Bairro Alto

This charming boutique property in Lisbon's best neighborhood is tucked away enough to feel cozy but centrally located near all the top spots to shop, dine, drink and explore.

• The location in the center of the Chiado district within the Bairro Alto neighborhood, the most elegant and happening area in Lisbon
• The rooftop restaurant with incredible views of the city and the Tagus River
• The excellent spa therapists

Located in the heart of the most charming area of Lisbon, between the bohemian Bairro Alto and chic Chiado neighborhoods, the hotel Bairro Alto has been a favorite retreat and watering hole for decades. It reopened in late summer 2019 after a multi-year renovation, during which two adjoining buildings were added to the original ones that face the Praça Luís de Camões. Pritzker Prize-winning architect Eduardo Souto de Maura masterminded the merger of the four historic 18th-century buildings, which now feature 87 guest rooms and multiple suites.

The design respects historical elements but adds refreshing nods to today’s Portugal. Fabulous embroidered panels with swans (birds are of the hotel’s motifs) line the hallways, and the wood-paneled Mezzanine bar features mid-century furniture that evokes a private Lisbon apartment. An incredible handmade wall hanging that spans multiple floors is displayed in one of the interior stairwells.

The fifth-floor rooftop restaurant, BAHR, has views over Lisbon’s red roofs to the Tagus River as does its neighboring bar, probably the loveliest roof-top bar in town. Food is contemporary Portuguese, done well, but save room for a visit to the pastry shop with its lines of traditional Portuguese pastries.

There is a small spa, where the spa therapists are earning raves, and the hotel is clearly the place to stay for those who believe in the old adage: location, location, location.