Walking Tour
45 mins
1.3mi
About the Tour
About the Tour
If Alfama would be demolished even the pickaxes would weep
, wrote historian and writer Norberto de Araújo.
The Soul of Alfama will take you on a journey through a neighbourhood that has been the home to Romans, Moors, Jewish and Christian communities.
Visiting Alfama is stepping into an ancient village within the city, wherever you turn is a postcard with vivid colours, arches, tile panels, street art, fountains, eclectic balconies, tiny streets with potted plants, clotheslines, and stunning river views.
Founded in the time of the Romans or perhaps even earlier and then given shape by the Moors, this district, as you’ll see, is a unique location in the heart of one of the oldest capitals in Europe.
During this journey you’ll hear about its history, stories, people and the Portuguese soul music, Fado. Step into Alfama's Soul, and discover one of the oldest and most interesting stories Lisbon has to tell.
Tour Producer
Tour Producer
Lisbon with Pats
Hi, I am Pats, Founder and Cultural Tour Guide at Lisbon with Pats. I need to write, read, travel. ♡ Photography, Cinema, Architecture, History, Literature & Art.
How VoiceMap Works
How VoiceMap Works
Focus on your surroundings, not the screen
Follow a route with turn-by-turn-directions
Listen as many times as you like
Take virtual tours anywhere
Buy for less on voicemap.me and sync
Use VoiceMap offline
Map
Major Landmarks
Major Landmarks
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Miradouro de Santa Luzia
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Miradouro das Portas do Sol
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Igreja de Santo Estêvão Lisbon
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Miradouro de Santo Estevao
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Igreja de São Miguel
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Museu do Fado
Directions to Starting Point
Directions to Starting Point
In front of Santa Luzia Viewpoint, by Tram n.º 28 Stop
Tips
Tips
Places to stop along the way
Castle of St. George, Lisbon's Cathedral, Fado Museum
Best time of day
Early Morning or one hour before sunset (the golden hour), to get the most of Lisbon's light.
Precautions
Keep an eye on your belongings as pickpockets tend to target tourists in crowded areas, especially on tram 28. The alleyways of Alfama are very narrow. This can sometimes result in poor GPS signal, which can lead to some tracks not triggering automatically. In this case, please open the app and manually play the correct audio track or look at the map to find the next location.
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Interesting tour with lots of great information. Easy to get lost on account of the narrow, winding streets, though. It would be helpful if the directions were repeated more often.
Yes, the Alfama is a tricky place for GPS due to its narrow and maze structure. We have experienced exactly the same designing and developing this tour! Nevertheless, we thought the place is so rich in stories that was worth a try. We suggest to look at the screen to avoid getting so lost next time! ;-) Thank you for sharing your impressions. Have a great day!
Hi there, thank you for your feedback. We do provide on-screen text directions that pop up in the last 5 seconds of audio, providing directions to the next location.
I was excited to do the tour. And I honestly was SO DISAPPOINTED! It's just leading you through the streets and says things like "this is church X dating from YZ". No interesting stories or details. And she told us if we're more interested about background info, we can read the info on some little tiles. WHICH IS IN PORTUGUESE. Thanks for nothing! 😠
Thank you for sharing your opinion about the tour. Sorry to hear that you were disappointed with the experience. We were actually a bit surprised that you have mentioned that there are no stories nor details in this tour, as this is prepared as a in-depth journey through the Alfama and it has, actually, many detailed stories. The dates referred are there just to contextualise chronologically, as 'era guidelines', as time beacons to allow the visitors to understand the many 'time layers' of the district. Not sure what your refer as 'little tiles'; could it be the pictures from the people, the locals of Alfama? We thought it would be an extra detail that didn't make sense to include in the audio, as the user can easily consult and read them right in front -duplicating information didn't make sense, in our view. Again, we are sorry that you were disappointed. We would suggest you'd give a second try or even listening to it again calmly in relaxed and quiet environment. Thank you. Take care!
The reference to the 'little tiles' by the bakery was for direction purposes only. For your information, the popular verses featured in them are in Portuguese, as PORTUGUESE is Portugal's Official language.
What a great tour, packed with info and stories. It clearly took a lot of effort and it really paid off
Thank you for taking the time and energy to review this tour. Did you think of trying my other tours in Lisbon? If yes, give it a try and let us know how it went on. Have a great day!
Amazing experience through the "maze" of the Alfama. The buildings and locations come alive. A totally different and engaging way of visiting! Totally recommend.
Thank you. Happy that you loved the experience.
Thank you so much for your precious feedback!
This tour is really well thought out. I’ve lived in Lisbon for about a year, but still the tour took me to places I had never seen, and taught me Lisbon history I hadn’t heard. The other major plus for many people is that the tour accomplished its goals with very little uphill stair climbing, a real feat in this hilly area! I came across live fado outside a restaurant, a lovely gentleman selling ginginha in front of his home (delicious, especially in the chocolate cup), and lots of lovely views and typical historic streets, full of life. There are many small restaurants and pastelerias along the route, in case you need to stop for refreshment. I’d allow more than the 45 minutes, as you’ll want to savor views and take some photos. Also, start with a full battery, as the GPS takes a toll. Thanks so much Lisbon with Pats!