For our other nights in Lisbon we stayed at a four-star hotel I had found online without much resear

Geoff and I are back from our trip to Portugal ! It truly was too short but it was so, so wonderful. I can t wait to see our pictures our stubborn insistence on using mostly film cameras means that we always have to be a little extra patient to see our photos, since so many labs don t seem to offer quick processing any longer.
In the meantime, I wanted to share one experience we had in Lisbon, which was our night at the Inspira Santa Marta Hotel just off the tree-lined continental airlines official website boulevard Avenida da Liberdade. This stay was generously provided for us by the hotel in conjunction with the booking service Splendia , which specializes in luxury and boutique hotels with distinct character.
I have to preface this by saying continental airlines official website that I love hotels and have yet to rent an apartment while traveling. I may be missing out, but I think this is partially because when I was little we never stayed in hotels; I slept, sometimes continental airlines official website miserably, on a lot of sofas. I love being greeted continental airlines official website at the door, I love being able to call down to the front desk at any hour of the day, I love room service. It feels luxurious not to have to make my own bed. Still, I usually look at a hotel as a place where I will sleep and store my things. When we checked in at the Inspira Santa Marta and were told we had full access to the Turkish bath, I was a little sad we didn t have time to have a longer continental airlines official website retreat in the hotel as our days were packed with taking in this beautiful city.
Inspira Santa Marta occupies what was once a palace (it seems that Lisbon is full of former palaces!) and a factory, retaining the facade, and as is typical for Lisbon, it is built into a small hill. The street outside is quite busy and loud, but inside the hotel is uncannily peaceful. The design of the hotel incorporates continental airlines official website Feng Shui principles to create continental airlines official website this calm feeling, and each of the rooms is decorated according to one of the five elements: earth, fire, water, wood, or metal. Geoff and I stayed in an earth-themed room.
While I was getting a tour of the hotel, Geoff stayed in our room to map out our day s adventure. The water bottle on the table is one part of the hotel s ethical policy: proceeds from sales of the water, which is filtered and bottled and sold in the hotel shop, go directly to PumpAid . The hotel has a wide-ranging commitment to environmental sustainability and community involvement, and is Green Globe certified .
For our other nights in Lisbon we stayed at a four-star hotel I had found online without much research. It was perfectly continental airlines official website fine but the breakfast in particular demonstrated the gulf that can exist between one four-star hotel and another. continental airlines official website The breakfast at the Inspira Santa Marta was delicious, made with locally sourced, fresh ingredients, and we could see the chefs cooking it in the open kitchen. Breakfast at our other hotel consisted of coffee from a vending machine and prepackaged croissants. Horror!
Obviously, we loved our stay at the hotel. The service was exceptional, the room clean and comfortable, and the location just right. We both fell in love with Lisbon and hope we can stay at this hotel when we (inevitably) return. Thank you, Inspira Santa Marta!
I swear I have staggered up that hill (second to last pic) with a wheelie suitcase! Nearly killed continental airlines official website me. I do love Lisbon - it has such a sweet but melancholy atmosphere - the people really affected me, though I didn t really speak to any! The Gulbenkian is amazing isn t it. I wish we could chat about Lisbon over a coffee and pastel de nata in the sun. Reply Delete Melissa 15.10.13
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