Cacilhas is the waterfront quarter of Almada, the first thing most visitors see when they arrive by ferry from Lisbon. It has the character of a working river town that has been discovering tourism gradually and on its own terms: the restaurants are straightforwardly good, the landmarks (the frigate, the lighthouse, the elevator to the upper town) are within a short walk, and the pace is noticeably different from the bustle across the water.
The quarter is compact — you can walk end to end along the waterfront in fifteen minutes — but rewards a slower circuit. The streets above the waterfront, reached by the panoramic elevator, have a neighbourhood feel that most day-trippers miss: old houses, a few small shops, and views that explain why people settled on this hill above the river centuries ago.