The 10 Best Hotels in Lisbon

Much like Lisbon has grown to accommodate a recent influx of international visitors in recent years, so has its hotel scene. This list of 10 of the best hotels in Lisbon—part of Afar’s Hotels We Love series—could easily be twice as long, given the range of options for amazing value.

Fancy a night in a restored palace? Take your pick. Or a boutique hotel on a charming, tree-lined street? Throw a stone, you’ll hit one. (Maybe don’t throw anything; everything’s historic.) Portugal is also developing a reputation as one of the most family-friendly destinations in Europe, so we’d be remiss not to include a few kid-friendly spots, including best-in-class apartments with hotel amenities. Let this list inspire your next trip to the City of Seven Hills.

Bairro Alto Hotel

Courtesy of Bairro Alto Hotel

• Neighborhood: Chiado/Bairro Alto
• Why we love it: For its prime location, fresh pastries, and rooftop bar
• Loyalty program: Leaders Club (Leading Hotels of the World)
• Book now

When the Barrio Alto Hotel opened in 2005 at the intersection of theater and shopping district Chiado and nightlife quarter Bairro Alto, it quickly became a welcoming, laid-back place to unwind after a day of touristing. Occupying a five-story, 18th-century building painted that cheery Lisbon yellow seen all over the city, it’s a historic boutique hotel like so many others. Yet Portuguese designers leaned into fun, colorful textiles and geometric patterns to update the interiors.

Spacious guest rooms and suites mix both classic and contemporary features (think antique tubs and heated bathroom floors) and have views over the popular Largo do Camões and the River Tagus. A patisserie on the ground floor serves freshly made Portuguese pastries all day, and the rooftop bar has one of the city’s best sunset cocktail spots. The hotel also offers a single-occupant rate for business travelers, digital nomads, or solo travelers who may just be passing through. From $326 for a single room

Hotel das Amoreiras

Courtesy of Hotel das Amoreiras

• Neighborhood: Jardim das Amoreiras
• Why we love it: It’s a hotel at the corner of charming and serene
• Loyalty program: Invited (Small Luxury Hotels of the World)
• Book now

Hotel das Amoreiras sits on the garden square of Jardim das Amoreiras, four charming blocks that seem fit for a Wes Anderson movie. To understand the neighborhood is to understand the hotel: Within the Jardim are Lisbon’s first mulberry trees, planted by the Marquis of Pombal in the 18th century—the seeds (pardon the pun) of the city’s silk industry.

Surrounding homes served the local silk workers, though the restored silk factory is now the Arpad Szénes-Vieira da Silva Museum, honoring a contemporary Portuguese artist and her Hungarian husband, who was also a painter. On the same block, the hotel has 17 bright, peaceful guest rooms and two attic suites bathed in natural light. A la carte breakfast is served daily until noon in the living room–style comfort downstairs or outside in the courtyard. Garden strolls are practically required. From $217

The Lisboans

Courtesy of Lisboans

• Neighborhood: Baixa
• Why we love it: Apartment-style digs (with room service and breakfast delivery) and the hip restaurant Prado next door
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Set within a former factory in a quiet residential neighborhood between Alfama and Chiado are the kind of stylish, spacious apartments (with Juliette balconies!) you may never want to leave. Artists, writers, and fashion designers have been known to check into the Lisboans, as well as families who need a little extra space and autonomy.

The 15 one- and two-bedroom apartments have high ceilings and large windows, letting plenty of natural light into the tastefully decorated living room, which has a mix of handcrafted throws and rugs and flea market finds. What’s best about the Lisboans? The serviced apartments come with the comforts of home—microwave, stove top, dishwasher—as well as daily housekeeping and breakfast basket deliveries. A staffer sits in the downstairs “lobby” and can answer any questions, recommend a dinner spot, or plot a path through the nearby Praça do Comércio. But you needn’t go far for a good meal. Just out the front door is the celebrated farm-to-table restaurant Prado, and around the corner is the upscale Prado grocer and wine bar, selling farm-fresh eggs, produce, juices, and natural wines. From $357

Martinhal Lisbon Oriente

Courtesy of Martinhal Lisbon Oriente

• Neighborhood: Park of Nations
• Why we love it: Ideal for extended stays, a home away from home with multiple pools and a baby concierge
• Book now

Ever since the debut of its first beachside resort in Sagres in 2010, the Martinhal collection of hotels, resorts, and residences has shown its competitors how to truly marry luxury and family friendliness. Kids are always central to the mission, with nods both practical (bunk beds, kid-size utensils) and playful (a Fiat inside the café to play in).

The kids club caters to six month olds all the way up to early teens, with babysitting services, stocked playrooms, and pajama parties. A baby concierge is on call with all the supplies you forgot at home. And at Martinhal’s newest location—Lisbon Oriente, about 30 minutes outside the city center by the Park of Nations—studios and apartments are available for extended stays with the same bespoke hotel-style amenities. There are indoor and outdoor pools, playrooms and co-working spaces, a fitness center with yoga for ages 12 and up, and a kids club with supervised drop-off (ages six months to eight years). From $296

The One Palácio da Anunciada

Courtesy of the One Palácio da Anunciada

• Neighborhood: Lisbon city center
• Why we love it: A high-design hotel that merges Old World Lisbon with the modern traveler’s needs
• Loyalty program: I Prefer (Preferred Hotels & Resorts)
• Book now

The second property from Spanish hotel chain H10 offers an oasis amid Lisbon’s city center. Set on a cobblestone street just off Avenida da Liberdade, the restored One Palacio da Anunciada is in a 16th-century palace a short walk from restaurants, cafés, and Bairro Alto nightlife, yet it avoids the clamor that normally comes with such a convenient location.

