will be in Lisbon 4 nights in April. This is our first time there. Have narrowed hotels down to 3 choices. All are about $150 to $175/night USD: Mundial (2 min walk to Rossio Sq.), Vincci Baixa (1 street over from waterfront), and Hotel Aviz, which they say is halfway up a hill and near Parque Eduorda VII. We like to have lots of restaurants nearby (not too touristy or too expensive), and interesting local shops to roam around when we are not sightseeing. Definitely don't want to stay on top of a hill! Any comments? All of these get good reviews so it's comments on surroundings that I'm hoping will help me decide. Thanks in advance. And if you have another suggestion, I'm happy to hear it!

Hi, Sylvester, I haven't stayed at any of these places, so I can only comment on the surrounding areas, which seems to be what you're interested in anyway.

For starters they are all well located and close to good public transit, so I don't think there's a huge downside to any of them. I know that many people like the Mundial, but to me the neighborhood borders a bit on the scuzzy. Going from Rossio to the hotel is fine, but continuing on past the hotel things get, not dangerous, just a little gritty. The square right in front of the hotel is often filled with a mix of a wide range of people, some more upstanding looking than others.

The Aviz, close to the Marques de Pombal square and metro, is in an area that's more "upscale", but also more business-office type neighborhood. A huge construction project, which put a car tunnel under the square has finished, so things are a big calmer in that area. There are lots and lots of hotels in this area. And a block or two off the main drag, Liberdade, you will find lots of little restaurants.

The Baixa area is probably the most touristy of the three. But I don't mean that in a ticky-tacky way, it's got a lot of commerce, lots of Lisboetas shop in this area, but there are lots of touristy restaurants (those showing pictures of what they serve) and t-shirt shops. I am not sure what the status of the sewer project at the waterfront is, but when I was in Lisbon last March, there was no view of the water from the Praca do Comercio because of the project.

Hope this helps a bit. And BTW, you can't avoid hills in Lisbon. I don't think the location of the Aviz is too extreme in that regard, but it is true that from the Marque de Pombal it will be a walk up.

We stayed at the Hotel Aviz and thought it was a very nice hotel - nice staff and nice rooms. I would stay there again.

That said - it is slightly outside the 'tourist area'. We ended up walking (or taking a cab) 'down the hill' for a lot of the sites. It helped that the Avenue Liberdade is so pretty and active.

Best value/location for me the Marriott bidding priceline

from $65/nt even nice upgrades points if marriot member...

http://www.betterbidding.com/index.p...&mode=threaded

Hi Sylvester. Not to muddy the waters but the New York Times mentioned a new boutique hotel in Lisbon, th LX. It is located in the Baixa area and just opened in September.
This area is touristy, as Laurie says but transportation from there is at your fingertips. It does not have a neighborhood feel but is basically pretty flat and there are great restaurants and cafes to people watch. There are always people walking around having a snack or coffee even until late at night.
Have a wonderful trip.

this was all helpful. Thank you!

Vincci Baixa is the best located, imho.

We stayed at the Mundial a few years ago and enjoyed it. Centrally located and convenient to just about everything. The city views from the rooftop restaurant were beautiful.

Room a good sized, and was nicely updated. The windows were triple glazed, so no outside noise to disturb.

Enjoy Lisbon!

My wife and I spent 1 night in Lisbon before returning to the US after Terceira (Azores). I remember eating at the Hard Rock Cafe on the Avenue Liberdade. I wish I could remember the hotel we stayed at. One thing to watch for if you use the subway, pickpockets bump you as you are entering or leaving the train car. I grabbed ones wrist but didn't slug him.
I'm guessing most of the front desk clerks speak at least marginal English.

We stayed at Hotel Marques de Pombal, located on Liberdade. The metro was right out the door. We walked almost everywhere. The breakfast also was very good (especially the nespresso machine).