Santa Justa Lift (Elevator) and Lisbon Panoramic Views
A must see or experience in Lisbon is the ‘Santa Justa Lift’ (Elevador Santa Justa), and for the non-European readers, the word lift is the UK English term for elevator. Interestingly, lift in Dutch is tadaah, also lift!
For my quick Lisbon call late last year, there were TWO ‘To Do’ things marked on my agenda:
(1) Eat grilled sardines at the same restaurant 5 years ago for lunch which turned out to be a disenchantment experience.
(2) Ride the neo gothic Santa Justa lift and enjoy Lisbon’s views from up there.
The lift is quite easy to find as it is located in the center on Rua Santa Justa and one can in fact see the iron structure, with flags flying on top, from the main shopping alleys. I went there dragging my little suitcase with me which was a bit of an annoyance. Earlier that day, I was in Lisbon’s Rossio train station searching for a locker, but unfortunately with the station being renovated and parts of the building closed (this was in October-November 2009), I was turned away by personnel saying that they do not have lockers. I hope this was only a temporary incident because I cannot imagine train stations without lockers.
Nevertheless, my suitcase is small so quite sufferable haha, and when I rode the Santa Justa Lift up to the viewing platform, my worries of lugging the thing disappeared. This lift may be a brilliant work of art and engineering but the views from up there was simply marvelous.
The 45 meters long Sant Justa Lift was built by Raul Mensier de Ponsard in 1900 originally to transport and connect locals to the hilly part of Lisbon, the Chiado neighbourhood where the Carmo church, convent and archaeological museum are located and Barrio Alto. The lift was powered by steam but later in 1907 it was converted to electricity. Nowadays, the lift is a major tourist attraction in the city.
When traveling, I am always in the look out for the city’s bird’s eye view that I am visiting, and aside from Lisbon Castle sitting on a mammoth rock overlooking the city, the Santa Justa Lift provides a taste of Lisbon up there in the skies without going further away from the core center.
The panoramic views from the top:
Here is the view to the Rossio Square:
And the Lisbon street scenes below:
Of course, the views to the coast:
Travel Period: October-November 2009
Destination: Lisbon, Portugal
Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels
Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)
For my quick Lisbon call late last year, there were TWO ‘To Do’ things marked on my agenda:
(1) Eat grilled sardines at the same restaurant 5 years ago for lunch which turned out to be a disenchantment experience.
(2) Ride the neo gothic Santa Justa lift and enjoy Lisbon’s views from up there.
The lift on Rua Augusta: there is always a long queue here and inside the lift, fits 20 people. The lift is 45 meters high and is made of iron steel.
The lift is quite easy to find as it is located in the center on Rua Santa Justa and one can in fact see the iron structure, with flags flying on top, from the main shopping alleys. I went there dragging my little suitcase with me which was a bit of an annoyance. Earlier that day, I was in Lisbon’s Rossio train station searching for a locker, but unfortunately with the station being renovated and parts of the building closed (this was in October-November 2009), I was turned away by personnel saying that they do not have lockers. I hope this was only a temporary incident because I cannot imagine train stations without lockers.
Nevertheless, my suitcase is small so quite sufferable haha, and when I rode the Santa Justa Lift up to the viewing platform, my worries of lugging the thing disappeared. This lift may be a brilliant work of art and engineering but the views from up there was simply marvelous.
The 45 meters long Sant Justa Lift was built by Raul Mensier de Ponsard in 1900 originally to transport and connect locals to the hilly part of Lisbon, the Chiado neighbourhood where the Carmo church, convent and archaeological museum are located and Barrio Alto. The lift was powered by steam but later in 1907 it was converted to electricity. Nowadays, the lift is a major tourist attraction in the city.
When traveling, I am always in the look out for the city’s bird’s eye view that I am visiting, and aside from Lisbon Castle sitting on a mammoth rock overlooking the city, the Santa Justa Lift provides a taste of Lisbon up there in the skies without going further away from the core center.
Inside the lift. It if operated by an official lift operator and only 20 people can board the lift at a given time.
The panoramic views from the top:
Here is the view to the Rossio Square:
And the Lisbon street scenes below:
Of course, the views to the coast:
Travel Period: October-November 2009
Destination: Lisbon, Portugal
Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels
Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)
