Zenit Lisboa Hotel

The Zenit is great value for money - the rooms are spacious, bright and very comfortable, with individual touches. Relaxing in your room after a hard day's sightseeing is a real pleasure, and most, if not all, rooms have balconies and large windows.

Breakfast (costs extra) is good, with a very wide variety of foods.

The only real drawback for tourists is that this the Zenit Lisboa is better situated for the business traveller; getting into the centre requires a two-stage tram ride. Or a long walk. That wouldn't put me off coming here again, however. It also means that the hotel is very close to a number of malls so you can easily nip out for a quick bite if you're in a hurry or want to buy drinks, etc. There are also a number of cafes and restaurants close by.

Overall? Really good hotel for this price range, highly recommended.

Unique Quality: The building that houses the hotel is beautiful inside and out - everything is of a high standard, particularly in this price range. Views are of the street which is pleasant and fairly tranquil - I got to watch a man painstakingly repairing the cobbles outside one morning.

Directions: Business district - close to Praca de Saldanha

The Hotel Zenit is part of a Spanish chain of business class hotels. Located one easy walking block from the Saldanha Metro station (Yellow Line), we stayed here for the last 4 nights of our 9-day trip (Lisbon-Evora-Lisbon.)

Compared to the Tivoli Jardim (where we stayed for the first two nights), we felt the Hotel Zenit was a better bargain. The rooms were smaller than the Jardim, but you're in Lisbon to explore, not to stay in your hotel room! Located a bit off the tourist track, the hotel caters to what looks like local businesspeople and Spanish visitors.

The staff was very friendly and helpful. We paid about $89-99 EUR per night in early October; you can get if for as cheap as $69 EUR for off-peak nights/seasons. I would recommend this hotel for people who want the creature comforts of a business class hotel, but looking for reasonable prices.

Unique Quality: Location was excellent. For some casual dining, explore the business buildings around Praca Saldanha--there are some good food courts and local restaurants there, and the shopping areas are open until very late. The area had a very "local" business air about it, not too touristy like the places on the Avenida Liberdade and Rossio.

It was VERY quiet. Rooms have air-con, and very modern bathrooms and nice toiletries. The bathroom also had a Bose speaker, so you could hear the TV while you take a shower, brush your teeth, etc. There is a desk for working space. I found the beds a bit firm for my liking, but my roommate seemed to favor the firmness of the mattresses. It was a nice hotel. Oh, make sure your safe works. It has an electronic lock, and ours seemed to be fussy, so we ended up not using it.

Two tips: 1) Visit the Casa-Museo Dr. Anastacio Goncalves, which is located diagonally across the street from the hotel. It is FREE on Sundays, from 10am to 2pm and $2 EUR during other hours; 2) Try getting out at the Picoas Metro station instead of Saldanha once in awhile--there are very colorful and interesting murals at the Picoas station, and it's not too far from the hotel/Saldanha stop from Picoas at all.

Also, if you want to go to the Feira de Ladras, instead of taking the Metro and Tram 28, take Bus #12 which departs from nearby Marques de Pombal area--it takes you through some neighborhoods that most tourists will never see.

Also, be aware of taxi drivers taking you back to LIS airport; ours tried to charge us $14EUR, when the meter registered only $7 EUR--my roommate argued with him, and ended up giving him $10 EUR, which was plenty, but not the $14 EUR that he was insisting upon. Make sure you agree on the fare before you leave the hotel.

Other than that, we had a very nice stay at the Zenit, really appreciated the nice and friendly staff, and would stay there again on our next visit!

Directions: Located in the Saldanha neighborhood, a local business district. Very convenient to the Saldanha Metro station, and several bus lines.