5 Quirky Shops in Cascais

With 943 kilometers (586 mi) of coast just on the mainland, Portugal is home to, welcomes, and shapes water sports athletes. If water is your element and you’d like to deepen your connection with it, you might want to try kayaking. It doesn’t require you to be in top physical shape (though it will get you there if you want it to!) and it can take you to places you wouldn’t otherwise be able to visit. Ready for your sea kayak summer Saturdays?

Kayak Tours in Cascais

There are many companies organizing kayak tours in Cascais. Let me guide you through them.

Do you want a nature-focused tour? Portugal4fun advertises a guided expedition to the ancient rocks on the Cascais-Estoril coast, namely in the Boca do Inferno caves. This one is for explorers. The price is €50 per person with a minimum of 4 people.

Guincho Adventours offer two 2-hour tours with different itineraries: you can either kayak to the Cascais marina and bay, and along the coast all the way to Tamariz Beach, or head to Santa Marta Lighthouse, Boca do Inferno, Guia, and Mexilhoeiro. Both tours start at Santa Marta Beach and cost €50 per person with a minimum of 6 participants.

The most affordable program is organized by Activities In Portugal, who take you on a half-day tour for €35, with a minimum of 6 people.

Oeiras by Kayak

Where the ocean and the river meet, and where your journey begins. You can join the 10-am early birds or the 2 pm group. You’ll be paddling along the Lisbon coast and will make a stop at a beach offering great diving. The tour takes approximately 2 hours and it’s meant for small groups, with a maximum of 5 participants. If you wish to book an experience for a larger group, go ahead and contact Bork, the company organizing it. Water and snacks are also included. The price varies from €25 to €40 per person.

Sea Kayak Course

And if what you really want is to learn the basics of kayaking so you can paddle from shore to shore by yourself, you should take a certified course. Bork, based in Oeiras, will guide you through paddling skills, strokes, maneuvers, and rescue technics in 5 different modules, each session lasting about 2 hours. The price for the course is €320. You can book it here.

As you know, measures implemented by different nations to fight the coronavirus pandemic can differ quite a lot and they’re unpredictable. Because of that, you should make sure you’re aware of what you need to do before traveling, what documents you’re required to have on you for the whole trip (in some countries, restrictions also apply to travelers in transit/transfer) and how the current situation is at your destination, Portugal.

In any case, it’s recommended you pay attention to emails sent by the airline you’re traveling with and feel free to check Visit Portugal to get the latest updates on travel restrictions, because these change all the time.

Traveling to mainland Portugal

If you’re traveling to mainland Portugal, you no longer need to fill out a passenger locator form. However, be ready to present one of the following documents:

- a valid EU digital COVID vaccination certificate;

- a valid test or EU digital COVID recovery certificate;

- a valid vaccination certificate or recovery certificate issued by one of the non-EU country that are listed below;

- a negative RT-PCR test (or similar NAAT test) within 72 hours prior to boarding;

- a negative rapid antigen test performed by a laboratory within 24 hours prior to boarding.

Accepted vaccination/recovery certificates of non-EU countries include: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Benin, Cape Verde, Colombia, El Salvador, Faroe Islands, Georgia, Israel, Iceland, Jordan, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Malasya, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, San Marino, Serbia, Singapore, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Tunisia, Togo, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies (Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man), Uruguay, and Vatican.

If you’re traveling with children under the age of 12, they don’t have to present anything.

Traveling to Azores

Identical restrictions apply to flights to the Azores, with the exception of domestic flights. Indeed, there are currently no requirements upon entry for passengers traveling from Madeira or mainland Portugal.

In addition to the list of documents one can show, a vaccination certificate from the World Health Organization is an alternative.

Also, if you’re traveling from a non-EU country, you can expect your vaccination certificate to only be recognized if it’s from one of the these countries: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Benin, Cape Verde, Faroe Islands, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Salvador, San Marino, Serbia, Singapore, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the Crown Dependencies (Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man), Uruguay, and Vatican.

In case you don’t meet the criteria above when arriving in Azores, you’ll have to perform a test on arrival.

You can check the latest information here, though everything is in Portuguese.

Traveling to Madeira

There are no restrictions for entering Madeira. You should know, though, that the Health Authorities of Madeira recommend prior registration on the Madeira Safe platform, but it’s not mandatory in any way.

