Tag Archives: Boston Guy

PORTO: Sergio and I were lucky to meet a native in Porto who showed us around his hometown and pointed us to two gay bars which we enjoyed getting visiting. The first gay bar, Conceição, is located not far from where we had dinner at Flow on Rua da Conceição. I would describe the place as a dive bar but it has a friendly crowd, the bartenders pour great drinks and it gets busy a bit earlier than the larger gay club, Lusitano (shown above), that was mostly empty when we arrived at 11:30PM, but started to fill up after Midnight.

LISBON: Lisbon is a much larger city than Porto and has many more options with most located in Bairro Alto and neighboring Principe Real. A pamphlet called “Lisbon Gay Circuit” is available at many clubs and show fifty different destinations that include clubs, saunas, food, services and accommodations.

Lisbon also has a wonderful all male guest house called The Late Birds that we stayed at and which I would encourage gay travelers to consider.

Upon arriving, the staff encourage you to download their own app called “The Late Birds Lisbon” (shown above), which makes getting around the city very easy. I’m amazed that larger hotel chains have not done this already, but that forward thinking, concierge-like service really defined the experience we enjoyed while staying there. Below are a few photos of our room and the property.If you have any questions about gay life in Portugal or would like to know more about The Late Birds, feel free to reach out to me. I’m happy to provide more details about places to check out when you visit.

Lisbon is smaller than Boston in population (550, 000 in the city limits and nearly 3 million in the region), but it feels much larger and certainly more worldly. Just like Rome, Lisbon was built on seven hills – some of which are so high and steep you wouldn’t believe it; walking the city will give you a leg workout so don’t feel guilty about eating all the pastel de nata that you like.

We stayed in Bairro Alto which in addition to being popular with tourists also is home to most of the gay bars, nightlife and the gay owned and operated, The Late Birds, where we ended up staying. Below is a picture from our room overlooking their private back patio, garden and pool; a perfect place to relax.

Just down the street from The Late Birds was a funky outdoor bar that was located at the top of a parking garage called Park Rooftop Bar.  The place has no signage and on our first visit we initially wondered if we were in the right place. Sergio and I enjoyed this place so much we went here for an evening cocktail and to watch the sun set over Lisbon (shown below) several times. 

If you have the opportunity to visit Libson, it makes sense to take a few day trips if time permits and after a lot of discussion Sergio and I spent time visiting Cascais and Sintra. The two locations could not be more different but both were easily accessible by the Lisbon metro (30-40 minute rides) that cost about 5 €.

Praia da Rainha – Cascais, Portugal

Cascais is a coastal town about 20 miles west of Lisbon that became a favorite destination of Portugal’s royal family in the late 1800s but is now an affluent suburb of Lisbon that is a popular vacation spot for both Portuguese and tourists. We spent our time walking through the small town and along the running / bike paths that hug the coastline and extend out from the town.

Sintra is another beautiful day trip from Lisbon probably best known for its many 19th-century romantic architectural monuments. We spent a day here when the temperature in Lisbon was close to 100°. Fortunately Sintra’s microclimate meant that we enjoyed a breeze and temperatures in the low to mid 80s, which was important because visiting Sintra = a leg workout.