The New Kid on the Block: Tarabel Lisbon
Lisbon is a city made for walking and is known as Europe’s prettiest port. It rises and falls over seven hills, so you’ll climb cobbled lanes, pause at miradouros for those wide river views, then drop down again towards the waterfront for a wander around Time Out Market. Trams rattle by, tiled façades catch the light, and there’s always a café and pastéis de nata within reach. Sundays belong to breakfast and long brunches. Families and friends meet late, push tables together, trade stories over strong coffee, warm bread, eggs and pastéis, and stay long after the plates are cleared. It’s relaxed, sociable and exactly how this city likes to spend Sundays. Lisbon quietly works its charm, and the residential, diplomatic neighbourhood of Lapa is one of the best areas to stay; think grand façades, diplomatic mansions, jacaranda in bloom, the river catching the light between garden walls. Over the past decade, in Lisbon, neighbourhoods have been restored, the riverside has new life, and the city is now home to independent galleries, serious restaurants and small, thoughtful hotels that understand how people and guests are after experiences not just a stay. Tarabel Lisbon is one of them.
Step into Tarabel and the noise of the city fades away. This is a feminine, romantic house, created with an owner’s eye: all white, lifted with botanical patterns, soft greens underfoot, delicate florals, and 18th-century prints. There’s a lift for easy arrivals, fresh flowers wherever you look, and a salon that feels like someone’s drawing room rather than a hotel.
French interior designer and owner Rose Fournier is the creator behind the look; she has transformed this once rather drab building into Tarabel, a charming, feminine, and utterly romantic boutique hotel-perfect for a honeymoon or a marriage proposal. Her attention to detail is evident throughout the hotel, with tassels covering the locks on all of the doors, pretty wicker lampshades made in Marrakech, and glassless pictures to soften their appearance. Marrakech heritage feels more like a memory than a theme; orange flower diffusers carry the same gentle fragrance you might recall from a stay at sister hotel in Marrakech Riad de Tarabel.
Suites are the highlight at Tarabel and there are just nine of them. White walls, pale linens, and antiques chosen by Rose set the tone; practical touches keep life simple - blackout blinds that fully block out the morning light, one-touch dimming for a softer evening, quiet colonial fans, and ample cupboard space lined with leather shelves. Large beds with luxurious toppers and crisp white bedlinen are complemented by bathrooms featuring the brand’s signature style: roll-top baths, glycerine soaps, large double basins, and Molton Brown Orange & Bergamot for a bright start or a calming end to the day.
I stayed in Rose’s and Laurent’s (the GM at Riad de Tarabel ) favourite suite - and I see why they love it. A vast bathroom you can actually live in and a private terrace looking across the gardens and pool to the River Tagus. Walls are decorated with 18th-century prints, and thick, large monogrammed towels are exactly where you want them after a long soak or hot shower. Tarabel is the sort of place where you plan an afternoon out walking in Lisbon and then decide the terrace and just being in the present moment is more persuasive, at least for a day to catch up with yourself.
In the morning, time seems to slow as you sit on the veranda, soaking up the view. Breakfast begins at eight and continues until you’re finished... a luxury often reserved for larger hotels. Soft white table linens, French gold-gilded vintage plates, birdsong, and boats moving in and out of one of Europe’s prettiest ports set the pace for the day. Scrambled eggs arrive exactly as they should - just eggs and butter. Homemade jams - kiwi, mango, orange - appear in vintage teacups. Staff wear dark jeans and crisp white shirts: elegant without trying. Take lunch by the pool (heated through the winter months); dinner takes place on the veranda. Chef Afonso Blazquez Raposo keeps flavours clear and seasonal with a nod to traditional Portuguese dishes and has help from Marta, the charming sous-chef.
Arnaud, the Swiss manager, has been involved in the transformation here, arriving three years ago under Laurent’s watchful eye. Together, they have built a young team that appears at the right moment and steps back when privacy is needed. There’s even a small shop with candles, diffusers, and hand-picked vintage French china so you can take a piece of the house home.
Tarabel’s charm lies in the way it sits quietly in the city rather than competing with it. You’re minutes from the Museum of Ancient Art, close to the riverside and a short ride from Bairro Alto and Chiado (Uber’s are cheap and the quickest way to get around the city), yet Lapa keeps everything measured and after a day downtown, returning to Tarabel has never felt more welcome. Step out for a restaurant booking, a gallery opening or a stroll along the water, then come back to a house where you feel at home.
Small, owner-led boutique hotels are hard to beat. The attention to detail, the pride, the passion, and the way everything simply operates on a personal level. Everyone who knows me understands that my passion is for hotels with fewer than 30 rooms, a nod to my previous company’s focus.
Tarabel is romance in real time, sex in the city: a place for adults who love design, good food and slow mornings. Sit on the veranda, listen to the birds, watch the boats glide past on the river. Lisbon can wait. Here, at Tarabel, you have everything you came for.
Why go? Romantic, stylish and chic with lovely service
Who for? Ideal for couples