If you’ve ever moved somewhere new, you’ve probably come across more than a few articles with catchy titles like “10 Trendiest Neighbourhoods in [name of a random city]”.
Perhaps you’ve started reading them only to realize there’s just a fancy picture, 2-3 sentences on each neighbourhood and nothing deeper.
By running the
Lisbon Digital Nomads community I've seen many people ask about the best places to live in Lisbon over the years.
But what exactly defines a neighbourhood as being the best? Isn’t this subjective to the need’s of each individual?
The idea for this site came to me in April 2020 when I made a survey, asking nomads and expats in Lisbon to
rate popular neighbourhoods. It created a lot of discussion.
Each person had different preferences
about the
best area to live based on their own lifestyle and budget.
For example, dog owners didn’t want to live in the
city centre where they wouldn’t have access to any parks.
Surfers without cars were looking for neighbourhoods that had good connections to public transportation so they could reach the surf spots around Lisbon.
And other people were seeking calmer areas that allowed them to avoid
tourist crowds.
So what if you’re a surfer with a dog who hates touristy areas? Well, finding the right neighbourhood in Lisbon gets all the more complicated 🙂
You also have to consider that there’s some sense of patriotism to the neighbourhoods people live in - people who live in objectively less appealing neighbourhoods often times are very vocal about their positive qualities, smashing anyone who has a different opinion.
I became quite passionate about this topic and started to gather more data, combining my findings in a spreadsheet. At some point, I realized that I might have enough insights to start visualizing them.
Enjoy!
Peter
