Private Jewish Heritage Tour of Lisbon

Tour highlights

Alfama district

The neighborhood of Alfama is a labyrinth of narrow streets and winding alleys. It is the oldest quarter of the city and the place where a small Jewish quarter was located in the 14th century. It is also the birthplace of Fado, the typical song of Lisbon, classified as Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Saint Dominic’s church

The 13th century São Domingos church was the first Dominican church in Lisbon. For centuries it was considered the most important church in Lisbon, where beautiful royal weddings and baptisms took place. Today there is a monument and a mural in the square outside the church, inaugurated in 2008, that says “Lisbon, the City of Tolerance” in 34 languages remembering the terrible episode of 1506 and paying tribute to the Jewish victims.

Shaaré Tikva Synagogue

Judaism in Portugal changed at the beginning of the 19th century, when the Sephardi Jews from Morocco and Gibraltar, mostly merchants, started to migrate to Lisbon. During the 19th century, the Jewish community of Lisbon had no formal synagogue and had to celebrate their religious rites in private houses. When the construction of the Lisbon’s Synagogue began its main facade had to face an inner courtyard because the Portuguese law at the time forbade non-Catholic temples from facing the street. Shaaré Tikvah Synagogue (Gates of Hope) was finally opened in 1904 and is still used today.