admin

Lisbon is the capital of Portugal and has diverse attractions and vibrant culture. There are several events people can attend in this city, ranging from sports to cultural and music festivals. While attending the events, you can also visit museums and beaches where you can relax when the adventures are over. The activities include the following.

Live Fado and Alfama Tour with Traditional Dinner

This event takes place in the Alfama district in Lisbon. People come here to listen to traditional Fado music. The event lasts for about four hours. When you attend, you also get to enjoy a typical Portuguese dinner, food tasting and even a walking tour. The event is not suitable for persons with mobility impairments due to the walk.

Seven Hills Tram Tour and Live Fado Show

This Lisbon event involves travelling through the city by tram and also seeing several excellent attractions such as museums and national monuments. People move up and down the Seven Hills in the Portuguese city, and then you later get to enjoy a live Fado folk show in a theatre. The duration of the event is 80 minutes.

Web Summit Lisboa

In Lisbon, there is an annual technology and innovation forum. It is usually in November, and it is one of the biggest technological events, and it is organised by Web Summit. At this event, sports stars, brands and the world’s biggest team owners meet. It takes about four days, and the venue is at the Altice Arena. The 2019 edition will start on 4th November and conclude on the 7th, the same month.

Lisbon and Estoril Film Festival

This is a film event which all movie enthusiasts can attend. Here, you can meet some famous Hollywood actors and film directors. This year’s event will be at Centro Cultural Olga Caldaval, and it will begin on 15th November.

Fado is a Portuguese genre of music which oozes melancholy, feelings, and sadness. It dates back to Lisbon of the 1820s at least, but its origins lie much further back in history. The word ‘fado’ means fate or destiny, and the songs in fado are often stories of poverty, of the life in the sea, and of ‘saudade’, the Portuguese word for longing and a nostalgic feeling. Fado is still very popular in Portugal, and its importance and originality was recognised by UNESCO, who added it to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2011.

For music lovers, a trip to Lisbon should absolutely include visits to some of the numerous bars and venues where one can hear fado. Many small bars have amateur singers, but it is also worth checking out if some big names happen to have shows in Lisbon at the time of one’s visit. Some of the most famous fado singers are Amália Rodrigues, Dulce Pontes, Mafalda Arnauth, António Zambujo, Ana Moura, Helder Moutinho, Carminho, Mísia, Cristina Branco, Gisela João and Katia Guerreiro.

Where to listen to Fado in Lisbon

Restaurant Clube de Fado in Santa Maria Maior is a historical fado venue that features some big names of fado while serving traditional Portuguese dishes. It is worth a visit for those seeking an authentic historical feel and high quality fado. A Baiuca in Alfama in contrast is a place for the locals. It is affordable, not so touristy, and its fado singers are amateurs. To get a glimpse of Lisbon’s current fado scene, it is a truly authentic place. Tasca do Chico in Bairro Alto is a very popular place which has both amateurs and established singers performing. It serves plates of cheese and meats which make a great appetiser with local wine before dinner.