Traveling (or living) on a budget sometimes makes us feel we’re not enjoying a travel or living experience to the fullest. That’s why we bring you 4 precious tips for eating and drinking in Lisbon and Cascais that don’t require any sacrifices.

Eat at local restaurants

Start off with a delicious but simple breakfast, the Portuguese way: a hot coffee with milk and toast or cake. This can be very affordable at local cafés and pastelarias (cafes/pastry shops). Order some extra pastéis de nata, areias, pão de deus or any other tasty-looking pastries you lay your eyes on. You can eat them later when you’re craving a snack.

A typical lunchtime is from 12 pm to 2 pm. Restaurants’ kitchens often close at 3 pm. You want to look for restaurants and tascas (Portuguese bistros) where the Portuguese eat on a daily basis. In places like that, you’ll be sure to find one or a couple of daily dishes (pratos do dia), that are considerably cheaper than anything à la carte. Check if there’s a menu option too, combining soup, dish, dessert, and espresso. You’ll know you’re at the right place if it costs less than €10. If you’re not particularly hungry, have a bifana no pão or prego no pão, both typical meat sandwiches. Against your best intuition, bifana is actually with pork and prego with beef.

Dinner is usually from 8 to 9 pm, sometimes later on Fridays and Saturdays. Go to a tasca and share some petiscos (tapas), like a cheese platter, pastéis de bacalhau (salted cod fritters), charred chouriço sausage, olives, and bread. In the summer, look for a paper towel sign with the handwritten words ‘Há caracóis’. This will lead the way to cheap fresh snails. Actually, the more paper signs there are, and the more paper towels are used in general, the more likely that tasca is the real deal.

Of course there are international fast-food chains that can beat local restaurant prices, but where’s the fun in that? At least, let me tell you about the local ones. You can find these names scattered across town: h3 Hamburgology (a lot of them in Lisbon, one in CascaiShopping), Hamburgueria do Bairro (a lot of them in Lisbon, one in central Cascais), and Madpizza (a few of them in Lisbon, but none in the center, and one in the Oeiras Parque mall in Oeiras). Hamburgueria do Bairro has very decent vegetarian and vegan hamburgers, though meat ones make up most of the menu.

Skip the appetizers at restaurants

It’s common courtesy for the waiter to bring simple appetizers to the table (bread, cheese, olives, pâté, what have you). What isn’t common courtesy is for the restaurant to offer you these things, you’ll pay up when the bill comes. They’re not expensive, but it’s probably a cost you don’t need. You can simply tell the waiter to take them back — the best-guaranteed way there won’t be any surprises at the end.

There are very few plant-based dishes in Portuguese cuisine, we view those as side dishes. Main dishes require meat, fish, or seafood. Take Portuguese feijoada, for example. This is a heavy stew made with kidney beans, carrots, and cabbage. But that’s only the base! It’s not feijoada without chouriço and some pork.

Needless to say it’ll be hard to find vegetarian options at typical restaurants. However, to keep up with vegetarian trends among the Portuguese population and, more generally, westerners, there has been a solid rise in plant-based cafes, restaurants, and shops. It’s a great time to be vegan!

Here, we give you our top 10 restaurants in Lisbon. And don’t worry about cross-contamination. These restaurants are 100% vegetarian, if not vegan.

Ao 26 Vegan Food Project

Address: Rua Vitor Cordon 26, 1200-484 Lisboa

Phone: +351 967 989 184

Website

At n. 26 on Rua Vitor Cordon in Chiado, in front of the 28 tram stop, is where this project's amazing vegan food is cooked up.

There are different menus for lunch and dinner. If you come here for lunch, first tip: be early. You can try their seitan steak (traditional, only with seitan instead of beef or pork), many Portuguese appetizers, including the marvelous À Bulhão Pato mushrooms; as well as burgers, salads, and sandwiches. For dinner, make sure you have a reservation. The dinner menu is pricier but more impressive.

A meal for two will cost around €40.

Legumi Sushi Lisbon

Address: Cç. do Combro 56, 1200-452 Lisboa

Phone: +351 920 440 495

Website

Legumi (which, to a Portuguese, sounds like a Brazilian saying the word legume, ‘vegetable’) believes in new flavors, textures, and in the self-expression of beauty in nature.

For all you vegans seeking umami out there, the search is over. Legumi has fantastic Japanese-inspired food: sushi and maki rolls, fried dumplings, sautéed mushrooms, and seaweed salad. Everything is 100% plant-based.

