Hotel Britânia

Opened under the name Hotel do Império, this Art Deco hotel building is the only one from the period to have remained fully intact; its uniqueness has led to its classification as a historic building. The accommodation system offered small apartments with a hallway, living space, bedroom and private bathroom, a structure then new to Portugal. From the 1940s onwards, it was frequented by the high society and intellectuals, such as David Mourão-Ferreira, Almada Negreiros, Mário Cesariny, Marguerite Yourcenar, Henry Miller and Graham Greene, and the literary evenings of the writer Natália Correia, the wife of the manager and owner Alfredo Machado, who lived in the same street at number 52, took place from 1950 onwards. It has now been fully renovated, with recovery of the flooring, stucco work, furniture and reception and bar-space frescos alluding to the Portuguese Empire and the Exhibition of the Portuguese World.