National Museum of Ancient Art, Lisbon

We spent a rainy morning in Lisbon at this museum last week. Staffing was low, but their volunteers stepped in to make sure things ran smoothly for visitors. We had a one on one introduction to the museum from one of the volunteers and proceeded through the open exhibits. The variety of items on display was impressive and there were great summaries and histories listed. We decided to have lunch at the cafe and were there about 15 minutes before it opened. The man working the counter suggested we walk in their garden and they would be ready soon. He came out to tell us when they were open, and then took the greatest care to place every item on our plate. He arranged everything as if it were a high end restaurant. I know how odd that must sound, but he truly took great pride and care in the smallest details. It was good food at a reasonable price too. Highly recommend the museum and cafe!

No stars! Terrible customer service! The card reader was not working so it was cash only. "That's fine" I said, "can you tell me where the nearest ATM machine is?" The woman at the desk - who spoke very good English so understood my question - shrugged. I walked to an ATM (after searching online) and returned with a €20 note, which was "too large" a note as apparently there was no change at the museum, so I couldn't have a ticket. At this point, most other museum staff would have just let me in, apologetically, as this was their inconvenience. But no, I had to leave again, buy some unwanted food at a local cafe and then return with the exact change. My main reason for visiting the museum was to see the Japanese Screens. When I finally was able to buy a ticket, at no point did any member of staff alert me to the fact that the entire floor the screens were on was closed. When I discovered I could not see the screens, I went to the front desk to complain and ask for a refund, as I would not have bought a ticket had I known this exhibit was closed. The staff were incredibly rude, not remotely apologetic about not alerting me and they were very defensive, basically shrugging and offering no explanation, apology or - crucially - refund. Literally the worst experience I have ever had in a museum in my life.