A meal costs around €40 for two people.

My Mother’s Daughters

Address: Lg. de São Sebastião da Pedreira 49, 1050-010 Lisboa

Phone: +351 21 580 9853

Website

You’ll find it in a yellow building on a cute corner of a cobbled street near El Corte Inglés. On warm days, don’t hesitate to sit outside on the terrace. This place has gotten popular, so maybe it’s a good idea to book your table ahead because there aren’t a lot of vegan restaurants in the area.

A solid option for breakfast, lunch, and lanche (a snack, usually in the afternoon), this small cozy cafe is run by three daughters and their mother. They serve healthy organic food that varies throughout the seasons. What stays the same is their commitment to the vegan stamp.

Their meaty lentil croquettes and ‘cheesy’ bread would fool anyone!

Organi Chiado

Address: Cç. Nova de São Francisco 2, 1200-300 Lisboa

Phone: +351 216 065 121

Website

Another harmonious vegan restaurant that privileges in-season and locally-sourced produce. All their food, desserts included, is sugar-free. Don’t let that stop you from having a taste of their arroz con leche or chocolate cake next to your coffee.

I’d recommend the outdoor seating area to the green and yellow interior (not the best colors, in my opinion, although I understand what they’re getting at), but that comes down to personal taste.

The price for a meal for two people is approximately €30.

Veganeats Caffe

Address: R. Cavaleiro de Oliveira 42, Lisbon

Phone: +351 914 668 799

Website

From the center, venture into the busy Almirante Reis avenue and you’ll reach Veganeats two blocks away from Arroios.

A vegan’s gotta eat and, to their delight, they can eat everything served at Veganeats. This is a small cafe and bakery with soup of the day, dish of the day, quiches, pastries, and cakes. Everything here is straight-up delicious and has a touch of Portuguese tradition. A great place to visit with ovo-lacto friends too. Upon a taste of the chocolate and peanut cake, they’ll ask you many times ‘Are you sure this is vegan? How can it be?’, followed by a ‘Mmm’.

A meal for two is around €15.

Moko Veggie Cafe - Anjos

Address: Rua do Forno do Tijolo 29D, 1170-132 Lisboa

Phone: +351 218 130 621

Website

Moko is a simple vegan cafe and bakery that’s small in size, affordable, but with varied savory dishes that reflect the combination of different cuisines: Asian noodle soups, dumplings, a vegan bacon burger, and a shrimp salad. As for the breakfast goodies, they also change day to day, but here are some customer favorites: Nutella croissants, Chinese steamed buns, and doughnuts. Lastly, a pro tip: a detox smoothie next to the fried and sugary options will make you feel like you’re being healthy.

A meal for two costs around €15.

Vegan Junkies

Address: R. Luciano Cordeiro 28, 1150-300 Lisboa

Phone: +351 213 530 669

Website

Did you not become vegetarian for health reasons? If you come to Vegan Junkies, it’s best to leave the guilt at the door.

This warm little restaurant with an underground vibe to it always has great music. More importantly, they are serious about junk food. They serve hot dogs, burgers, French fries, barbecue wings, and nachos. The beyond meat cheeseburger is a popular option, but there are superb alternatives if you’re not a fan.

A meal will be around €25 for two people.

al Sanpietrino Trattoria (former Horacio)

Address: Beco da Lapa 31, 1100-331 Lisboa

Phone: +351 936 715 754

Website

As a vegan, I marvel at the different cuisines vegan restaurants specialize in! al Sanpietrino, for instance, specializes in pizza, pasta, lasagna, gnocchi… Which is, of course, a funny way of saying it’s an Italian restaurant. But, like, fully vegan, you know? Additionally, there are a few exceptions to the penchant for Italian cuisine, like the Portuguese prego (and, by the way, why haven’t you?! There are vegan versions everywhere at this point).

Do make a reservation a couple of days ahead and try to dine early, so they don’t run out of desserts by the time you finish.

A meal will cost you and your date approximately €25.

The Green Affair - Saldanha

Address: Av. Duque de Ávila 30A, 1000-141 Lisboa

Phone: +351 967 472 286

Website

The Green Affair is a more sophisticated vegan restaurant, but not pretentious. Their focus is on offering international cuisine and food presentation that pleases the eye.

