Bairro Alto Hotel

Its address in the middle of downtown Lisbon, where Chiado’s top restaurants and Cais do Sodre’s best bars are minutes away, makes this a perfect pick for first-time visitors who prioritize location. The interior’s eclectic design ethos—geometric-print wallpaper, luscious leather furniture, oversized pendant lighting—stylishly toes the line between traditional and modern. The rooms, however, deliver a soft country-chic coziness via pale blue walls, pretty illustrations, and clawfoot tubs. Its restaurant, Flores do Bairro, has been the playground of some of Portugal’s most promising young toques and the cozy rooftop terrace is a hit among locals. (Rooms, from $322)