Our program allows you plenty of time to discover your new country, culture and customs. Below are some of our recommended highlights. Some tours and packages can be organized when booking your program, please see the program price page for more information.

city tour
Lisbon is a city that demands a stroll around its unique neighbourhoods - notably Chiado, Bairro Alto, Mouraria and Alfama. Many of Turismo de Lisboa's publications include self-guided walking tours, although there are currently no guided walking tours available.

Lisbon may have seven rugged hills and a major river but the city is still easily navigable with a combination of the impressive public transport system and walking around. Indeed the trams, ferries, funiculars and elevadors are all part of the fun of exploring the city and are something of an attraction in themselves (particularly tram 28).

tram 28
The legendary tram 28 is a tourist attraction in itself. Vintage trams still ply the well-worn route from the city centre on sea level, right up through the jumble of streets towards the heights of the Castle of St George. On the way, the tram slices open the city, providing insights into the Lisbon way of life, as well as offering sweeping views back towards the city and out over the Rio Tejo. One word of warning - the tram is increasingly as popular with pickpockets as it is with savvy tourists.

castelo de são jorge (castle of st george)
A good starting point is Sao Jorge Castelo, which offers sweeping views of the city, opening up its rambling layout. Below the ramparts lurks the old town warren of the Alfama, with its local restaurants and raffish bars. Further to the west is the Praça do Comercio, the city's impressive main square, which is soon to be pedestrianised.

At one end of the square is the Baixa, a grid-like set of streets that breaks away towards another important square, the Rossio. At the other end of Praça do Comercio is the Rio Tejo, the city's aquatic lifeblood, without which none of the city's glories would ever have been possible. The river today offers cruises, some of which take in the areas of Belem and Parque das Nações (two other tourist hubs).

Belem, on the city's western extremities, is the heart of the old Portuguese Empire, with a string of attractions including the Torre de Belém, Mosteiro dos Jerónimos and the Centro Cultural de Belém. The Parque das Nações, to the east of the city centre, is at the opposite end of the time scale - an ultra modern playground that is home to Europe's largest Oceanarium, a huge shopping centre, river walkways and concert venues. Outside the city boundaries the twin resorts of Estoril and Cascais offer a beach escape in the summer months, while the mountain retreat of Sintra is a perennially popular day trip.

museu nacional do azulejo (national tile museum)
Located in the Convent of Madre de Deus (built in 1509), this museum catalogues the history of the decoration that makes Lisbon so unique, with examples of azulejos (glazed tiles) from the 15th century to the present.

miradouros (viewing points)
With its seven hills, Lisbon has a number of places to see and see from. The Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara, at the top of the Elevador de Glória funicular, offers views over the Baixa and across to the Castelo de São Jorge. It is worth getting off tram 28 to see the view over the Alfama and the Rio Tejo from the Miradouro Santa Luzia and Miradouro das Portas do Sol.

Further along tram 28's route, up the hill, is the Miradouro da Graça, which overlooks the Mouraria and the Castelo. The Elevador de Santa Justa is another great vantage point. Located at the end of Rua Santa Justa, it costs the same as other forms of public transit and is free with travel passes; although not with the Lisboa Card.

nightlife
With whole areas of the city being turned over to the pursuit of pleasure and traffic jams at 0400-0500 at the weekend, it is obvious that Lisbon is a city that takes its nightlife seriously.

Traditionally the nightlife centre has been Bairro Alto, with its fado clubs, traditional, canteen-style bars and upscale discos. Fado is a form of music that developed in Lisbon's sailor bars in the late 18th century. It is a mournful, romantic singing style that fits somewhere between blues and flamenco and bemoans the death of Portugal's great Golden Age. These traditional sounds are best heard at one of the casa de fado, from about 2100-2200.

sport
Lisboetas are mad about football and support either of the two major clubs, Sport Lisboa e Benfica, known as the 'red devils', and Sporting Clube de Portugal, known as the 'lizards', for their green stripes. Both are strong first-division contenders. Sport can get bloodthirsty in Portugal and Lisbon is no exception. Bullfighting can be seen at the Campo Pequeno during the summer months on Thursday. Surrounding the city are beaches, sailing clubs and watersports facilities - the Estoril Tennis Open, Portuguese Golf Open and the World Windsurfing Championships all take place along the coast.

shopping and markets
Local handicrafts include baskets and other objects made of wicker, copper utensils, embroideries and lace, pottery and other ceramics. Lisbon has always been renowned for conservative dress but the renaissance of the city has also translated into a wave of new funky fashion stores.

Pick of the bunch are Agencia, Rua do Norte 117, a seventies-style shop with a hairdresser and a bar, Fashion Gallery Atelier, Rua do Salitre 169, with its outrageous designs and Godzilla, Rua dos Douradores 120, with its cutting edge club gear. Lisbon's most famous market is the Feira da Ladra (Thieves' Market), which springs up 0900-1900 Monday to Saturday on the Campo de Santa Clara, packed with all sorts of bric-a-brac - yet another excuse for visitors to take tram 28.

culture
Music: The Orquestra Sinfónica Portuguesa (Portuguese Symphony Orchestra) is now based at the Teatro Camões at the former Expo98 site in the Parque das Nações.

The Gulbenkian Orchestra and Gulbenkian Choir are among those whose concerts are held at one of the concert halls and open-air amphitheatre of the Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian. Theatre: Among Lisbon's attractive theatres, the Teatro Nacional de Dona Maria II, is the most striking.

estoril and cascais excursion
The resort of Estoril, approximately 30km (19 miles) west of Lisbon, has long attracted the wealthy, who have built villas in the green hills above the beaches.

A little further west from Estoril, Cascais has had a somewhat more humble history, operating more as a working fishing town than as a hideaway for the rich. Both attract crowds of tourists from Lisbon and abroad to their wide Atlantic beaches and watersports. Cascais is renowned for its seafood restaurants and Estoril has one of Europe's largest casinos. Trains to both destinations depart from Cais do Sodré station.

sintra excursion
The many palaces, villas and gardens around Sintra, in the mountains west of Lisbon, have earned it a place as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Sintra is dominated by the Palácio Nacional de Sintra a royal summer palace that was largely developed in the 15th and 16th centuries and now houses the world's most important collection of Mudejar azulejos (glazed tiles). The palace is open 1000-1700 and can be reached by train from Rossio station.