Since 2014 we've been welcoming guests to Lisbon — first with our suites in Santos, and today with 17 apartments across five neighbourhoods: Alfama, Graça, Baixa-Chiado, Príncipe Real and Amoreiras. So the question we're asked more than any other — where should we stay? — is one we answer almost every day, at check-in, over breakfast, by email. This is the honest version of that answer, updated for 2026.
The short answer: for a first visit, stay in Baixa-Chiado (flat, central, everything on foot) or Alfama (the atmosphere you came for, with a few hills as the price). Families do best in Amoreiras or Príncipe Real; couples love Alfama, Graça and Santos. And no, there are no dangerous neighbourhoods in central Lisbon — the things worth avoiding are noise, steep hills and tourist-trap menus, not streets.
One thing before the list: Lisbon is small. Most of the neighbourhoods below are 20–30 minutes from each other on foot, so you're choosing a home base and a mood, not locking yourself out of the rest of the city.
The best area to stay in Lisbon for first-time visitors
For a first visit, the best area to stay in Lisbon is Baixa-Chiado: it's the flat, walkable centre, the metro connects it to the airport with one change, and you can reach almost every big sight on foot. If you'd trade a little convenience for a lot of character, stay in Alfama instead — the oldest quarter, where Lisbon still looks like the photographs that made you book the flight.
A fair rule of thumb we give guests: if this is your only trip to Lisbon, stay central (Baixa-Chiado, Alfama, Sé). If you suspect you'll be back — most people are — pick a neighbourhood with more local life, like Graça, Príncipe Real or Amoreiras, and enjoy the ten-minute walk in. Either way, our first-timer's guide to Lisbon and 15 things to know before visiting cover the practical side.
Baixa-Chiado — the flat, elegant centre
Baixa is Lisbon's grand downtown grid — Praça do Comércio, Rua Augusta, the Santa Justa Lift — and Chiado is its elegant older sister up the slope, all bookshops, theatres and cafés with history. Staying here means walking out of your door into the middle of everything, and it's the only central area where you can mostly avoid hills.
The honest trade-off: it's the busiest, most touristed part of town, and at street level some of it is souvenir shops and menus with photos. Book a place on a quieter side street and it works beautifully.
We have two apartments here, steps from Rossio square — the most central beds we offer. For what to actually do in the area, our walking guide through Baixa, Chiado and Príncipe Real is the tour we'd take you on ourselves. Browse the apartments here.
Alfama — the Lisbon you imagined
Alfama is the oldest neighbourhood in the city: a maze of lanes that survived the 1755 earthquake, laundry between the buildings, fado drifting out of small taverns after dark. If atmosphere is what you're after, nothing else in Lisbon comes close, and having the quarter to yourself — before the day-trippers arrive and after they leave — is the best argument for staying rather than just visiting.
Be honest with yourself about the geography: Alfama is stairs and slopes, taxis can't reach every door, and you'll carry your suitcase the last stretch. It's also, despite its tangled look, a safe, lived-in neighbourhood — more grandmothers than trouble.
Our two Alfama apartments sit by the Miradouro de Santo Estêvão, one of the quietest viewpoints in the quarter. Our guide to Graça, Alfama and the cathedral district covers the area in depth.
Sé — the cathedral quarter
At Alfama's lower edge, around the 12th-century cathedral, the Sé quarter gives you the old town's character with easier logistics: tram 28 passes the door, and flat Baixa is a five-minute walk downhill. It's the compromise we suggest to guests who love the idea of Alfama but are travelling with heavy luggage or tired knees.
Three of our apartments are here, in the shadow of the cathedral — small, characterful places for two or three, with full kitchens for slow mornings.
Graça — viewpoints and village life
Graça sits on the highest of the old city's hills, and it feels like a village that happens to overlook a capital: its own cafés and grocers, the Feira da Ladra flea market on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and the Miradouro da Senhora do Monte — for our money, the best view in Lisbon, especially at sunset. Stay here for slow mornings, local prices, and the smugness of watching the crowds far below.
The trade-off is the obvious one: it's uphill from everything, so you'll ride the tram or climb. Our four Graça apartments are right next to the Senhora do Monte viewpoint — the sunset is a two-minute walk in slippers.
Príncipe Real — gardens, boutiques and room to breathe
Príncipe Real is Lisbon at its most graceful: 19th-century townhouses, independent boutiques, the shopping palace of Embaixada, and a garden at its heart with an organic market on Saturdays. It borders Bairro Alto but keeps its calm — you get the restaurants and bars nearby without sleeping above them.
It's a favourite of returning visitors and anyone who wants a stylish base with real neighbourhood life. Our single apartment here is the largest place we have: it sleeps up to six and has its own private pool — a rare thing in central Lisbon, and the one we recommend for families or two couples travelling together. The Baixa, Chiado and Príncipe Real guide ends its walk here, for good reason.
Amoreiras — the quiet local secret
Nobody's first list includes Amoreiras, which is exactly its charm. Built around an 18th-century mulberry garden and the Mãe d'Água reservoir at the end of the old aqueduct, it's where Lisbon simply gets on with life: kiosk coffees in the garden, neighbours who nod hello, honest restaurants without a laminated menu in sight. The Rato metro station is nearby, and Príncipe Real is a pleasant downhill walk.
