City Break Destination - Lisbon

The Tagus is the main river in Lisbon and in Portugal and Lisbon is located at the point where the Tagus flows into the Atlantic Ocean; it enhances the city's importance. My first excursion was to the Monsanto Natural Park, one of the largest urban parks in Europe covering an area of around 9 square kilometers, it took 2 days to visit this park! Over the following days I visited the highlights of the capital, which includes St. George's Castle and the major attraction of Belem and Jeronimos Monastery. The Quelez Palace is just 15 km from the city and Sintra is just 29 km from the city, both are well worth a visit.

Lisbon plays an important role in the country's literacy rate which is 93%. The city has several private and public secondary schools and several international schools. Lisbon has 4 major state universities.

Lisbon is the original birthplace of Fado music, characterized by mourful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor. There are two main varieties of Fado. One is rooted in Lisbon and the second is in Coimbra, of the two Lisbon is the most famous.

Getting around in Lisbon is comparitively much easier than any other city in Europe as train travel is relatively inexpensive. Most visitors simply buy a ticket every time they make a journey. There are different discount schemes for train travellers and children under 4 go free. Under 12's pay half price and senior citizens above 65 yrs can get 30% off. If you are planning a lot of train travel, using a rail pass might save you money.

Traveling by bus can be more expensive than train as buses link you to most of the countries smaller towns and villages. There are comfortable express buses that operate on longer routes. For this you have to reserve tickets in advance. All buses are privatized but still you can find a national network of express coaches called Rede Expressos.

Lisbon is the perfect place to enjoy a holiday. That's why reservations in hotels are essential. Especially during peak season when many hotels are filled with Europeans enjoying holidays in Lisbon. Most of the hotels require at least one-days deposit before they reserve a room for you. But still you can get hotels at the last moment if your travel agent is good. My travel agent was one of the UK's best travel agents. Their site name is Lisbon Breaks. You can use the site to find city breaks in Lisbon, cheap Lisbon flights, cheap hotels in Lisbon and holidays in Lisbon. All are easily bookable online.