Rossio

Baixa & Rossio


Simply known as Rossio to locals, Praça Dom Pedro IV has 24-hour buzz. Shoeshiners, lottery-ticket sellers, hash-peddlers and office workers drift across its wave-like cobbles, gazing up to its ornate fountains and Dom Pedro IV (Brazil’s first emperor), perched high on a marble pedestal.

And these cobbles have seen it all: witch burnings and bullfights, rallies and 1974 revolution carnations. Don’t miss Estação do Rossio, a frothy neo-Manueline station with horseshoe-shaped arches and swirly turrets. Trains depart here for Sintra.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Baixa & Rossio attractions

1. Praça da Figueira

0.08 MILES

Praça da Figueira is framed by whizzing traffic, Pombaline town houses and alfresco cafes with stellar views of hilltop Castelo de São Jorge. At its…

2. Igreja de São Domingos

0.08 MILES

It’s a miracle that this baroque church dating to 1241 still stands, having barely survived the 1755 earthquake, then fire in 1959. Its sea of tea lights…

3. Elevador de Santa Justa

0.12 MILES

If the lanky, wrought-iron Elevador de Santa Justa seems uncannily familiar, it’s probably because the neo-Gothic marvel is the handiwork of Raul Mésnier,…

5. Casa do Ferreira das Tabuletas

0.19 MILES

The eye-catching Casa do Ferreira das Tabuletas dates to 1864. Its trompe l’œil azulejos (hand-painted tiles) depict allegorical figures and the elements.

6. Tram 28E

0.21 MILES

Don't leave the city without riding popular tram 28E from Largo Martim Moniz. This rickety, screechy, gloriously old-fashioned ride from Praça Martim…

7. Igreja & Museu São Roque

0.21 MILES

The plain facade of 16th-century Jesuit Igreja de São Roque belies its dazzling interior of gold, marble and Florentine azulejos – bankrolled by Brazilian…

8. Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara

0.27 MILES

Hitch a ride on vintage Ascensor da Glória from Praça dos Restauradores, or huff your way up steep Calçada da Glória to this terrific hilltop viewpoint…