Our hotel, the Altis Avenida near Rossio Square. Ideally located for us. The underground station for the blue line is just opposite Rossio station, the underground station for the green line is in Rossio Square. The starting point for the famous tram 28 at Praca Martim Moniz is very close by.
There are many restaurants in the neighbourhood. Worth mentioning (insider tip) is the ‘Casa do Alentejo’ at Rua Portas Santo Antão 58, just round the corner. There is an inconspicuous entrance to the house: go up the stairs and be astonished!
Also very close by, on Largo de São Domingos, is the "A Ginjinhaï" bar, which belonged to a Galician named Espinheira. It was the first shop in Lisbon to sell the drink that gave it its name and which soon became one of the city's trademarks. On the advice of a monk from the Igreja de Santo Antonio, Espinheira experimented with fermenting cherries in brandy and adding sugar, water and cinnamon. It was an immediate success, as the ginjinha was both sweet and inexpensive and became Lisbon's signature drink. There is always a long queue of people outside the bar wanting a glass.
View from the hotel terrace
To explore Lisbon, we used public transport and, from time to time, very cheap taxis. In all metro stations, you can buy and top up the highly recommended Navigante Card from vending machines. It is valid for all underground trains, trams, buses, lifts, ferries and trains. The vending machine can be converted into English.
