Lisbon Pre-Cruise Hotel

[Pjones9139]

My wife and i will be traveling on Regent Seven Seas Mariner departing Lisbon 8/2/23.  We are staying in a Penthouse Suite, but apparently the pre-cruise hotels are not being offered and we are receiving a credit on our bill for this.

 

Having not been to Lisbon before, we are planning on staying two nights in a hotel to explore Lisbon.  Does anyone have any recommendations for nice, well-located hotels in Lisbon?  Out TA will be assisting us on this as well but am looking for recommendations to compare to options he comes up with.  

[Gpilon]

25 minutes ago, Pjones9139 said:

My wife and i will be traveling on Regent Seven Seas Mariner departing Lisbon 8/2/23.  We are staying in a Penthouse Suite, but apparently the pre-cruise hotels are not being offered and we are receiving a credit on our bill for this.

 

Having not been to Lisbon before, we are planning on staying two nights in a hotel to explore Lisbon.  Does anyone have any recommendations for nice, well-located hotels in Lisbon?  Out TA will be assisting us on this as well but am looking for recommendations to compare to options he comes up with.  

A terrific hotel in one of the best locations in the city is the Bairro Alto Hotel. We have stayed there before and will spend a couple extra days there when we disembark Splendor April 9 after our TA cruise.

[labonnevie]

Avenida Palace. 

[DeepFreeze63]

After our 3/28 TA on Splendor, we are staying for 3 days at Hotel Avenida Palace on Avenue Liberdade. It is upscale, central, and on a flat areas with Metro just outside. When we get back on 4/13, I'' write up the cruise and the post-cruise stay.

[Gpilon]

2 minutes ago, DeepFreeze63 said:

After our 3/28 TA on Splendor, we are staying for 3 days at Hotel Avenida Palace on Avenue Liberdade. It is upscale, central, and on a flat areas with Metro just outside. When we get back on 4/13, I'' write up the cruise and the post-cruise stay.

Hope to meet you onboard then once back home, comparing the hotels. 

[welshfamily]

Please can you tell us when you heard this?
We are booked on this cruise and have been waiting to hear which hotel we have been allocated as we want to add an extra day due to the lack of business class flights on offer from the UK. We upgraded to concierge because of the flight issue and ended up having to add an extra day.

Spoke with our TA a few days ago and he let us know Regent had still not allocated a hotel.

thanks

 

[Pjones9139]

Welshfamily:

 

My TA told me that the Pope was going to be in Lisbon around that same time in early August and that Regent was unable to secure enough rooms in light of this. 

[jsarles]

The Sofitel is great -- perfect location.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Just be aware that Lisbon is very hilly. The Bairro Alto is one of those areas.

[cruiseluv]

On 3/2/2023 at 1:58 PM, labonnevie said:

Avenida Palace. 

I second the recommendation for the Avenida Palace. Charming old fashioned hotel, great breakfast and lovely lounge with music in the early evening 

[vistaman]

2 hours ago, cruiseluv said:

I second the recommendation for the Avenida Palace. Charming old fashioned hotel, great breakfast and lovely lounge with music in the early evening 

and great service !!

[welshfamily]

 

Our TA got in touch and confirmed no transfers or hotel.

Very disappointed with Regent’s compensation.

We have been credited £186 converts to $223 per cabin.

That’s  supposed to cover a transfer from the airport, one nights hotel stay, breakfast and a transfer to the airport.

 

Now I don’t blame Regent for the rise in hotel costs due to the Popes visit, however the amount of credit we have been given would not even cover a 3* hotel room never mind two transfers. 
 

We are new to Regent and very much hope the on board experience is a luxury and not a cut price experience.

 

After much research we have booked the Hotel de Baxia. Smaller than the Avenida ((which we prefer ) Well placed with  good reviews. We have never stayed in Lisbon and hope this is a good choice.

[mrstanley]

The hotels Regent use are not good. Better to book your own.

[flyboyswife]

On 3/2/2023 at 6:13 PM, Pjones9139 said:

Welshfamily:

 

My TA told me that the Pope was going to be in Lisbon around that same time in early August and that Regent was unable to secure enough rooms in light of this. 

 The Pope and 20,000 young adults - it’s World Youth Day...all week! My16yo can’t wait!

