. For a couple of reasons; 1) because it seemed like a good idea to head to the sea, 2) it looked like there were some nice lunch options there and 3) I saw that there was a pink street that looked super pretty. It wasn’t like a major tourist attraction or anything but it was cute to have a look, and it had loads of floating umbrellas suspended above. 

By this point we were pretty hungry so we wasted no time in finding a restaurant for lunch; we headed straight to the sea and picked a place called Vestigius, which had a gorgeous view, great cocktail menu and lovely food. I went with the catch of the day because it always feels right to have fish by the sea.

After that we had a little wander around with no real destination in mind. We saw the Time Out Market and lots of lovely buildings and parks before stopping off for a drink in the sun - it was really lovely weather the whole time we were away!

When considering getting another drink, we fancied looking for somewhere else and being the rooftop bar connoisseur that I am, I’d already spied with my little eye one that I wanted to go to. It couldn’t have worked out more perfectly either as when checking how far from it we were, we were literally over the road! So we headed up to the top of the hotel to get to the Java Rooftop, where we were greeted with the most breathtaking views. It was panoramic and was beautiful in every direction you turned! So we snagged a seat around the edge overlooking the pretty multi-coloured buildings that climbed up the hill, and enjoyed a cocktail or two.

After some chill time back at our hotel, it was time to get ready for the evening! Having been awake since 2am to drive to Luton for our early morning flight, we were hardly getting ready for a wild night out. But we did have a look for some nearby tapas restaurants and found a lovely looking one just 5 minutes from us. It was the teeniest tiniest restaurant ever but we managed to snag a table and enjoyed some sangria and sharing plates! Outfit wise, I went with sage green tailored shorts, off the shoulder floral blouse and cream and gold heels that are becoming my absolute holiday go-to shoe. I added a pop of colour with this kitsch red lip bag (which is not very practical because it doesn’t even fit my phone and barely fits my purse but it looks cute right?).

The next day was a scorcher so I certainly dressed for full-blown summer this time (27 degrees can I get a hell yeah). I wore (another) floral off the shoulder top and paired it with these new shorts which are a lovely fit and the most gorgeous burnt orange colour! And after a quick coffee and pastry stop, we were off to explore!

We were tackling the Chiado/Baixa regions this time around which essentially felt like the main touristy area. We started at the Carmo Convent, which we’d timed really well because for 2 days only it was free to enter (plus, it was then closed for the other two days we were there due to labour day weekend so we wouldn’t have seen it had we gone on a later day). It was really cool but there was nothing to actually do or explore further there; basically once you were in, you’d seen all there was to see. So I wouldn’t consider it worth it if we’d paid but I was glad we got to see it.

Then we had a wander down what seemed to be the main street (augusta), all the way down to their version of the arc de triomphe (Arco da Rua Augusta), which was really beautiful. Then the whole thing opened up into the giant commerce square which was bordered by loads of lovely restaurant terraces. Because it was such a hot day, we decided to cool off over the hottest part by relaxing with a few beers, a few sparkling sangrias and a spot of lunch!

Lisbon didn’t really have a proper beach in the city centre, not unless you wanted to get a taxi or bus or something like 15 minutes round the bay (which isn’t bad at all if you did fancy doing that). But they did have a tiny patch of sand just in front of the main square down some steps, and plenty of people were sat on the bordering walls watching the world go by, or playing on the sand. So it was nice to stop off there and dip our toes in the sea!

Then it was onwards with our walking tour! We did a bit of an uphill trek to reach the cathedral, which was pretty cheap to enter and really beautiful. It had a museum-esque section with old robes and artefacts and then it had a cool balcony section at the front with an amazing view over the city!

The only thing we’d booked in advance for Lisbon was a boat tour, which seem to be the main popular activity when looking on tripadvisor and viator. We didn’t book it very far in advance so didn’t have like loads of options for the date we wanted (if you book earlier, you’d have more different tours to choose from) but we ended up with a great one anyway. The boat was nice and small with a group of no more than 20 people on it, and we set sail at about 7pm with a fully stocked bar and a G&T on the house.

If I was being critical, I’d say the boat trip was a smidge long. It was a 2 hour round trip, up the coast (it felt more like a river as the sea that surrounds Lisbon is a really tiny inlet) and while all the sights were beautiful, there wasn’t quite enough to see to warrant a trip of that length. The main thing we went on it for was the sunset, which (wow) did not disappoint. It was so beautiful as shades of orange and yellow and pink flooded the sky, and it was lovely to toast the day out with a couple of drinks. But I think an hour or an hour and a half long trip would've done the same thing and it would mean we were back a bit earlier to get ready for the evening. Overall, worth doing though!

Despite the need for a quick turnaround, I still managed to scrub up pretty well. This dress is one of two shein styles that I have in different colours and I just love them so much. The print and colours are so pretty and I love the fit; super flattering and perfect for holiday. I added my cream heels and red lip bag, and then pinned my hair back on one side with a suitably sassy hair slide.

Clearly not satiated by night 1’s tapas, we were off for some more! This time we headed to a place called tapa bucho and were seated on a beautiful little roof terrace - a beautiful yet very windy and therefore pretty chilly roof terrace! That didn’t matter though as the cocktails and food were incredible. We shared a cheese and meat board, croquettes, steak and crispy fish and everything was amazing (although we did end up leaving some because we always have eyes bigger than our bellies).

