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Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

Portugal Travel Guide

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Overview

Three neighbourhoods, three very different personalities. Chiado invites days spent boutique-shopping, gallery-hopping and lingering in literary cafes. Its more rakish, party-loving neighbour is Bairro Alto, a tangle of lanes harbouring dozens of shabby-chic shops, late-night bistros and hole-in-the-wall bars. Swinging south, Cais do Sodré has reinvented itself from red-light district to nightlife hub.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Lisbon, Portugal - July 3, 2022: The Igreja de São Roque (Church of Saint Roch) is a Roman Catholic church in Lisbon, Portugal. It was the earliest Jesuit church in the Portuguese world and one of the first Jesuit churches anywhere. Lisbon, Portugal - July 3, 2022: The Igreja de São Roque (Church of Saint Roch) is a Roman Catholic church in Lisbon, Portugal. It was the earliest Jesuit church in the Portuguese world and one of the first Jesuit churches anywhere. 1498214782 editorial, saint roch, opulent, igreja de são roque

    Igreja & Museu São Roque

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    The plain facade of 16th-century Jesuit Igreja de São Roque belies its dazzling interior of gold, marble and Florentine azulejos – bankrolled by Brazilian…

  • Lisbon, Portugal - 12. October 2015. Interiors of the roofless Carmo Convent in Lisbon, ruined by the earthquake 496913698 Travel, Building Exterior, Nave, Convent, Gothic Style, Blue, Damaged, Open, Construction Industry, Architecture, Outdoors, Image, Lisbon, Portugal, Europe, Earthquake, Sky, Roof, Cathedral, Church, Old Ruin, Built Structure, Carmo, roofless

    Convento do Carmo & Museu Arqueológico

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    Soaring above Lisbon, the skeletal Convento do Carmo was all but devoured by the 1755 earthquake, and that's precisely what makes it so captivating. Its…

  • Lisbon, Portugal - May 26, 2013: Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara viewpoint or Belvedere in Bairro Alto District. View of the Baixa and Alfama District and Castelo Sao Jorge aka Saint George Castle 957763046 sao pedro de alcantara, miradouro, castelo, bairro alto, alcantara

    Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    Hitch a ride on vintage Ascensor da Glória from Praça dos Restauradores, or huff your way up steep Calçada da Glória to this terrific hilltop viewpoint…

  • Inside the Atelier-Museu Julio Pomar

    Atelier-Museu Júlio Pomar

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    Set in the same street where Júlio Pomar lives and works, this museum, with two spaces housing temporary exhibitions, feels like an art gallery showcasing…

  • The Baroque main church at Convento Sao Pedro de Alcantara

    Convento de São Pedro de Alcântara

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    This convent is small in size but grand in baroque decor. The inconspicuous box-like facade hides a chapel (1690s), and a church (1681) that survived the…

  • Elevador de Santa Justa

    Elevador de Santa Justa

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    If the lanky, wrought-iron Elevador de Santa Justa seems uncannily familiar, it’s probably because the neo-Gothic marvel is the handiwork of Raul Mésnier,…

  • Museu Nacional de Arte Contemporânea do Chiado

    Museu Nacional de Arte Contemporânea do Chiado

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    Art fans flock to Museu do Chiado, housed in the strikingly converted Convento de São Francisco. While the gallery’s permanent collection of 19th- and…

  • Convento dos Cardaes

    Convento dos Cardaes

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    The inconspicuous, graffitied white facade of this 17th-century fort-like convent contrasts with the rich blue-and-white tiles and gilded carvings of the…

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