Page 1. Wayfare ISSUE31 · AUTUMN2026 · SLOWTRAVELFORCURIOUSPEOPLETHECITYISSUE Lisbon, uphill all the way The best custard tart in town, ranked A day trip to Sintra's painted palaces Where the locals watch the sunset
Page 2. INSIDE This issue 4 Uphill all the way Seven hills, one tram and a lot of stairs. 6 The tart test We ate 38 pastéis de nata so you don't have to. 8 Blue and white How tiles became the city's skin. 9 Palaces in the fog Sintra in a day, by train. 10 To the edge The coast road west of the city. 11 Golden hour Five lookouts, ranked by crowd. EDITOR ' SLETTER We went to Lisbon for a week and stayed for three. Every street ends in a view, and every view has a café. This issue is our excuse to go back. Nina Arroyo, editor 2
Page 3. FEATURE · LISBON Uphill all the way Lisbon is built on seven hills and doesn't apologize for any of them. The trick is to stop fighting the climb and let the city decide where you go next. WORDSBYTOM Á SREYES
Page 4. T he 28 tram has been climbing the same streets since 1914, and it still takes the corners like it's late. Ride it once, end to end, to learn the shape of the city. Then get off and walk it backwards. "Every street ends in a view, and every view has a café." In Alfama the streets are older than the map. Doors open straight onto stairs, laundry hangs over your head and somebody is always grilling sardines. Get lost on purpose: the river is always downhill. Across the valley, Bairro Alto sleeps until noon and wakes up loud. By ten at night the lanes are full of people standing outside tiny bars with plastic cups, which is the whole point. Down by the river, the old warehouses of Cais do Sodré are now food halls and record shops. Grab a bifana, sit on the steps and watch the ferries cross to the other side. 4
Page 5. Left: festival flags in Alfama in June. Right: the view from Graça, and a painted lane in Bairro Alto. Take the elevador if you must, but the stairs are where the city happens: a man selling cherries from a bucket, a cat asleep on a tiled step, a grandmother leaning out to tell you you're going the wrong way. You aren't. There is no wrong way. 5
Page 6. FOOD The tart test We ate 38 pastéis de nata across the city in five days. Here's how the top three stacked up. 1 The old bakery by the monastery Crisp, blistered, still warm. Worth the line, which moves fast. 2 The counter on Rua do Loreto Darker top, flakier shell. Eat it standing up with a bica. 3 The corner café in Graça No sign, no menu, just tarts and a view of the castle. 6
Page 7. FOOD Grilled sardines, the June way On bread, with your hands, outside. During the city's festival month, every corner turns into a grill and the whole of Alfama smells like the sea. 7
Page 8. DESIGN Blue and white Azulejos started as a way to keep houses cool and ended up covering half the city. Look down, too: the sidewalks are hand-laid stone, black and white, in waves. The National Tile Museum, in an old convent, has a 23-meter panel of the city before the 1755 earthquake. Go early and have it to yourself. 8
Page 9. DAYTRIP Palaces in the fog Forty minutes by train from Rossio, Sintra is where Portugal's kings went to dream in color. Pena Palace is red and yellow and slightly ridiculous, which is why you'll love it. Take the first train out, walk up through the forest, and save the town's travesseiros pastry for the ride home. 9
Page 10. ROADTRIP To the edge West of the city the land just stops. The coast road runs past surf beaches and cliffs to the westernmost point of mainland Europe. Bring a jacket, even in August. 1 0
Page 11. GUIDE Golden hour 1 Senhora do Monte The highest lookout. Locals bring wine and a speaker. 2 Graça Pine trees, a kiosk and the castle across the valley. 3 Santa Luzia Tiles, bougainvillea and the river. Busy, but worth it. 4 The Belém riverfront Flat, quiet and the sun drops right into the water. 1 1
Page 12. NEXTISSUE Kyoto in the snow Temples without crowds, the best ramen counter in the city and a night in a 300- year-old inn. On newsstands in January. SUBSCRIBEGETTHENEWSLETTER