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The Light of Lisbon

One thing visitors notice immediately when they visit Lisbon is its light. Dozens of artists wrote and sang about it, photographers find in Lisbon the perfect scenario for their creations… but what makes this city’s light so special?

More than 3.000 hours of sunshine

First of all, Lisbon is south oriented and it is located between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, which makes this city more luminous. Lisbon has around 3.300 hours of sunshine. Its tempered weather, with mild winters and hot summers allows this city to have sunny days even in the coldest season.

Built over seven hills

Besides geographic and climatic aspects, Lisbon is also a privileged spot due to its seven hills (São Jorge, São Vicente, Sant’Ana, Santo André, Chagas, Santa Catarina & São Roque) and valleys overlooking the Tagus river that offer great landscapes and numerous light and shadow plans.

Lisbon is also known as the "City of Seven Hills”. The name comes from a Greek legend that says that when Ulysses visited Portugal during his travels, he founded Lisbon and called it Olissipo. Until then, its name was Orphiussa, which was also the name of the Serpent-Goddess. When Ulysses left Portugal to return to Troy, the Serpent-Goddess became really mad and she shook the earth with such an anger that the land around the Tagus estuary trembled and the seven hills were formed.

Limestone buildings and the “Calçada Portuguesa”

But more important than all that has been said, Lisbon is an enlightened city because of the street pavement, known as "calçada portuguesa”. It is the light that comes from the ground that distinguishes the clarity of Lisbon, but also its buildings, often made of limestone, which has a bright color and a good ability to reflect light.

You can see this light anywhere in the city, it is there in every corner, from early morning till the evening. Take a walk, climb to the viewpoints and enjoy the light. Lisbon welcomes you!

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Live the best summer festivals in Lisbon

This is the year when summer festivals and events return to Lisbon. We missed them a lot and now more than ever it's time to sing, dance, vibrate and fall in love with the show. From music, cinema, art and opera, Lisbon has many options of events that will fill your summer with good memories and that are the perfect reason to enjoy and discover the city.

Learn more