“A Winter in Lisbon? Please don’t make me laugh”. For some reason most visitors will say that, starting with the ones from the North that can’t connect with our perfect temperatures. It can be hot anytime the cold claims the throne. In Lisbon we may take the saying seriously: with gloves, scarfs, unusual hats and heavy coats. And still we smile: after all, the records show that this amazing city is used to live for some 250 days without a drop of rain, let alone a sign of snow. But as all people, if the cold is a menace we look for comfortable places, cozy people, warm drinks, fireplaces and ‘all that fado…’. The offer is endless: restaurants, hotels, spas, museums and everything required to assure that if you come in from the cold, Lisbon will keep you happy. And willing to try yet another winter among us.
Places to visit and things to do
The Gulbenkian Foundation is a perfect refuge to the harshness of winter, with its museums, cafeterias and a magnificent garden. The idea is how to keep you warm and ‘cultivated’. The same option can be found at the Centro Cultural de Belém, site of the modern Berardo art collection, home of restaurants and proper shopping. Belém is the place to be, a straight line by the river packed with the best museums filled with the national treasures of the different ages of our history. And nearby, in Alcantara and Santos, you should visit the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga and the Museu do Oriente. A time well spent.Travel away the lines of the Tagus river till Parque das Nações is within reach, and then the real fun starts: from the Oceanarium to the Pavilhão do Conhecimento. It’s a city of ups and downs where the fact of being build on seven hills certainly helps and explains most of the adventures. The Lisboa Story Center enlights most of the doubts but, bicyclist or not, Lisbon loves to be energetic and hopes that the visitor will find the time to do what must be done, from the Picadeiro Henrique Calado to the Vertigo Climbing Center or the Spot Real. A town of ‘parkour’ and bikes, indeed. The Belém Bike rental takes care of business but the offer of street cars, buses or boats (courtesy of Yellow Bus) is varied and highly recommended. If tranquility is the name of your game, visit the ‘Tasting Fado’ experiment at the Teatro Tivoli our allow yourself to be ‘shut’ between the four walls of the Escape Hunt Experience.
To sleep
A good night’s sleep and a breakfast worthy of kings? The first option in Lisbon may well be the Altis Belém. The five-star hotel is like a luxury hibernation: the Feitoria restaurante (one Michelin star), the spa, the rather dynamic interior pool, the library, the coffeshop, all things ask of you to enjoy the many choices while the river Tagus looks at you waiting for you decision. At the Baixa (downtown Lisbon), decades and centuries are in command. Don’t forget to try out the amazing Hotel Avenida Palace, or a youngest version of the same glamour and elegance, My Story Hotel Ouro. It’s winter, remember, and only Lisbon can treat the freeze with golden and warm colors. Of course there’s always the option of the trendy ‘boutique charme hotels’. Start with Santiago de Alfama, a renovated palace of the 15th century with a signature restaurant to complete the perfect scenery. Or the Hotel Valverde, with its fantastic inner courtyard, plus the restaurante Sítio, because Lisbon is all about appetites. A good example of that is the Heritage Avenida da Liberdade , warming the soul and all the next senses in a space signed Miguel Câncio Martins. At the Hotel Dom Carlos Liberty, the fitness of your body will certainly welcome your cares and intensions, a perfect place for those rainy days that winter tend to promise. And once again, if you came with the family, the Martinhal Lisbon Chiado is a ‘must’, well equipped, better located and a sort of ‘kids club’ for all ages.
Time to eat
You can always star with the Supper Stars Services. That’s when the chef goes to your place, cooks, cleans and assures you’ll never forget the meal. It’s winter, we know, but it’s understandable to go out. Start with Nobre, where the great Chef Justa guarantees a portuguese cuisine with more than a twist of her own. Or the Laurentina, king of codfish and a glory of our winters. For glamour, coolness and hype the Palácio Chiado is a mandatory stop, a 18th century palace turned into a delight of culinary offers and bars. Lisbon loves to travel outside downtown, so that you know: the Mercado de Campo de Ourique, the Time Out Project by Praça da Ribeira, insinuating the perefect mixo of tastes and animation by day or night. Or dawn, for that matter. Other marvels of Lisbon’s winter? The luxurious Gambrinus, the Aldeia for the homesick of a Portugal that being far always tries to be near you, the glorious Enoteca (winery and restaurant) by the Chafariz da Mãe d’Água. And last but certainly not least, la bella pizza of the Mezzogiorno, or how Italy discovered in Portugal a possible new home. To find the perfect ending? A four seasons delight that goes amazingly well with winter: tea and pastry by Belém. Because if you don’t try a ‘pastel de belém’ and take a handful home with you, you kind of missed everything we tried to tell you so far….
