However, given that I want to be well informed about all available options in Portugal, I decided that for my latest visit to Lisbon I would experience the much-touted Aero Bus.  After all, this experience would help me to better understand if and when to suggest this option to my clients.  What I learned was that you should know your airport transfer options in Lisbon relative to your hotel of choice – and I’m not just talking class of hotel, but more about its situation.

The service, accessible immediately upon exiting the arrivals building, offers three routes; one that transfers travellers to the Orient Train Station, one that  goes to the Financial District and the one I would take with a route that passed “close” to the many hotels of the city.  I waited about ten minutes for Route 1, City, paid my 3.5 Euros and took a seat in the comfortable, air-conditioned Mercedes bus.

A brochure clearly outlined which stop would be close to my hotel and the friendly yet professional driver announced each stop well in advance so I had plenty of time to gather my belongings before the bus stopped.  Alighting at Marques de Pombal Park, and feeling like Calamity Jane as I struggled down the steps with my two wheeled suitcases and shoulder tote, I looked up at the familiar large building overlooking the park – Lisbon’s Four Seasons Ritz - and felt relieved to be so close.  However, such feelings soon gave way to realization that before I could experience any comfort whatsoever I would have to walk up some steep hills trailing my wheeled luggage across those beautiful, but uneven  hand-laid white marble mosaic surfaces. And – to add a greater sense of drama – I was wearing business-style clothes and the temperature was 24 degrees! I huffed and puffed up the steep hill, stopping for a rest now and then while telling myself this was “good for me.”   Lululemon’s famous list of lifestyle musings came to mind, especially “sweat every day.”  Also, I felt good that I had obviously burned off those calories from my daily consumption of pastel de nata (custard tarts!) Self-talk (or is it CBT) can work wonders in situations such as these.

As I arrived outside the main entrance of my hotel, tired, hot and thirsty, the doorman – a kind man with a familiar face – immediately came to relieve me of my baggage, at the same time greeting and offering refreshment; a bottle of cooled water.  I had arrived “home.”

Yes, the AeroBus definitely provides an efficient service for the budget-conscious traveller to Lisbon, but in the future, this traveller will stick with the comfort of being driven door-to-door.  If you want to take the Aerobus – and it is definitely a choice that talks to conservation of both energy resources and money – then it would probably be wise to know the exact location of your hotel relative to the closest stop!  And, if you want the white glove treatment upon arrival, you can’t do better than Four Seasons!

Happy travels!

Washing day in Lisbon

Having spent a couple of weeks driving and exploring many different areas of Portugal in Fall 2009, I was transported back to Lisbon when I read this article about the city’s Principe Real district, complete with museums, bars, restaurants, shopping – and best of all – away from the tourism bustle.  To learn more about this trendy area of Portugal’s capital city, where you will see more locals than tourists, see this recent article in The Globe and Mail.