It was another beautiful morning the next day and we were on a mission to get out and about a bit earlier to go for breakfast. I’d seen a restaurant called Fauna and Flora recommended, both on social media and google so we’d planned to go there, tying in nicely with our plan to explore the principe real district. But when we got there, there was an enormous crowd of people spilling all over the street which was evidently the queue for a table! So we sacked that off and found an equally beautiful place, Bloom, just around the corner. It was a flower shop come brunch spot come art gallery which certainly showed in the food - it was so pretty!

Again, it wasn’t particularly clear what the main attraction points were in Lisbon as everything felt pretty spread out so I curated our walking tour based on any spots that were pinned on Google maps. Which saw us heading firstly to the assembly of the republic (some kind of big impressive government building) and then to the Jardin Lisboa Antiga which was really tranquil and lovely.

Then we really got our walking shoes on as the next few stops were fairly far apart, but it was a lovely day and I was wearing a weather appropriate outfit so didn’t mind too much. I’d gone with a denim skirt and white linen top with cute tiny embroidered flower print; I love the open tied back. So anyway, we went to the Estrela Basilica (there was a service on so could only peek inside rather than go in properly), the Jardim de estrela and then the Reservatorio da Mae, which is like a complex system of fountains where Lisbon’s water arrives. However, the bank holiday Sunday seemed to close a lot as that didn’t seem to be properly open; just open enough for us to have a look inside the main entrance hall (it was still cool though).

Ten gazillion steps later (official measurement), we arrived at the northernmost point of our walking tour; Eduardo park and the main roundabout housing the Lisbon sign. By this point though, we felt we’d seen enough parks so instead of covering even more ground with a walk around, we decided to head off in search of food.

We felt like we were very much at the edge of everything there and it seemed unlikely we’d find a nice restaurant without lots of searching (the places around there were more like Mcdonalds, burger king, starbucks) so we hopped in an uber to head back to the main busy square from the day before. However, as we were on our way, we spotted an equally lovely-looking area and hopped out early to go for lunch at one of the places there, overlooking the gorgeous Justa lift! Naturally, we went for a pizza/pasta combo, because it wouldn’t really be a holiday without it.

After checking out the main open area and water fountains there, we headed off in search of a rooftop bar. WELL, what a fruitless quest that turned out to be. All the ones we found were either full or closed, so with sore feet, we gave up and settled for a ground level drink in the sunshine watching some street performers. I’ve had worse backup plans than an aperol spritz at a beautiful cafe!

It was our last night and we were planning to finally break the tapas habit (shock horror). Instead we were heading to a fancy French restaurant and I went with a colour pop outfit; bright green bardot top, leopard print wrap skirt and the same heels and bag that had been my staple for the holiday.

The restaurant may have looked super fancy but it was actually reasonable in price! It was super beautiful though and the food was incredible; we both got the steak (because a sample of steak from the night before had obviously whet our appetites). Then we finished the night with a few cocktails to toast to our amazing holiday!

Our flight times were fairly perfect so we ended up with nearly a full 4th day to enjoy before flying home in the evening. So after checking out of our hotel (and waving goodbye to that beautiful, beautiful view), we went off in search of brunch. We found the most gorgeous little Italian cafe where we both got the eggs benedict, although the weather must've thought we ordered pina coladas as we then preceded to get caught in the rain!

It soon brightened up again, although I'm glad that the more muted weather was on our last day and we'd been able to make the most of the sun the rest of the time. I'd been expecting cooler weather so had dressed accordingly in black printed midi skirt, cream button up polo top, black espadrilles and a little black cardigan. Warmer items which then ended up being a terrible mistake for our next activity! Lisbon is famous for its trams and so we felt that we should catch a ride on one while we were there. We'd planned to get it all the way into the old town but omg it was the sweatiest, bumpiest, slowest, least efficient way to travel that I've ever experienced (and I used to be a regular public transport user). We only lasted 3 or 4 stops before the body heat and sardine-esque packing in became too much and we had to get off for a drink!

On to plan B. Throughout Lisbon, there were loads of tuktuks scooting around and so when we saw them all lined up near the cathedral, we thought it'd be a good idea to catch one up to the castle. But we ended up with something miles better! The driver offered us all kinds of different tours but since we were pushed for time, we went with a 30 minute mini tour of Alfama and loads of the scenic view points.

It was amazing! He told us loads of interesting facts and stories about the old town, took us on a tour of a load of cool street art and showed us the most amazing viewpoints, as well as acting as our personal photographer along the way. In a toss up between the famous way to travel Lisbon and the lesser talked about one, it was a win for the tuktuk by a mile!

After getting dropped off, we had a little wander up to the castle as originally planned. It was really pretty and surrounded by little windy streets with cute trinket shops. When Ollie and I go to places, we often go and visit the famous castle/church/cathedral without actually going in said building. This was one of those times when we saw the massive queue for the ticket office, so instead we walked back down the hill in search of some lunch.

We ended up back at one of the viewpoint areas we'd been at earlier as you can't beat food with a view. Ollie clearly wasn't sick of pizza yet, while I opted for fish by the sea (again) and it was lovely.

After taking a look at the Jardim Julio, we ended our trip in the same way that we'd already spent a large portion of it; with drinks in the sunshine. And of course, I couldn't leave Portugal without one last pastel de nata! For anyone thinking of visiting Lisbon, I couldn't recommend it more. Amazing food, incredible views, lovely drinks, friendly locals, impressive buildings. And the best company!