Lisboa Pessoa Hotel
Of Portugal’s three most revered writers, Luis de Camoes and Jose Saramago are perhaps the best known outside of the country. However, the literary figure held in the highest esteem by the Portuguese themselves is writer and poet Fernando Pessoa: his career was short, (Pessoa died in 1935 at the age of forty-seven), but his prolific writings have sparked the imaginations of generations of Portuguese book lovers for over a hundred years.
Pessoa famously penned his works under a long list of pseudonyms – seventy-five in total. The four-star Lisboa Pessoa Hotel is not only titled in his honour: it has seventy-five guest rooms, each named after one of his alter egos, (or as he referred to them: his heteronyms). The décor and design is very much in keeping with the hotel’s location: the city’s Bairro Alto district famously mixes the grandeur of 18th century architecture with the uptown pace of 21st century Lisbon life. Outside, its distinctively-plain grey/blue azulejos tiles are agreeably minimal, accented by clean sandstone window jambs and wrought iron Juliet balustrades. The uncluttered feel continues through to the guest rooms which have an equally uncluttered feel – Lisbon view rooms have balconies looking out across the rooftops of the Bairro Alto and Chiado, whilst the 1st floor superior rooms have the Juliet balconies overlooking the busy streets of Rua da Oliveira au Carmo and Rua da Condessa. Regular double rooms are on upper floors and as a consequence they’re little more peaceful – they don’t come with balconies, but they’re still cosy and comfortable, with plenty of natural light.
If you’re unfamiliar with Fernando Pessoa’s work, there’s small library with a full range of his books, including his most famous, posthumously published Livro do Desassossego: the Book of Disquiet. The hotel’s Azure Wellness and Spa has a pool, sauna and steam room, and the in-house rooftop restaurant has a wonderful Portuguese menu with an equally-wonderful view across the Lisbo skyline.
The hotel is located at the summit of the Calcada do Duque – the famously steep staircase which runs from Bairro Alto down to Rossio train station and the downtown Baixa district – and it’s a short walk to many of the Bairro Alto’s landmarks: the Convento do Carmo, the Igreja de Sao Roque and the Elevador de Santa Justa are all close by. It’s also possile to meet Fernando Pessoa in person: his likeness is immortalised in a statue at the Cafe a Brasileira, just a couple of streets away.
