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Baixa & Chiado

Planned centre with grand squares & shopping

Rebuilt on a strict grid after 1755, the lower town and elegant Chiado form Lisbon's heart - Praça do Comércio, Rua Augusta and historic cafés.

Column of King Pedro IV with a fountain on the central Rossio square, a meeting point in Lisbon's old town.

The planned lower town

The Baixa is Lisbon's geometric heart. After the 1755 earthquake, the Marquês de Pombal had the destroyed centre rebuilt as one of Europe's first grid-planned districts, wide, dead-straight streets running between the two great squares, Praça do Comércio and Rossio. Shops, cafés and the pedestrian street Rua Augusta line the grid.

Elegant Chiado

Uphill from the Baixa lies Chiado, Lisbon's traditional district of theatres, bookshops and historic cafés such as A Brasileira. Elegance and artistic flair meet here. Thanks to its central, flat location and good transport links, Baixa-Chiado is the most practical base for first-time visitors.

The easiest place to stay

If it's your first trip to Lisbon, Baixa or Chiado is the most convenient place to stay: all the main sights are a short walk away or a quick tram, lift or metro ride, no need to drag your case up the steep hills of Alfama or Bairro Alto.

Around Baixa & Chiado

The sweeping riverside square with classical arcades and a view over the water, Lisbon's largest square.

Praça do Comércio

Lisbon's grand main square, open to the Tagus, with its triumphal arch and equestrian statue. The royal palace stood here until the 1755 earthquake, hence its old name, Terreiro do Paço.

The illuminated Arco da Rua Augusta on Praça do Comércio at the blue hour

Rua Augusta Arch

The monumental triumphal arch links Praça do Comércio with Rua Augusta. A viewing terrace up top looks over the Baixa and the Tagus; the archway below is free to walk through.

The historic Santa Justa Lift, a cast-iron elevator from 1902 in Lisbon's old town (Baixa Pombalina).

Santa Justa Lift

The neo-Gothic cast-iron lift from 1902 links the Baixa with the higher Largo do Carmo, a landmark with a viewing platform over the old town.

Ruins of the Igreja do Carmo with its characteristic Gothic arches in Chiado, destroyed in the 1755 earthquake.

Carmo Convent

This roofless Gothic ruin above the Baixa recalls the 1755 earthquake, its open arches against the sky are now a memorial and archaeology museum.