Lisbon Itineraries: 2, 3 and 5 Days Plus the Best Day Trips

Day 1: Alfama, the castle and the Baixa. Start at 9am at the Castelo de Sao Jorge (opens 9am, €15) before the queue builds; the ramparts give the best overview of the city you are about to walk. Walk down through Alfama via the Portas do Sol and Santa Luzia viewpoints, the Se cathedral and the lanes around Largo do Chafariz de Dentro. Lunch on grilled fish in an Alfama tasca, then cross into the Baixa: Rua Augusta, the Rua Augusta Arch (its viewing terrace is a quick stop) and Praca do Comercio on the river. Climb to Chiado for coffee and a pastel de nata at Manteigaria, then watch sunset from the Sao Pedro de Alcantara viewpoint. Dinner in Bairro Alto or Chiado, and a drink in Bairro Alto afterwards.

Day 2: Belem and the west. Take tram 15E from Praca do Comercio or the train from Cais do Sodre to Belem (20 to 30 minutes). Be at the Jeronimos Monastery for the 9:30am opening, then walk to the Monument of the Discoveries and Belem Tower (€15). Eat warm tarts at Pasteis de Belem (use the sit-down rooms inside; the queue outside is for takeaway). Walk the riverfront east to the MAAT museum and the Tejo Power Station next door, then on to LX Factory, a former textile complex of shops, bookshops and restaurants under the 25 de Abril bridge, for a late lunch. Evening: Cais do Sodre and the Time Out Market, or a fado dinner back in Alfama.

Costs cover entries, a 24-hour transport ticket (€7.25), lunch and dinner at mid-range tascas; fado dinners add €40 to €80.

Follow the two-day plan, then give the third day to Sintra, the UNESCO-listed hill town of palaces 40 minutes from Rossio station by train (trains roughly every 20 minutes; the 24-hour Carris/Metro/CP ticket at €11.40 covers it, or use zapping credit). Catch a train before 8:30am. From Sintra station, the Pena Palace is a steep 3 km up the hill: take the bus or a tuk-tuk, or walk if you are fit. Book Pena on parquesdesintra.pt in advance: palace tickets are sold for a specific date and time, the full visit of park and palace is €45 for adults in 2026 (park only €12), and the first slots of the day are the calmest.

After Pena, walk down through the park to the Moorish Castle (€12) for the wall walk, then descend to the town centre for lunch and a travesseiro pastry at Piriquita. Spend the afternoon at Quinta da Regaleira with its initiation well and grottoes (book its own timed tickets online), or the Sintra National Palace in the main square (€13). Return by train for a late dinner in Lisbon. Budget €80 to €130 for the day with two monuments, transport and lunch.

Days 1 to 3 as above. Day 4: Cascais and Cabo da Roca. Take the train from Cais do Sodre along the river and coast to Cascais (40 minutes, under €3 with zapping). Walk the old town and the marina, then the seafront path west to Boca do Inferno, the collapsed sea cave 20 minutes out of town. Rent a bike on the cycle path or take a bus to Praia do Guincho, the wild surf beach in the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, and continue to Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point of mainland Europe, for sunset. Buses link Cabo da Roca back to Cascais or on to Sintra; check the last departure, as service thins out in the evening. Alternatively, stop in Estoril for the beach and the long seafront promenade.

Day 5: Parque das Nacoes and a museum. Ride the Red line to Oriente and spend the morning at the Oceanario, one of Europe’s largest aquariums (book online, allow two hours), then ride the cable car along the river and walk the promenade to the Vasco da Gama Tower. In the afternoon, choose one great museum: the Gulbenkian and its gardens at Sao Sebastiao, or the National Museum of Ancient Art in Lapa. End with a farewell dinner and fado, or a sunset at Miradouro da Senhora do Monte in Graca. Swap day 5 for Evora or Obidos (below) if you prefer another town to another museum.

Tram 28 runs from Martim Moniz through Graca, Alfama, the Baixa, Chiado and Estrela to Campo de Ourique, and the queue at Martim Moniz can reach an hour by 10am. Board before 9am, or start at the western end at Campo de Ourique (Prazeres) where the trams leave nearly empty, or ride it in the evening. The on-board fare is €3.30 in cash; with a 24-hour ticket (€7.25) or zapping you just tap. The 12E is a short circuit around the castle hill using the same vintage trams with far fewer people. Tram 28 is Lisbon’s top spot for pickpockets: keep bags zipped and in front of you, phones out of back pockets, and watch for groups crowding the doors.