Large windows fill nearly every space with natural light, from the marble-filled lobby to the spa’s indoor pool to the 83 guest rooms. Suites feel more like elegant apartments than hotel rooms. Custom hand-painted ceramics decorate the walls, while gentle lighting and soft edges abound in the bedrooms. On the perimeter of the hotel’s idyllic courtyard and gardens are the exceptional spa and O Jardim Wine Bar, an upscale restaurant that serves contemporary twists on classic Portuguese dishes. From $563—Nicole Antonio

Related: Review of The One Palácio da Anunciada

Palácio Príncipe Real

Courtesy of Palacio Principe Real

• Neighborhood: Príncipe Real
• Why we love it: For its bonhomie and all-day breakfast in the private garden
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“New” hotels in Lisbon are often still centuries old—but lovingly restored, as is the case with Palacío Príncipe Real. Built in 1877, the rose-colored mansion served as a family home—and, as legend has it, the site of many memorable high-society parties—until the 1980s. Current owners/U.K. expats Gail and Miles Curley honored the home’s joie de vivre when they reopened it in 2021; there are no check-in or check-out times, breakfast runs until early afternoon (or whenever you wake up) and can be served on the terrace or by the infinity pool, which is heated by the hotel’s solar panels.

The 25 guest rooms (“cozy,” “dream bath” with copper tubs, “dream garden” with balconies and garden views, and signature suites) are elegantly done—Gail is an interior designer— and come stocked with Byredo amenities, Dyson hair dryers, and mini-fridges filled with complimentary Portuguese snacks, wine, and beer. From $538

Palácio Ramalhete

Courtesy of Palacio Ramalhete

• Where: Janelas Verdes
• Why we love it: All the beautiful detail and its location, opposite the National Museum of Ancient Art
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Palácio Ramalhete has the soul of a historic property—Manuel II, Portugal’s last king, and Britain’s Duke of Windsor were once guests—without any of the attendant stuffiness. Set in an 18th-century palace on the handsome Rua das Janelas Verdes, each of the 16 accommodations has its own unique character. The Oak Suite, for instance, features wood wall paneling with an ornate carved-stucco ceiling, while the spacious Dove Room, which occupies the palace’s former chapel, is lined with original hand-painted blue-and-white azulejos (ceramic tiles).

There are three tiered internal courtyards; the highest has a small heated outdoor pool with a massive palm tree for shade and River Tagus views in the distance. Art lovers, take note: Opposite the hotel is the National Museum of Ancient Art, filled with important Portuguese works that include 15th-century painter Nuno Gonçalves’s famous Panels of St. Vincent. From $292 —Ratha Tep

Related: Review of Palácio Ramalhete

Pestana Palace Lisboa

Courtesy of Pestana Palace Lisboa

• Neighborhood: Santo Amaro
• Why we love it: The “pond pool” and sumptuous Regency style
• Loyalty program: Leaders Club (Leading Hotels of the World)
• Book now

Just a short ride from the historic Jerónimos Monastery and Belém Cultural Center, Pestana Palace Lisboa is itself a designated national landmark. The 194-room hotel occupies a carefully restored 19th-century manor that once belonged to the cocoa baron Marquis of Valle-Flôr, and now caters to queens of pop like Madonna (she reportedly stayed in a Royal Suite).

“Lavish” is the key adjective here: The manor is set within an immaculately manicured private park filled with palms, subtropical plants, sculptures, a former pond-turned-swimming pool, and a spa with an indoor pool and Turkish baths. Palace interiors give the air of a gilded cocoon—all ornate ceiling frescoes, soaring stained-glass windows, and magnificent oil canvases—while the main restaurant, Valle Flôr, has Regency airs and Portuguese fare. Guests may linger on Saturdays for a “chic-nic” lunch on the lawn by the pool. From $359 —R.T.

Related: Review of Pestana Palace Lisboa

Santa Clara 1728

Photo by Francisco Nogueira

• Neighborhood: Alfama
• Why we love it: It’s the design darling of Lisbon
• Book now

Santa Clara 1728 is set within an 18th-century palace that’s now the (impeccably designed) home of hotelier João Rodrigues, whose family occupies the top two floors. Downstairs are six suites, where guests can enjoy spa-like serenity thanks to the minimalist design of famed Portuguese architect Manuel Aires Mateus—think natural woods and eggshell-blue walls, sitting rooms and river views. High-end linens make you want to stay in bed awhile (though there’s no air conditioning, so throw open those windows and listen for the market vendors in the square below). Guests are invited to dine at Ceia, a nine-course meal at the hotel’s communal table, Wednesdays to Saturdays. From $543 per night, two-night minimum

Santiago de Alfama

Courtesy of Santiago de Alfama

• Neighborhood: Alfama
• Why we love it: A family-run boutique hotel in Lisbon’s medieval center
• Book now

Lisbon’s oldest district is known for its labyrinth of narrow streets, abundant fado bars, and historical attractions. Opened in 2015, Santiago de Alfama is a draw in its own right. The former 15th-century palace is just below São Jorge Castle. Its 19 guest rooms offer views of the River Tagus or courtyard garden, as well as unique configurations, including interconnecting bedrooms that would be ideal for families. Most accommodations combine traditional features such as wood-paneled ceilings and intricate cornices with modern comforts like rain showers and bespoke linens.

With so few rooms, the staff will always know your name, though it’s unsurprising in this family-run hotel that functions like a more intimate B&B. Be sure to dine in the café/bistro Audrey’s, named after the owners’ daughter and serving seasonal dishes using fresh produce from the kitchen garden. From $353 —R.T.

Related: Review of Santiago de Alfama