We wrote a whole piece on the historical garden at the heart of this neighbourhood — it's the Lisbon we'd show a friend. Five of our apartments overlook or sit beside the garden, two of them with private terraces.
Santos — our home, between the river and the hills
Santos is where Cheese & Wine began, and where our suites are: a riverside neighbourhood of antique shops, design studios and some of the city's best restaurants, seven minutes' walk from the Cais do Sodré transport hub (trains to Cascais, ferries across the Tagus, the Time Out Market). It's central without being touristy — you'll queue with locals at the pastelaria, not with tour groups.
Fair warning from your hosts: Santos and neighbouring Cais do Sodré like a night out, especially at weekends. If you're a light sleeper, tell us — our interior-facing rooms are the quiet ones, and we'll put you there.
The suites come with the things an apartment can't offer: a staffed reception, daily housekeeping, and breakfast with cakes and jams made in our own kitchen.
A word on Lapa: the elegant embassy quarter next to Santos is worth a wander, and it's where our original guesthouse stood. It's currently closed for a full renovation and will reopen as Hotel LX Lapa in 2027 — one to bookmark rather than book, for now.
The best areas to stay in Lisbon with kids
With kids, prioritise flat ground and a garden over a postcard view. Amoreiras is our first recommendation for families: the garden on the doorstep, quiet streets, and apartments where everyone fits without whispering. Príncipe Real is the step up — the garden and Saturday market for the kids, the boutiques for you, and our six-person apartment with a private pool, which children treat as the entire point of the holiday.
If you'd rather have hotel comforts, the Family Suite at our Santos suites sleeps up to five, and someone else does the housekeeping. Two practical notes from hosts who've watched many families arrive: Lisbon's cobbles and hills are hard work with a buggy, so a baby carrier earns its place in the luggage; and Alfama, much as we love it, is the trickiest base with small children. More in our guide to Lisbon with kids.
The best areas in Lisbon for couples
For couples, it's hard to beat waking up in Alfama — our Santo Estêvão apartments put a viewpoint at your door and fado around the corner. Graça runs it close: sunset at Senhora do Monte, wine from the kiosk, the city glowing below. And in Santos, the suites are the option where nobody cooks: breakfast made by hand, a welcome bottle of Portuguese wine and a cheese board on arrival, and the neighbourhood's restaurants to work through.
Apartment or hotel — which is right for Lisbon?
It's less about budget than about how you travel. Choose a holiday apartment if you want a kitchen for market hauls and slow breakfasts, space to spread out, and the feeling of having your own address in the city — that's what our 17 apartments are, each in a real neighbourhood rather than a hotel district (and all of them pet-friendly, if your dog is coming too). Choose the suites if you'd rather be looked after: reception, daily housekeeping, handmade breakfast, and someone to ask about dinner.
There's no wrong answer — we run both, and plenty of guests alternate between trips. You can compare the two ways to stay with us here.
Areas to avoid in Lisbon — an honest answer
Let's be clear first: Lisbon is one of Europe's safest capitals, and there is no central neighbourhood we'd tell you not to walk through. What's worth avoiding is more specific than that:
- Sleeping in the middle of Bairro Alto if you value sleep — it's a wonderful place to spend an evening and a loud place to spend a night, with bars going strong into the small hours.
- Ground-floor rooms directly on tram lines — the first tram 28 rattles past early. Charming at 3pm, less so at 6am.
- Pickpockets, not muggers — the one real nuisance. Keep your phone and wallet zipped on tram 28, around Rossio and at crowded viewpoints, and that's the whole safety briefing.
- The photo-menu restaurant strips in the most touristed stretches of Baixa — you'll eat better one or two streets away, in Santos, Graça or Alfama's smaller taverns.
- Staying far outside the centre to save money — a cheap bed near the airport costs you an hour of commuting a day in a city whose whole point is wandering.
- Underestimating the hills — if stairs are a genuine difficulty, favour Baixa-Chiado or Amoreiras over Alfama and Graça, and you'll enjoy the city far more.
That's it. No no-go zones — just mismatches between traveller and neighbourhood, which is exactly what this guide is for.
Quick answers
What is the best area to stay in Lisbon for first-timers?
Baixa-Chiado is the best area for first-time visitors: flat, central and walkable, with the metro one change from the airport. Alfama is the best choice if atmosphere matters more than convenience — it's Lisbon's oldest quarter, with hills and stairs as the trade-off.
Is Alfama safe at night?
Yes. Alfama is a lived-in residential neighbourhood and is safe to walk at night; its narrow lanes look mysterious but are home to families who've been there for generations. The only real caution in Lisbon is pickpocketing in crowded spots like tram 28 and busy viewpoints.
Which areas of Lisbon should I avoid?
None, in terms of safety — central Lisbon has no dangerous neighbourhoods. Avoid mismatches instead: don't sleep in the middle of Bairro Alto if you're a light sleeper, skip the photo-menu restaurants in tourist-heavy Baixa, and choose flatter areas like Baixa-Chiado or Amoreiras if steep hills are a problem.
Whichever neighbourhood you choose, you'll be choosing well — this is a city that rewards every base. And if you'd like one of ours, you'll find the suites in Santos and the apartments across the five neighbourhoods with our best rates when you book direct — plus a welcome bottle of Portuguese wine and a cheese board waiting when you arrive. If you're torn between two areas, write to us; recommending the right corner of Lisbon is the part of the job we like most.
