Lisbon is known as a flourishing tourist destination for all of it’s monuments, museums, wonderful climate and beautiful beaches. This being said, one of the biggest attractions of Lisbon as a European city destination is it’s outstanding night life activities. Lisbon offers visitors a wide variety of cafes, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, music shows and places to simply hang out and enjoy life. Here are a few of our favorite places to go out at night and we strongly recommend each one.
1. Bairro Alto neighborhood : Located in the most central portion of downtown historic Lisbon is the Bairro Alto area. It is an expanse of cobblestone narrow streets filled with restaurants, bars, cafes and much of Lisbon’s youthful nightlife. It’s true that this is really a destination for the very young (or young at heart) but bars with cocktails for 2 Euros flow a gogo and a stroll down the Rua da Rosa or Rua Atalaia any night of the week will confirm this phenomenon.
2. Pensao do Amor: A beautiful 18th-century downtown Lisbon edifice that once was a whore house and is now frequented as one of Lisbon’s hottest cocktail lounges.
To keep with the original setting of this lounge, the bar/cafe on the first floor is set as a sexy cabaret. The venue often hosts concerts and other events.
3. Park : In the heart of the Santa Catarina neighborhood on the Calcada do Combro lies one of Lisbon’s public parking garages called EMEL. They have agreed to rent out the roof top of this ideally located parking lot to a promoter who created one of Lisbon’s most beautiful roof top terraces. Access is allowed to drivers and metro riders as well. The views of the river, the April 25th bridge and most of Lisbon’s skyline are breath taking as are the mouth watering drinks they’ll serve you.
4. LX Factory : This interesting space is a mixture of a number of abandoned 19th century warehouses and factories. It has been revamped and turned into Lisbon’s hub of creativity, an “island” in the city center for art, fashion, advertising, and design companies. There are also a number of cafés and shops to suit all tastes.
5. Principe Real : This is one of Lisbon’s most central and trendy neighborhoods. Small buildings align the hilly streets and small parks are all around, including the Principe Real square, the Praca das Flores and many others. Walking around here during the day many feel they are in a San Francisco-esque setting. At night, when sun sets, it becomes the focal point for Lisbon’s alternative lifestyles, with everybody coming out for a party. It goes on until Sunrise the following day.
6. Docas: There are a number of small cafes, bars and restaurants, with inside and outside seating. It’s a great place to be in a sunny, warm afternoon or a summer night. It becomes very busy at night especially during the weekends and the summer.
7. A Brasileira : The cafe, A Brasileira (The Brazilian Cafe) is one of the oldest and most famous coffee shops in historic downtown Lisbon, Chiado. Located at 120 Rua Garrett, at one end of the Largo do Chiado, near the Baixa-Chiado metro stop, ensuring its café and terrace are never empty. Open until the wee hours of the morning, many party goers end up at this great cafe for a final drink before heading home…