Cannot decide...help!
 

I was planing the yearly October trip to southern Europe. This time the itinerary was to be : 4- 5 nights in Madrid and 4-5 nights in Lisbon.
Unfortunately, our cat is not well so the most I cam be away Is 6 nights.
I don't wish to split such a short time between the two cities , ergo the indecision:
which one to visit for all six nights.
I have been to Madrid five times , know the city well and love it
There are still a couple of side trips from Madrid
I would like to take.
Never been to Lisbon. Some Fodorites ( and our friends) like it, some find it gritty and not
all that interesting.
On one hand, Madrid is comfortably familiar, on the other hand , Lisbon would be a
new discovery ( but I am not sure if I should) .....
What do you think? thanks.

See something new - go to Lisbon !! And, have a look at the article on Lisbon and environs in today's Travel Section of the NYT.

Madrid is not my favorite place - but you kow that you like it.

I was underwhelmed by Lisbon - glad we went and saw it - but spent 4 days there and seeing sights nearby and don't feel any need to go back.

Are form NYC ad a little gritty is nothing that would bother us. But in Lisbon we encountered a LOT of street people begging and trying to pull scams - as well as some groups of very poorly dressed young men hanging around tourist areas and banks in a semi-threatening way. As I said not a problem for us - but a friend went alone last summer and she was uncomfortable several times in central Lisbon.

I enjoyed the Tile Museum & Decorative Arts Museum. The monastery in Belem has been power washed and was beautiful. The Gulbenkian is a wonderful small museum but very difficult to find. There was 1 sign when I left the metro and thereafter no signs for the museum.

I didn’t have a great time in Lisbon but that was because of a few things:

– the high heat (beginning of October)
- my hotel was out of the way and not very nice
- Placa do Commercio was under construction, surrounded by a large red fence with the word Afrika on it (this was a land mark for me so I was completely confused – why not put Placa do Commercio on it instead so tourists know what it is?)
- I had just been to my favorite place, Sintra
- I assumed that Lisbon would be similar to other European capital cities but it’s not. It’s clean but not spiffed up and looks very old so it was disconcerting. I didn't think it was a pretty city.

If I had been better prepared for Lisbon I would have enjoyed it more.

I was there for 4 full days (it was at the end of my 2 weeks) and never saw any people begging nor scams and never felt uncomfortable (I traveled on my own).

If you go to Lisbon I advise 2 nights in Sintra for the wonderful sights there.

I didn't see anything on Lisbon in the NY Times but there was an article on Sintra.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/17/tr...ef=travel&_r=0

Thanks for your input.
and the link. I was planing to visit Sintra on a day trip (if I go to Lisbon)

<< I was planing to visit Sintra on a day trip (if I go to Lisbon) >>

You won't be able to see everything in one day so you'll need to choose your sights. I recommend seeing the Pena Palace first and then the National Palace. These were my favorites.

Thanks again.

Six days and someplace you've never been? Then yes, Lisbon it is! With six days, you can fill your time easily with Sintra, Belém and Cascais, where you will find the Farol Design Hotel (www.farol.com.pt/en), the perfect getaway (from the sick cat), 30 minutes by taxi from the Lisbon airport.

The other excellent option in Lisbon would be the Lapa Palace. You can sometimes find some excellent rates during low season (www.olissippohotels.com).

Thanks Robert.
Very helpful.

We spent 6 days in Lisbon three years ago.
Stayed in a rented apartment in Bairro Alto near Miradouro Sta Catarina.

I agree that Lisbon can have an exciting, vibrant feel for some same time as it can be depressing or intimidating for others. One man's pittoresque vista is another man's seedy corner.

I must admit that we also felt a bit odd to have 2-3 drug dealers (probably unionized as they seem to work different shifts and only one was present) as part of our daily trips in our "hood" alongside nice cafes, quirky bars, regular supermarket, old-style bakeries etc. We never sampled the illegal treats, though, as the bakeries became our daily calories dealers. I can imagine that these contrasts are not everyone's cup of tea, but I must say that we never felt intimidated or even threatened.

