The Soul of Alfama

Lisbon's oldest district survived the 1755 earthquake almost untouched, leaving its medieval maze of alleys intact. On this walking tour, you'll wind through Alfama's narrow lanes to find out how Moorish, Jewish, and Christian communities shaped its character over 900 years.

The tour starts at the Miradouro de Santa Luzia, with its tiled pergola overlooking terracotta rooftops and the Tejo River. From there, you'll climb to Portas do Sol for views stretching to the São Vicente de Fora Monastery, then descend through tangled alleys lined with local portraits, ceramic workshops, and fountains fed by ancient thermal springs that gave the district its Arabic name.

Along the way, you'll pass Fado houses where Portugal's melancholic musical genre still echoes nightly, and discover the remains of Lisbon's last surviving Jewish Quarter, tucked beneath Manueline windows. You'll also hear how fishermen, sailors, and washerwomen once filled these same streets, barely changed since medieval times. The tour ends at the Fado Museum, housed in a former water reservoir that now honors the UNESCO-listed sound of Lisbon's soul.

On this 60-minute tour, you'll have a chance to:

• Sit by the bronze-spouted Fountain of the Horses, possibly Lisbon's oldest, with origins dating back to Roman times
• Visit the Chapel of Our Lady of Remédios, its Manueline doorway tied to a legend of a miraculous dry statue
• Spot the Church of St. Miguel's gilded interior and paintings by Baroque master Bento Coelho da Silveira
• Sample ginjinha, a sour cherry liqueur, at a local café or shop along São Miguel Street
• Find the centuries-old pink house whose upper floors bulge wider than its base, a medieval space-saving trick
• Trace the former site of Alfama's public baths, once used by washerwomen known as lavadeiras

By the time you reach the Fado Museum, you'll understand exactly why Lisboners still call this neighborhood Alfama é linda, Alfama is beautiful.