[DeepFreeze63]

Per my commitment in Post # 4 above:

Our 3 day/night stay at Avenida Palace hotel was WONDERFUL!  Because:

• We had a beautiful room on the 5th floor facing Restorantes square - absolutely quiet despite the hotel being next to Rossio train station. Very nice bed and well-lighted bath with tub/showerS. Delicious, extensive breakfast in a lovely room with plenty of attendants.
• We spent Easter Sunday morning/afternoon visiting four nearby, beautiful churches including the Se (all beautiful and crowded with attendees) - all were on the flat section near the hotel or on a slight incline to the east of the hotel. Spent the early evening down near the river (missed the Splendor sailing by) with hordes of tourists. Had a very nice dinner at a seafood restaurant recommended by the hotel's Concierge and drinks at the elegant hotel bar - great (affable and competent) bar staff, very nice light meals and snacks (at a 20% discount because we booked directly with the hotel)
• We used Metro (a stop is just outside the hotel) on Monday when almost all the museums are closed to visit: Gulbenkian Museum (unbelievable what "oil money" can buy); the huge Ingles Cortez department store where we had a delicious lunch on the lovely patio outside the many restaurants on the top floor; shopped the large Zara's across the street from IC; walked downhill to our hotel past the many elegant stores (open on Mondays) on Rua Avenida. Had a light dinner in the hotel bar with a pianist (every night from 7 til 8). Again, visited the nearby shops and the river area - easy walking.
• Tuesday morning we started to Belem on bus - BAD idea - terrible traffic, road repairs on narrow streets. Hopped off bus and hailed a cab - easy; 3.50 euros to enter but cheap thereafter and QUICK.
• Visited Coach museum(a Wow) and the Antiquities museum( the national Portuguese museum; a super Wow) the latter on free tickets provided to guests by the hotel Concierge. Had a late lunch at the Time Out complex (with almost everyone else in the word); had freshly-made pasta (best in our memory) on the outside patio of the East side.  Had a light dinner again in the hotel bar during music time. Walked around the flat tourist area in early evening.
• On last morning, within 30 minutes of call to Concierge, we were checked out; bellhop had baggage, and large cab was waiting for our trip to airport (less than 20 euros for cab ride).
• Other notes - Our room had portable phone for use during stay for use outside of hotel and up to 30 minutes/day of world-wide use. On last night a plate of huge strawberries was delivered to our room.

[welshfamily]

Thank you for your review. Very helpful as our hotel is on the same road. We only have one full day and the morning before we board. If pushed could you give us your  recommendation for any “must see” items.

thank you

[Techno123]

45 minutes ago, welshfamily said:

Thank you for your review. Very helpful as our hotel is on the same road. We only have one full day and the morning before we board. If pushed could you give us your  recommendation for any “must see” items.

thank you

We actually stayed in Lisbon on a city break rather than a cruise.
 

We did a walking tour on the afternoon we arrived which helped to orientate us to the city and give you lots of hints and tips like don't queue for Elevador de Santa Justa - the views are just as good if you walk up the hill. They also tell you where the free elevators are as Lisbon is very hilly.

We got the train to Sintra on one day, (fabulous) the seaside resort of Cascais nice but we cycled further along the coast too and the tram to Belem.

 

We used this website to help us plan - there is a 24 hours and 48 hours tour. https://lisbonlisboaportugal.com/lisbon-tour/lisbon-2-day-itinerary-tour.html
 

You could also drop your bags onboard, grab a quick lunch then go back out and explore the Alfama district which is very close to the cruise port.

[DeepFreeze63]

8 hours ago, welshfamily said:

Thank you for your review. Very helpful as our hotel is on the same road. We only have one full day and the morning before we board. If pushed could you give us your  recommendation for any “must see” items.

thank you

So personal a decision! We are in our 80s (healthy but Lisbon's hill were a challenge) and have been to Lisbon at least 5 times including a Regent pre-cruise excursion in November of 2022. We still research via TripAdvisor and UTube. For us, the most beautiful church in Lisbon is Sao Roque. Lots of  interesting things to do in Belem area - but go early; check if you need timed tickets in advance; and use a cab - time is precious! Our hotel Concierge was MOST helpful.

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

Best tour group in Lisbon…We hate tourism dot com