AlmaLusa Baixa/Chiado hotel review: full of character and in Lisbon's best location

At this stylish retreat in the heart of the city you’re just far enough from the main tourist trail 
AlmaLusa is nestled in Lisbon's Praça do Município
Alma Lusa/Mason Rose
Cathy Hawker3 November 2018

It seems everyone has fallen for Lisbon, Portugal’s light-flooded capital where cobbled streets, glossy azulejo tiles, canary-yellow trams and seven steep hills provide plenty of Insta-ready beauty. Visitors come for the mix of old and new, for the architecture, the seafood and for the budget-conscious prices.

AlmaLusa Baixa/Chiado opened in March 2016 in a gold-plated location between the river and the historic centre. The 28-room boutique hotel is owned and managed by experienced Portuguese hoteliers who focus on top-flight service with an informal, personal touch wrapped up in an authentic Lisboa experience.

Where is it?

The location is pitch perfect, 25 minutes from the airport in an elegant and delightfully quiet square yet at the epicentre of city life. AlmaLusa is tucked into a corner of Praça do Município adjacent to the neoclassical City Hall and on the site of Lisbon’s former arsenal dating back to the days of the Voyages of Discovery.

There’s no noise and no traffic directly outside the hotel yet walk two minutes from the hotel and you are on the mighty Tagus River. Five minutes the other way leads towards the historical centre and the shops, bars and restaurants of Baixa and Chiado, the beating heart of modern day Lisbon.

Style

AlmaLusa Baixa/Chiado aims for authentic, understated Portuguese style with a surprising splash of British design. Wherever possible the hotel has used Portuguese goods: soaps, room scents and the outstanding linen on the beds yet they also have a passion for British designer Andrew Martin’s wallpaper, using it on feature walls in many rooms and corridors.

The hotel is listed and original design features include shutters, large fireplaces in some rooms and wooden ceilings while the well-worn stone floor in the entrance hall dates back to the sixteenth century. Internal colours are mostly monochrome with majestic black high gloss doors to the bedrooms.

Alma Lusa/Mason Rose

Facilities

Rooms all have tea and coffee-making facilities, Wi-Fi is excellent and bathrooms are generously stocked with toiletries.

There is no gym or spa: this is a city hotel in a winning location and most guests will aim to spend the majority of time outside exploring. An intimate ground floor restaurant serves food throughout the day and the compact bar – with tables inside and outside – is well used by guests and locals alike.

Staff are friendly and super-helpful, eager to advise on where to eat, what to see and the best day trips and outings. The hotel prides itself on its high level of customer service, something I tested out when I realised I had left a coat on the aeroplane. General Manager Sofia and her staff calmly took care of this for me, calling Lisbon airport and reuniting me with my coat within 24 hours.

Extra curricular

Outside Lisbon awaits, a new favourite weekend destination and there’s plenty to keep visitors busy for two or three days. Almost everything in this compact city is within walking distance and when those vertiginous hills make your calves ache get a tram or a taxi: both are affordable.

Head up to smart Principe Real or tourist central Chiado to eat the freshest seafood and local produce (top tips are Bairro de Avillez and Boubous run by ex-Londoners who worked at Zuma and Chiltern Firehouse). Shop in the pop-ups and boutiques of Chiado and Baixa, climb up through ancient Alfama to the Castle of St George for the very finest city views or catch a tram – the tourist favourite is Number 28.

Outside of the city popular daytrips include visits to the former royal palaces of Sintra, the surfing beaches at Cascais and the high headland at rugged Cabo da Roca, the most westerly part of mainland Europe.

Alma Lusa/Mason Rose

Food & Drink

Delfina restaurant on the ground floor offers all-day dining with a selection of tapas and deli-style options. Breakfast is served there too, a well-displayed buffet (with cooked breakfasts to order) including traditional Portuguese pasteis de nata, mini egg custard tarts made in Lisbon for over 150 years.

Which room?

The 28 rooms are all different, some suites, some with small kitchenettes and some with an extra bed. The best overlook the beautiful (and quiet) square at the front of the hotel. Favourites include 15, a large wood-panelled suite and 21 with a dramatic fireplace.

Alma Lusa/Mason Rose

Best for...

Guests come mainly from UK and USA, many on wine tours around Portugal. AlmaLusa would suit honeymooners, groups of friends on a city break and anyone looking for a top location in this newly dynamic – and very safe - European capital.

Price

Rooms start from €195 a night including breakfast. November has a special rate for B&B of €157.

Details

AlmaLusa Baixa/Chiado, Praça do Município 21, Lisbon, +351 212 697 440, reservas@almalusahotels.com

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in