The miradouros are free and are Lisbon’s best sights for nothing: Portas do Sol and Santa Luzia over Alfama, Senhora do Monte and Graca for sunset, Sao Pedro de Alcantara over the Baixa, and Santa Catarina above the river. For fado, Alfama’s restaurants charge €40 to €80 for dinner with singers; the music stops service, and silence is expected during songs. For something less formal, look for “fado vadio” nights, where amateurs take turns in small bars in Alfama and Bairro Alto, often with a drink minimum instead of a dinner.

Jeronimos closes on Mondays, as does Belem Tower, so plan Belem for Tuesday to Sunday. The monastery’s church is free; the cloister is ticketed and has the longer line, so come at opening or after 3pm. Belem Tower is small inside with narrow one-way stairs and a capped number of visitors; if time is short, the exterior and riverside view are the main event. The National Coach Museum nearby is excellent for families.

MAAT, the wave-shaped art and architecture museum on the river, is worth it for its walkable roof alone, which is free. LX Factory is liveliest on Sunday when a market fills the main street; the Ler Devagar bookshop is the highlight. The Time Out Market in Cais do Sodre is the honest exception to “avoid tourist food halls”: it collects stalls from well-known Lisbon chefs and bakeries under one roof, so it is a good place to sample. It is also loud, crowded from 12:30pm and 7:30pm, with shared tables and prices 30 to 50 percent above a neighbourhood tasca. Go at 11:30am or after 9pm, or use the old Mercado da Ribeira fish and produce hall next door in the morning. See our Lisbon food guide for where else to eat.

• Sintra (40 minutes by train from Rossio): Pena, the Moorish Castle, Regaleira and Monserrate. One full day; two if you want Monserrate and the Capuchos convent too.
• Cascais and Cabo da Roca (40 minutes by train from Cais do Sodre): beaches, the seafront walk and the cliffs. Combine with Sintra by bus over the hills if you start early.
• Setubal and Arrabida (about 1 hour): Fertagus trains run from Roma-Areeiro, Entrecampos and Sete Rios across the 25 de Abril bridge to Setubal for fried cuttlefish (choco frito) and the fish market. The Arrabida coast’s beaches such as Portinho da Arrabida are best by car or tour; in summer, access roads can be restricted and shuttles replace private parking.
• Evora (about 1 hour 30 minutes by train or express bus): the Alentejo’s walled capital with a Roman temple, the Chapel of Bones and cork-and-wine country around it. A full day; trains leave from Oriente and Entrecampos.
• Obidos (about 1 hour by express bus from Campo Grande): a whitewashed walled village where you can walk the ramparts and drink ginjinha in a chocolate cup. Pair it with Nazare or Caldas da Rainha by car.
• Mafra and Queluz: Mafra’s vast palace-monastery and Queluz’s rococo palace are half-days, Queluz 20 minutes by train from Rossio.
• Across the river: ferries from Cais do Sodre reach Cacilhas in 10 minutes for riverside seafood and the Cristo Rei statue; Costa da Caparica’s long beaches are 30 to 40 minutes by bus.

• Hills and mobility: Plan each day downhill. Take tram 28, a taxi or the free lifts from the Baixa (Rua dos Fanqueiros and the Pingo Doce building) up to the castle, then walk down through Alfama. The Baixa, Belem, the riverfront and Parque das Nacoes are flat; wear shoes with grip, as the cobbles are slippery even when dry.
• Summer heat: From late June to early September, afternoons reach 30 to 35°C (86 to 95°F) and Alfama’s lanes trap the heat. Start at 8:30am, put museums and the Oceanario in the afternoon, and save viewpoints for sunset. Carry water; Sintra’s hills are 3 to 5°C cooler.
• Families: The Oceanario, the Coach Museum, Belem’s riverfront, the Cascais beaches and the Parque das Nacoes cable car work well; Alfama’s stairs are hard work with a pushchair.
• Slow travel: With a week, split it: four nights in Lisbon and three in Cascais or Sintra, and add Evora or the Arrabida coast. Mondays are when Jeronimos, Belem Tower and many national museums close, so make Monday your Sintra or Cascais day.
• Rain: Winter brings wet spells. Swap viewpoints for the Gulbenkian, the National Azulejo Museum (check whether it has reopened after renovation) and the Ancient Art museum, and ride the trams rather than walk the cobbles.

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