Useful Informations About Lisbon

Lisbon is the capital and largest city of Portugal. It is also the seat of the district of Lisbon and capital of the Lisbon region. Its municipality, which matches the city proper excluding the larger continuous conurbation, has a municipal population of 564,477 in 84.8 km² (33 sq mi). Due to its economic output, standard of living, and market size, the Grande Lisboa (Greater Lisbon) subregion is considered the second most important financial and economic center of the Iberian Peninsula.The Lisbon region is the wealthiest region in Portugal and it is well above the European Union's GDP per capita average - it produces 45% of the Portuguese GDP. It is also the political center of the country, as seat of government and residence of the Portuguese President.

The city's legendary seven hills will seduce you into admiring characteristic mosaic pavements and dazzling tiled façades, and will reward you with strategically-placed miradouros or viewpoints offering breathtaking panoramas over the city after a ride on a charming old tram. You'll find yourself wandering through colorful 18th century squares downtown and getting lost in the medieval maze of the Alfama district overlooked by an ancient castle. Follow that with a dive into the spectacular Oceanarium and spend your nights indulging in the city's gastronomic delights, listening to the sounds of Fado, or bar-hopping through the cobbled alleys of the shabby-chic Bairro Alto district.

Climate

Lisbon is one of the mildest European capitals. Spring is cool to warm (between 6 °C and 27 °C) with plenty of sunshine and also some showers. Summer months are mostly sunny, dry and hot with temperatures between 16 °C to 38 °C. Autumn is mild and unsettled with temperatures between 8 °C and 23 °C and winters are typically rainy, windy and cool with some sunny days (temperatures between 2 °C and 18 °C), usually staying at an average of 10 °C. Snowfall is a very rare occurrence — Lisbon briefly witnessed snow on January 29, 2006 and January 28, 2007 thanks to cold waves from the Arctic that affected Europe in those days. Before 2006, no snowfall had been registered for over forty years, just some sleety days. On average, there are 3300 sunny hours per year and 100 days with rain per year. Lisbon's climate is strongly influenced by the Gulf Stream. 

Culture and sights

The heart of the city is the Baixa (Downtown) or city centre; this area of the city is being considered for UNESCO World Heritage Site status. The Baixa is organised in a grid system and a network of squares built after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which levelled a great portion of the medieval city.

The Castle of São Jorge and the Lisbon Cathedral are located on one of the seven hills of Lisbon, to the east of the Baixa. The oldest district of the city is Alfama, close to the Tagus, which has made it relatively unscathed through the various earthquakes. Other monuments include: the Castle of São Jorge, atop the tallest hill of the central city, Praça do Comércio (Commerce Square) with the beautiful façade of the Church of Nossa Senhora da Conceição Velha nearby, Rossio Square, Restauradores Square, Elevador de Santa Justa, an elevator (lift) in Gothic revival style, built around 1900 to connect the Baixa and Bairro Alto, the richly-decorated Church of São Roque, the Baroque and Neoclassical Estrela Basilica, the Manueline Jerónimos Monastery, Belém Tower, Padrão dos Descobrimentos (Monument of the Discoveries) and Carmo Convent.

Architecture

The city of Lisbon is rich in architecture; Romanesque, Gothic, Manueline, Baroque, Traditional Portuguese, Modern and Post-Modern constructions can be found all over the city. The city is also crossed by great boulevards and monuments along these main thoroughfares, particularly in the upper districts; notable among these are the Avenida da Liberdade (Liberty Avenue), Avenida Fontes Pereira de Melo, Avenida Almirante Reis and Avenida da República (Republic Avenue).

Transports

Lisbon's public transport network is extremely far-reaching and reliable and has its Metro as its main artery, connecting the city centre with the upper and eastern districts, and now reaching the suburbs. Ambitious expansion projects will increase the network by almost one third, connecting the airport, and the northern and western districts. Bus, funicular and tram services have been supplied by the Companhia de Carris de Ferro de Lisboa (Carris), for over a century.

A traditional public transport in Lisbon is the tram. Originally introduced in the 19th century, the trams were originally imported from the U.S. and called americanos. The original trams can still be seen in the Museu da Carris (the Public Transport Museum) (Carris)

There are four commuter train lines departing from Lisbon: the Cascais, Sintra and Azambuja lines as well as a fourth line to Setúbal crossing the Tagus river over the 25 de Abril Bridge.

The city is connected to the far side of the Tagus by two important bridges :

• The 25 de Abril Bridge, inaugurated (as Ponte Salazar) on August 6 1966, and later renamed after the date of the Carnation Revolution, was the longest suspension bridge in Europe and although made by the same engineers as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, it is not, as thought by some, a replica (the Golden Gate Bridge does not have X braces).
• The Vasco da Gama Bridge, inaugurated on May 1998 is, at 17.2 km (10.7 mi), the longest bridge in Europe.

Another way of crossing the river is by taking the ferry. You can take ferrys to several destinations, as Cacilhas, Seixal, Montijo, Porto Brandão, Trafaria and Barreiro.

Lisbon is connected to its suburbs and the rest of Portugal by an extensive motorway network. There are three circular motorways around the city; the 2ª Circular, the CRIL and the CREL.

The Portela Airport is located within the city limits. TAP and Portugalia have their hubs here and the flights available are mostly to Europe, Africa and America.

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