Lisbon, Portugal

Nov 2

My girlfriend and I spent two days in Lisbon this past August, and even though it was short, it ended up being one of my favorite stops of the whole trip. We flew into Lisbon so it was our first stop on our entire month long Europe trip. We ended up getting there at 5 am and had to kill a few hours before we could even check in to our Airbnb.

During the day, we tried to see as much as we could. We explored around Belém — the Belém Tower, the Monument to the Discoveries, and the whole Santa Maria boardwalk area.

While we were waiting at the airport we ended up booking a boat tour through Airbnb Experience with Ahoy Lisboa! It was absolutely worth it. We booked that morning so it ended up just being my girlfriend and I and the two hosts (the captain, and his deck hand). They took us under the 25 de Abril Bridge and out along the coast by the Santuário de Cristo Rei. It was one of our favorite parts of the trip. Good conversation, great views, and a few glasses of wine was exactly what we needed to start our Lisbon trip.

We stayed in this Airbnb downtown — super cute and in the perfect spot to walk pretty much anywhere. We had a couple small issues with check-in, but nothing major, and honestly it was worth it for the location alone.

One night we walked to the National Pantheon, and it was so peaceful. No one was really around, it was just us on the streets. We ended up finding this little wine bar nearby to grab drinks at which ended up being one of our favorite memories — just us, running around the streets of Lisbon at night, soaking in the insane architecture around us.

We also spent time wandering through Alfama, which ended up being my favorite neighborhood in the city. It’s full of narrow streets, little shops, and locals just hanging out. We met the nicest server named Christina during dinner. We ended up chatting with her for a while, she was asking us about America and we were shit talking Trump together… so it very much felt like a safe space there. The restaurant was also a 5 min walk from our Airbnb too!

The next day, we took a little trip out to Praia do Creiro to meet up with my friend Cassidy from college. The beach was beautiful, and the uber ride over was insane. (Ubers aren’t too expensive out there so we mainly used that for transportation!) The views were gorgeous, the water was so clear, the sand was soft, and it had the nicest little bar with umbrellas and chairs set up for you to rent! We swam, had drinks on the beach, and then drove into downtown Setúbal for dinner before heading back. It was honestly the perfect way to end the trip.

Even though it was only two days, Lisbon really stood out to me. The food was great, the people were even better, and I felt comfortable the entire time — which, as a trans man traveling abroad, isn’t something I take for granted. Everyone we met was kind and open, and it made the whole experience that much better.

If you ever get the chance to go, do it. Even a couple of days there is worth it.