The modern Lisbon at Parque das Nacoes was a massive contrast to the pittoresque/ run-down historic neighborhoods. The aquarium /Oceanario is spectacular, IMO. And the ride with the riverside cable car very nice.

Daytrips to Belem and Sintra were seriously worthwhile. As PP wrote, Sintra has quite a lot of castles to visit, so plan ahead. The trip there by train is dead easy. You can walk/hike the loop road (mostly via adjacent hiking paths) - but as you also need some energy to explore the hilly terrain/ grounds of the castles , taking the bus that does the loop is not a bad idea.

Unlike maybe Madrid which serves you the sights (the big 3 museums, palacio royal) on a silver platter in a nice setting, I found Lisbon more a playground to explore and roam around.

One evening I wanted to see the Lisbon cityscape from the other side of the river and took the regular ferry to Cacilhas. Walked along the riverside to the Christ statue that you see from Lisbon. And took elevator up there and had a beer at the cafe watching the sun slowly set out in the Atlantic behind the Ponte 25 de Abril.
Another scenic outlook is the restaurant Ponto Final down by the river, quite close to the Christ statue. If you look it up with Google and switch to pictures, you know why.

If never been, then go. I personally prefer Porto to Lisbon (it is more "authentic" and the wine cellars by the Douro River are a real gem), but there´re plenty of things to enjoy in Lisbon and towns close by. In six days you may visit Obidos (love it), Sintra, Setubal and maybe make it to Coimbra?

We went to Sintra and Lisbon over nye 2010/211 and really enjoyed it!

It is definitely grittier than other places we have been but has a really cool vibe. We saw one lady begging but just ignored her when she asked, it wasn't as bad as some places in Paris!

I loved the wine bars as well, we would like to go back in nicer weather.

Our pics are here

https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...7636734183955/

Meant to add - it's inly 6 days and there are loads if day trips out if the city if you don't like it - Sintra, Evora, Cascais, Estoril, even Porto

For how much I love Madrid, I would also say old world and imperial Lisboa for this trip. For a special atmosphere and architecture experience in Lisboa, I recommend a visit to 17th Century Moorish Palace Casa do Alentejo. Had a memorable lunch here a few years ago: http://www.travelerslisbon.com/126/e...o#.Uu-W4XbKzcs

And maybe some fado vadio at very intimate A Baiuca. Popular with tourists but excellent singers, some right from the street. http://www.golisbon.com/night-life/fado/baiuca.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3T-n37dxQU

Thank you all for such detailed suggestions.
Several day trips are a good option if one does not like the city. Unfortunately, jet-lag is not my friend - I need a
few days in one place .
I am a bit surprised at the hotel rates in Lisbon ...somehow, I expected them to be lower than Madrid.
Not so for the central four star hotels.( I will be traveling alone and I like being out late at night) .

Don't know it's the kind of standard you're looking for, but I was very happy in great value and super-central Residencial Florescente last time in Lisboa. Usually out late at night, and felt very safe, just off the heart of town Rossio square.
http://www.residencialflorescente.co...-overview.html
http://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/resi...orescente.html

I very much liked the old world Cafe-Restaurante Martinho da Arcada from 1782 at the big and open Praça do Comércio.
http://www.martinhodaarcada.pt/
https://www.google.no/search?hl=en&q...rd=ssl#lrd=lrd
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...tremadura.html

Used to be one of Fernando Pessoas favourite places: http://www.martinhodaarcada.pt/en/martinho.php

Just be aware that in almost all restaurants in Lisboa they give you some small appetizers as soon as you sit down. Just ask them to take it away if you don't want them, or else you'll have to pay for them.

thanks kimhe
I will take a look..

I would like to thank the posters who related their impression of Lisbon and /or suggested hotels and day trips,
Turned out , I was able to add a couple of days to my trip and split the time between Madrid an Lisbon
(3.5 days and 4 nights in each city) as originally planed.

I found Lisbon atmospheric , rather romantic and a bit miysterious
Those narrow, incredibly steep streets would make a great location for a spy movie.