Bairro Alfama, Lisbon

Alfama: The Lisbon Neighbourhood That Survived the 1755 Earthquake

On 1 November 1755, an earthquake estimated at magnitude 8.5-9.0 struck Lisbon, followed by a tsunami and fires that together destroyed roughly 85% of the city. The Alfama district, built on solid rock rather than the unstable river sediment that covered the lower city, survived largely intact. It is the reason you can walk Alfama today and see a neighbourhood that looks like medieval Lisbon: the winding streets, the miradouros (viewpoints), the tiled facades, the washing lines between buildings, none of it was rebuilt to a plan but simply continued existing after the disaster that remade everything around it.

Fado, the Portuguese music of longing and loss, is strongly associated with Alfama because the neighbourhood’s working-class continuity preserved the performance culture that other parts of Lisbon lost. Hearing fado performed in a small casa de fado here, not the tourist-facing stage shows but a proper evening performance in a small room, is a specific Lisbon experience that exists because of the earthquake’s peculiar geography.

What to See

São Jorge Castle at the top of the hill was originally Moorish, taken by Afonso Henriques in 1147, and has been rebuilt and modified repeatedly since. The views from the walls over Lisbon and the Tagus are the primary reason to pay the €15 entry. The castle itself is less architecturally significant than the position it occupies.

The Miradouro da Senhora do Monte, 10 minutes’ walk east, is the best viewpoint in Alfama and in many people’s opinion the best in all of Lisbon, you can see the castle, the Tagus, the October 25 Bridge on the horizon, and the whole lower city spread across the river plain. It’s less visited than the more famous Miradouro de Santa Luzia (which has better azulejo tile panels but a slightly inferior view).

The Lisbon Cathedral (Sé) on the border of Alfama dates from 1147, the oldest religious building in the city, with later Gothic and Baroque additions. Free entry; the cloister costs a small fee and has Roman and Moorish archaeological layers visible below the current floor.

Eating and Drinking

The tourism pressure in Alfama has driven prices up significantly in the past decade. For genuinely local eating: Tasca do Chico on Rua do Diário de Notícias is a small, popular restaurant with fado performances on certain evenings, reservations essential. Taberna Sal Grosso near the Sé serves petiscos (small plates) at reasonable prices. For the classic Lisbon bifana (pork sandwich), any café away from the main tourist streets.

Getting Around

Tram 28 runs through Alfama on its scenic route and has become famous as a tourist attraction in its own right, which means it’s perpetually packed. If your priority is getting around rather than riding the tram itself, the 28E bus covers the same route faster. Walking is the real option in Alfama: most of it is inaccessible to vehicles anyway.