Memmo Príncipe Real Hotel Lisboa

If you’re choosing Lisbon, you’re already ahead of the curve: The Portuguese capital is slightly gritty, utterly charming, and often overlooked among travelers to the Iberian Peninsula. (Overlooked, needless to say, is quite often a good thing.) So it follows that you’ll want to choose a hotel in a neighborhood that’s off the beaten tourist path too, and we’ll let you in on one of the locals’ secrets: The neighborhood known as Príncipe Real is a corner of the city that’s beloved by locals in the know, and — we’re calling it now — the next big thing.

You’ll find an interesting blend of the Lisbon’s past and present here, and the hotel itself exists firmly in the now. Memmo Príncipe Real Hotel Lisboa is a contemporary design hotel atop a hill, tucked away at the end of a narrow street and a tunnel. It’s a four-story, rectangular ode to modern design nestled among 19th-century royal palaces and aristocratic mansions, which are being repurposed by the city’s youngest, hippest entrepreneurs and artisans. (Think Brooklyn or Detroit with older and more historic architectural bones to work with.) The hotel’s 41 guest rooms are designed to ensure you live nearly as well as the royal prince it’s named after (that’s the future Pedro V, if you’re wondering — you’ll see his portrait when you check in). Each room is awash in relaxing earth tones and natural woodwork, and you’ll even find some of the famed blue-and-white Portuguese tiles inside these walls. Guestrooms have, at a minimum, a balcony and an outdoor fireplace, but consider upgrading to a city view room: Remember, this hotel is on a hilltop, so these are some of the best views of Lisbon you’ll find anywhere.

The neighborhood is still largely residential, but it’s increasingly home to some of the trendiest shopping, dining, and drinking in the city. But you’d do just as well to dine in on the terrace overlooking the pool and the city, where Lusophony, the Portuguese-speaking communities around the world, from Rio de Janeiro to Macau, is the name of the game for both the hotel’s restaurant and cocktail bar. Saúde.