São Vicente de Fora: the monastery above Alfama where the Braganzas rest among the azulejos

On the hill overlooking Alfama, tram 28E slows in front of a white, two-towered façade and carries on. This is the Mosteiro de São Vicente de Fora, and almost everyone looks at it from the window without getting off. The name "de Fora" (meaning "outside") dates back to the 12th century: the first building stood beyond the city walls, on the spot where Afonso Henriques had the soldiers who fell during the 1147 siege of Lisbon buried. The monastery you see today, however, is later, inaugurated in 1629 and severely damaged by the 1755 earthquake, when the dome and roof collapsed.

The church, at the entrance, is free and can be visited in a few minutes. For the rest of the complex there's a modest ticket (around 5-8 euros depending on the season and the rates in force), and this is where the part most tourists never see begins. The vestibule already sets the tone: azulejo panels recount the founding of the monastery and the reconquest of the Iberian peninsula, deliberately skipping the sixty years of Spanish rule under the Philips.

The cloisters

The heart of the visit is the two cloisters clad in baroque blue-and-white tiles. One of them is decorated with scenes drawn from the fables of Jean de La Fontaine: an unusual detail for a religious building and one of the most curious things to seek out at leisure, panel after panel. Not to be missed either is the sacristy, considered the finest room in the entire monastery for its 18th-century inlaid-marble decoration, and the cistern, whose oldest parts date back to the 12th century.

The Braganza pantheon

When the religious orders were suppressed in Portugal in 1834, the monastery passed to the Archbishop of Lisbon; a few decades later, at the wish of King Ferdinando II, the monks' old refectory was turned into the pantheon of the House of Braganza, the last reigning dynasty. Along the marble halls line the tombs of the sovereigns, from João IV — who claimed the building right after the restoration of independence in 1640 — to Manuel II, the last king. Among the burials is that of Catherine of Braganza, the Portuguese princess who, by marrying Charles II, became Queen of England. You walk practically alone among these tombs, a feeling very different from the queues at the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos in Belém.

The terrace

The final reward is the terrace. A staircase leads up to the roof, from which a 360-degree view opens over Alfama, the rooftops of Lisbon and the Tagus flowing broad below. It's one of the highest and least crowded viewpoints in the city, and here you understand why it was worth getting off the tram.

Getting there

Getting there: the easiest way is tram 28E itself, which stops at São Vicente; alternatively, bus 734. The address is Largo de São Vicente, in the Alfama neighbourhood, a few steps from the Feira da Ladra, the flea market held in Campo de Santa Clara on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and from the Panteão Nacional (Igreja de Santa Engrácia). Approximate hours are from 10am, closing around 6pm (later in the summer months); it's worth checking closing days and prices on the official website before going. To visit it properly, cloisters and terrace included, allow an hour and a half to two hours.

Related guides: Portugal: little-known destinations beyond Lisbon and Porto · Lisbon too crowded? Authentic Portuguese destinations beyond the capital.

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