Attractions in Lisbon

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Lisbon's Top Attractions

Lisbon's Top Attractions

Bairro Alto

Bairro Alto - The Gay District. Since the 1990s, Bairro Alto went through major changes. Lisbon's city council made extensive repairs, and dozens of new restaurants, clubs and trendy shops were opened. Many young people moved into the area. Cars were banned (except for residents and emergency vehicles). Today, Bairro Alto (or just Bairro) is the heart of Lisbon's youth culture and nightlife. Lisbon's gay, punk, heavy metal, goth, hip hop and reggae scenes all have the Bairro as their home

Belem Tower

Belém Tower (in Portuguese Torre de Belém) is a fortified tower located in the Belém district of Lisbon. It was built in the early 16th century in the Portuguese late Gothic style, the Manueline, to commemorate Vasco da Gama's expedition. This defensive, yet elegant construction has become one of the symbols of the city, a memorial to the Portuguese power during the Age of the Great Discoveries. In 1983 it was classified, together with the nearby Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Parque das Nações

Parque das Nações (English: Nations' Park) is a leisure, commercial and residential area in Lisbon. It covers an extensive area in northeastern Lisbon next to the Tagus estuary, formerly used for mainly industrial purposes. The area underwent a tremendous transformation in the 1990s when it was chosen as the location for the Expo '98 World Exhibition. After the exhibition, the area got its current name (although it is not uncommon for the Portuguese to still refer to it as "Expo"), and more transformations occurred such as the new Vasco da Gama shopping mall, the Lisbon's International Fair complex, hotels and many new office and residential buildings. Many attractions built for the Expo '98 remained and keep drawing visitors, such as the Oceanarium, one of the world's biggest aquariums.

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Lisbon Oceanarium in the Parque das Nações

The building is the work of the architectural firm Cambridge Seven Associates under the direction of Peter Chermayeff, resembling an Aircraft carrier, and is built in the pier of an internal sea. It is one of the largest aquariums in the world, and has a large collection of marine species - birds, mammals, fishes, cnidaria and other marine organisms.

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Vasco de Gama Tower in the Parque das Nações

The Vasco da Gama Tower (Portuguese: Torre Vasco da Gama) is a 145 m/476 ft high lattice tower, built over the Tagus river. It is named after Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, who was the first European to arrive in India by sail, in 1498. The architecture of the tower was by Leonor Janeiro, Nick Jacobs and SOM. The steel structure, representing the sail of a caravel, was assembled by engineering company Martifer.
The tower was built in 1998 for the Expo 98 World's Fair. At the 120 m/394 ft-level, there was an observation deck and, just below it, a luxury panoramic restaurant. At the base of the tower was a three-storey building that served as the European Union Pavilion during the expo.

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Gare do Oriente Station

Gare do Oriente (Orient Station) is one of the main transportation hubs of Lisbon, for trains, metro, buses and taxis. Its glass and steel columns are reminiscent of palms, making the whole structure fascinating to look at (especially in sunlight or when illuminated at night). It was designed by the architect Santiago Calatrava from Valencia, Spain. Cross through the shopping mall just across the street and you're in Parque das Nações (Park of the Nations), site of the 1998 World Expo.

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Alcântara Docks

Alcântara is a civil parish (freguesia) of the city of Lisbon. Its name is of Arabic origin, meaning "the bridge", and refers to the Roman bridge that once existed there in the kingdom of Dom João V.
Although today it is quite central, it was once a mere suburb of Lisbon, comprising mostly farms and palaces. In the 16th century, there was a brook there which the nobles used to promenade in their boats. Through the late 19th century, Alcântara became a popular industrial area, with lots of small factories and warehouses. Through the centuries, this area has lost all of its charm and old buildings, as well as its brook, and the womenfolk used to go there to do their laundry.

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