Lisbon - 2 days

No car, not only does Lisbon have quite a good public transport system there are also city tours. Take one of the hop on, hop off tour which leave right near your hotel at the bottom of Parque Edwardo VII... I found the hop on, hop off tour excellent value - though we took a yellow tour and the one which leaves from near your hotel are the red buses... much the same I'm sure.

If you get the mains points of interest out of the way on your first day, a trip out to Cascais is worthwhile. You can take the metro from nearby your hotel to Cais do Sodre and then take the train 30 min to Cascais.

Oh and for the evening book in to a Fado Club (traditional music/singing), Lisbon is famous for it - unfortunately when I was there last we didn't get the opportunity to hear any but by all accounts it's highly recommended.

Edited by: scaryant

Great.

Thanks

Rather than going to Cascais, I would take the streetcar (#15?) to Belem to see the famous tower and visit the monastery.

...you see both those by doing the hop on, hop off.

I guess it depends on what you like to do or see. The Castelo De Sao Jorge - a castle just above town is well worth walking up to. The waterfront has some nice sites: the Torre de Belem fort and the nearby monument to Portugese explorers (spectacular). The Gulbenkian museum is fabulous. There are many interesting places to eat in the various neighborhoods. I liked the Bairro Alto neighborhood - tight alleys, lots of restaurants, etc. (but beware that its also a drug-selling area, so stay in the main streets and be careful). If you want to get out of the city, a day tour to Sintra is easily arranged.

"but beware that its also a drug-selling area"

We were offered drugs on numerous occasions in Baixa/Chiado areas, broad daylight and in full view of shoppers... I think it was the most open street selling I have seen in any European city I've visited with one exception which is Amsterdam. There's certainly a lot about but for the most part they were non-invasive but it's always a good idea to keep your wits about you.

Buy a cd of fado singing.

Old antique trams (or streetcars as per #3 post), called eléctricos in Portugese, are a fun way to see Lisbon. There are a few lines, but 28 is probably the best one, taking you to zona historica.

oops... Portugese drop the "c" so it's elétrico for tram