Lisbon Serviced Apartments - Mouraria

They cancelled our 5-night Christmas Eve stay at noon on the day we were due to arrive. They said there was an electricity issue and asked us to cancel through Booking.com ourselves so they wouldn’t get in trouble with the platform, even though we’d already paid. We didn’t cancel. Instead, we contacted customer service straight away to find a replacement and get compensation.

The area is near Figueira and Rossio Squares, and about a block from a busy little corner store. There are drug addicts outside, though they weren’t as aggressive as the ones at home. Ignore them and they leave you alone. For the apartment itself, I’d give it 4/5. The right window wouldn’t open, but the left one did, and you could see a little of Lisbon from there. The kitchen was compact but fully functional, as was the washer, though there’s no drier. The bathroom was nice, with strong, hot water. My wife bruised herself on one of the bed’s support beams, and the bed was a bit firm. Housekeeping was very tidy and came each day we asked. The air freshener was really strong, and we found two roaches. Property management was prompt in addressing our concerns.

What they leave out is a major access problem: cars can’t enter the street, so you have to get out or park in a lane above, walk down two lanes and two steep flights of stairs, then continue along a long, winding lane while hauling your suitcases. That’s important information to conceal. The area is run-down, with questionable characters hanging around. They describe the location as wonderful, but it doesn’t feel that way. At best, I’d give the property one or two stars. It definitely doesn’t qualify as the four stars it claims. This place is a sham and an absolute no-go.

The room was spacious and okay, though it felt pretty sterile. The location was quite central, but the drug addicts around the apartments made the area feel unsafe.