My view of ....... Lisbon

[The Invigilator]

We recently travelled on the fantastic A308N Azura trip to the Western Med, our first port was Lisbon, a city we had all looked forward to seeing and sadly all were disappointed. First the positives - Lovely sail in - definitely worth getting up early for and the sail in under that bridge - WOW - did the Azura really fit? We DIYed the city taking the shuttle bus into the town centre, you are dropped off by the Tourist Information centre in a beautiful square, we got off the coach turned left and this took us to another large square with a statue of Don Pedro and a large fountain, on entering the square look to your left and you will see a small bakery - very popular with the locals that sells the famous and most scrumptious custard tarts. Staying on the same side of the square as the bakers walk through and take the first road on the right this will lead you to the famous lift. We thought when in Lisbon ....... So used the lift which for a 4 minute raise at 5e (for children too) each was expensive, however the views at the top are absolutely stunning - you can see for miles, beautiful red roofed buildings, narrow streets, mosaic pavements - however you can easily walk to this view point for free!! We went back down in the lift and turned right out of the entrance - follow the road down and this will take you to Black Horse Square, unfortunately they are doing some major renovation work here so the archway and statue were covered in tarpaulin and scaffolding, however the buildings surrounding it are beautiful. Walk towards the arch and take the road off to the right and then follow signs up a hill towards the amazing cathedral, entry is free and definitely worth a visit. Whilst there the choir started a practice session and their voices were amazing. We continued mooching the streets until it was time to return to the Azura.

Now the negatives - there is no doubt Lisbon is struggling, they have an awful problem with graffiti and lots of down and outs. Lots of run down buildings and just a general feeling of disrepair and being rundown. They also have a MAJOR problem with men thinking the streets of Lisbon are one big toilet - boy oh boy does that city smell of wee wee

Would we go back? Mmm tough question, would love to see Black Horse Square in all it's glory but apart from that sadly no.

[Manoverboard]

There are other things to see and do but it's a pity about the smell, lack of street cleaners I guess during their hard times

Go back but perhaps consider Cascais, Obidos, Sintra or Evora ... these ought to be wee-wee free Zones

[Holiday Planner]

We must have been luck when we were there last July - I don't recall any graffitti, and no worse a smell problem than any big city. In fact Lisbon was on of our favourite days.

Once you're at the Cathedral, it's not much further up the hill to the Castelo St Jorge. There are stunning views of the city and river fom up there, and very nice terraces and battlements to wander around (as well as peacocks!). From there we spotted a riverside square - Praca de Commercio. We made our way down to it and it was beautiful. Reminded us of St Mark's Square without the crowds.

[emjay45]

Hi invigilator This was our last port of call on our World cruise. We too were rather disappointed with Lisbon. We did a river cruise and city tour. The river cruise was excellent. Lovely boat, very enjoyable cruise . However I was so surprised at how dirty Lisbon was and it was covered in graffiti. Such a shame. Not sure I’d want to visit the city again.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Lisbon remains one of our favourites. Yes there is graffiti and some of it is run down but parts of it are stunning. We've done the lift and are tempted to do a tram tour next time we're there. We've considered doing a land tour with perhaps three nights in Porto and three in Lisbon to see more of both without the worry of when the ship goes.

[The Invigilator]

MJ - OMG I didn't realise you were here I thought after the P&O forum went down that was it - my goodness how are you??? Did you have a brilliant worldie - and how did your son get on? Hope you are OK honey - must have a natter xx

[The Invigilator]

One thing I would add actually was you can get a train - the station is a short stroll from the dock and we had considered getting one to Belem to see the tower and the Monastary, unfortunately we docked on a Sunday when there was also a road race on and the trains were few and far between. Being newbies to Lisbon we chose to play it safe in case we couldn't get back in time and use the shuttle bus into the city. Looking at some literature the Monastary in particular looks stunning. Has anyone visited it?

[qbman1]

Take the train (right by the old cruise terminal) - a lovely coastal ride right along the Tagus to Estoril or Cascais. all changed a bit since we first did it 25 years ago but still a very pleasant day out

[Manoverboard]

... Looking at some literature the Monastary in particular looks stunning. Has anyone visited it?

I do hope that you are reading from a Thomas Cook CitySpot Travel Guide from e-Bay for a few £££

ps ... yes and it is worth doing.

[Dancing Queen]

We went to Lisbon for the first time at Xmas ( just never been on previous itineraries we have done ) I wasn't sure what to expect but I was very pleasantly surprised and loved it, I just wish I had done my homework more and we had ventured further afield but there is always "next time"