There is a really good Portuguese dish I recommend you to try, sem espinhas à lagareiro, an adaptation of a dish with cod or octopus served with baked potatoes and olive oil seasoning. If you’re more into ‘meat’, know that their seitan steak is great, though it doesn’t try to be anything other than seitan — no new-age fake meat here.

A meal for two will be around €30 here.

Os Tibetanos

Address: R. do Salitre 117, 1250-198 Lisboa

Phone: +351 213 142 038

Website

It feels good to include a well-established veggie restaurant in Lisbon, around since 1975. And it’s all granted by their unchanged food quality over the years.

Oriental flavors are what defines Os Tibetanos, along with a Buddhist temple on the upper floors (where there are yoga and meditation classes) and a beautiful patio on the ground floor. Let your mind relax in this peaceful atmosphere that the music and the decoration achieve together. And, of course, don’t forget to feed the body too. The spinach and cheese dumplings and the mango and tofu curry are two amazing menu entries.

Note that this is an ovo-lacto-vegetarian restaurant, so it’s not limited to vegan options.

€40 is the average cost for two people.

Legend has it that Lisbon has seven hills: São Roque, São Jorge, São Vicente, Santo André, Santa Catarina, Chagas, and Sant’Ana. Each of these offers belvederes with different angles on the river, the buildings, and the cobblestone patterns paving the streets.

What most maps don’t reveal are the private viewpoints, those of rooftop bars. It’s hard to beat a view with a cold drink in your hands! Here’s our pick of breathtaking rooftops in Lisbon.

Park

Address: Cç. do Combro 58, 1200-123 Lisboa

Phone: +351 215 914 011

Website

Did you ever want to be known as someone who finds a good spot? This is your chance. To get to this bar, you’ll have to enter a parking lot and go up a few flights of stairs. During that journey, you’ll start to wonder ‘Did I make up this place? Did I dream it?’ You did not. Park will be waiting for you at the top, a stunning panoramic view up its sleeve.

An amazing place to catch a sunset and take a good photo of the 25 de Abril Bridge. Go early if you want a place to sit, as it gets full rather quickly.

Topo Martim Moniz

Address: Centro Comercial Martim Moniz, Piso 6, 1100-341 Lisboa

Phone: +351 215 881 322

Website

Though in a completely different location (no parking lot — instead, an old-school mall in Martim Moniz), Topo has a similar energy to Park: it’s trendy, it has dancy music at night (and sometimes hosts DJ sets), and it attracts big crowds. There’s a seal of quality for the drinks, mixed by bartenders from Black Pepper & Basil.

The rooftop has a gorgeous view of Martim Moniz and the castle.

Entretanto Rooftop Bar

Address: Hotel do Chiado, R. Nova do Almada 114, 1100-184 Lisboa

Phone: +351 21 325 6100

Website

This bar’s vistas are similar to those of the Santa Justa elevator: you’ll see Lisbon’s downtown rooftops, the São Jorge Castle, and the river.

There’s a polished and current feel to it. To top it all up, the service is outstanding, coherent with Entretanto’s location atop Hotel do Chiado.

Pro tip: there is great gin to be had here!

Sky Bar

Address: Tivoli Avenida da Liberdade, Av. da Liberdade 185, 1269-050 Lisboa

Phone: +351 213 198 642

Website

Close to the sky, on the ninth floor of the hotel Tivoli, on Avenida da Liberdade (our Champs Elysées, no less). Life doesn’t get more sophisticated and glamorous than this.

You’ll love the layout of the bar, the lights, and the spring colors — a platform from which to glance at Baixa, the São Jorge Castle, the Tagus River, and Serra da Arrábida. And because you’ll be staying for a bit, take a seat in the comfortable lounge sofas or beanbags.

This is a seasonal experience, however, which makes it all the more special. Come here between April to September and in the warmer months enjoy regular DJ sets and live music.

Ferroviário

Address: Rua de Santa Apolónia 59, 1100-468 Lisboa

Phone: +351 217 651 869

Website

A less catchy name (‘railway’) to a non-Portuguese speaker, but it’s attached to a story. Ferroviário was born in 1961 to host cultural and recreational activities for employees from CP (the state-owned railway company). It went on to become a rooftop bar and stage in 2010 and, in 2018, the management and the decoration changed. The original architecture was preserved, now coexisting with cabaret-style reds on the inside and the fun tropical vibe on the terrace.

While the service can be slow, I’d argue it’s worth the wait. Come here to drink a cocktail or a mocktail with the Tagus River at the forefront.