Lisbon 3-Day Itinerary: Baixa, Alfama and Belém

How should you spend 3 days in Lisbon?

Spend day one in Baixa, Chiado and Bairro Alto, day two in Alfama, the castle and Graça, and day three in Belém along the river. Keep Sintra for a longer trip, or swap it for Belém if palaces matter more. Do not let day three fall on a Monday, when Belém’s monuments close.

Three days is enough for Lisbon’s three classic districts if each day stays on one side of the city. The Lisbon 7-day itinerary gives Sintra and Cascais full days of their own; this plan keeps all three days in Lisbon itself, so you spend your time in the neighbourhoods and at the viewpoints rather than on trains, and you see the downtown grid, the medieval hill and the riverside monuments in that order.

Every hour, price and closure below comes from an official page checked on 16 or 17 October 2026: Carris for trams, lifts and fares, Visit Lisboa, the castle, the Jerónimos Monastery, Museus e Monumentos de Portugal, the Fado Museum, the Padrão dos Descobrimentos and Parques de Sintra. Two things have changed since many older guides were written: Carris lists the Santa Justa lift as temporarily closed (Carris), and the National Tile Museum is shut for works (Museus e Monumentos de Portugal).

Choose a base with where to stay in Lisbon, check the season with best time to visit Lisbon, and use the Lisbon destination guide for the wider picture.

What does the 3-day Lisbon plan look like at a glance?

Day one is the flat downtown and its hills on foot and by tram 28, day two climbs Alfama to the castle and on to Graça, and day three heads west to Belém’s monuments and the riverfront. The table lists each day’s anchors, the weekly closures that decide the order and an indoor swap for rain.

The order is set by closures rather than distance. The Jerónimos Monastery and the Belém Tower close on Mondays (Jerónimos and Belém Tower), as do the National Pantheon and the Fado Museum on day two (Panteão Nacional, Fado Museum). MAAT, the riverside art museum in Belém, closes on Tuesdays instead (MAAT).

That makes a Saturday or Sunday start the only awkward ones: a Saturday start puts Belém on a Monday, and a Sunday start puts Alfama’s museums on a Monday. A Friday start has a bonus, because day two then falls on a Saturday, one of the two days the Feira da Ladra flea market trades (Visit Lisboa).

What should you book ahead, and is a Lisboa Card worth it for three days?

Book the Jerónimos Monastery before you travel, because tickets often sell out and may not be sold on the day. Everything else can be bought on arrival. A 72-hour Lisboa Card, €62 for adults, pays off only on a dense museum run; a 24-hour Carris and metro ticket at €7.25 suits lighter days.

The monastery charges €18 and the Belém Tower €15, and the monastery warns that tickets often sell out (Jerónimos and Belém Tower). The castle charges €17 for adults and €8.50 for visitors aged 13 to 25 (Castelo de São Jorge). The National Pantheon costs €10 (Panteão Nacional) and the Fado Museum €5 (Fado Museum).

The Lisboa Card costs €31 for 24 hours, €51 for 48 hours and €62 for 72 hours, at prices valid until 31 March 2027, and includes public transport and free entry to more than 50 museums and monuments (Visit Lisboa shop). Visit Lisboa lists the Jerónimos Monastery and the Belém Tower among the included sites (Visit Lisboa), and the Rua Augusta Arch is free with the card (Visit Lisboa).

Without the card, Carris sells a 24-hour Carris and metro ticket for €7.25, and a tram ticket bought on board costs €3.30, valid only on that vehicle (Carris). Our Lisboa Card verdict runs the break-even maths; the start-day table below shows which first day keeps every anchor open.

Day 1: how do you spend a day in Baixa, Chiado and Bairro Alto?

Start at Praça do Comércio and climb the Rua Augusta Arch, open daily from 10am to 7pm, for a 360-degree view over Baixa. Walk up to Chiado, then ride tram 28 west towards Estrela. Plan the climbs on foot, because the Santa Justa lift and the Glória funicular are closed. Finish in Bairro Alto.

The Rua Augusta Arch opens every day from 10am to 7pm, with last entry at 6.30pm; it has been open to visitors since 9 August 2013 and is free with a Lisboa Card (Visit Lisboa). From the arch, the grid of Baixa runs north towards Rossio, flat and easy, before the city climbs steeply on either side.

This is where older itineraries send you up the Santa Justa lift, the 1902 iron tower by Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard, but Carris lists it as temporarily closed (Carris). Carris also lists the Glória and Lavra funiculars as out of service (Carris), and the Bica funicular too (Carris), so walk up to Chiado and Bairro Alto or use the tram. Visit Lisboa describes tram 28 crossing Baixa, climbing to Chiado and Estrela and ending in Campo de Ourique (Visit Lisboa).

The UK government warns that thieves use distraction techniques on public transport and at crowded tram and bus stops in Portugal (FCDO), so keep bags closed on tram 28 and in Bairro Alto at night. If you only have a day in the city, Lisbon in one day condenses the highlights, and is tram 28 worth it weighs the ride against walking.

Day 2: how do you combine Alfama, the castle and Graça?

Be at Castelo de São Jorge when it opens at 9am, then walk down through Alfama. Ride the Graça funicular from Mouraria up to Graça, visit the National Pantheon and, on a Tuesday or Saturday, the Feira da Ladra flea market behind it. End at the Fado Museum before an evening of fado in Alfama.

The castle opens daily from 9am to 9pm between March and October and from 9am to 6pm between November and February; its wall-walks can close earlier for safety, and its museum is temporarily closed for works (Castelo de São Jorge). Carris says the Graça funicular, which links Mouraria with Graça, has opened (Carris), which saves the steepest climb of the day.

The National Pantheon, the former Church of Santa Engrácia, completed as a pantheon with a concrete dome in the 1960s, opens from Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm from October to March and to 6pm from April to September, and closes on 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May, 13 June and 25 December; it offers views over the historic centre and the Tagus (Panteão Nacional). The Feira da Ladra, which dates back to 1272, trades every Tuesday and Saturday from 9am to 6pm at Campo de Santa Clara, behind São Vicente de Fora (Visit Lisboa).

The Fado Museum, on Largo do Chafariz de Dentro, opens from Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm, with last admission at 5.30pm, and closes on 1 January, 1 May and 24, 25 and 31 December (Fado Museum). Skip the National Tile Museum for now: Visit Lisboa lists it as closed for renovation (Visit Lisboa).

Day 3: how do you plan Belém and the riverfront?

Arrive at the Jerónimos Monastery for its 9.30am opening and walk to the Belém Tower before the midday crowds. In the afternoon, climb the Padrão dos Descobrimentos for river views, then visit MAAT or the National Coach Museum. The monastery and tower close on Mondays and MAAT on Tuesdays, so choose the day carefully.

The monastery and the tower open from Tuesday to Sunday, 9.30am to 5.30pm, with last admission at 5pm and ticket offices closing at 4.30pm; both also close on 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May, 13 June and 25 December, and the tower may shut when the weather makes visits unsafe (Jerónimos and Belém Tower). Wheelchair users should note that the monastery’s upper cloister is not accessible.

The Padrão dos Descobrimentos opens every day from 10am to 6pm between October and February and to 7pm between March and September, with last entry 30 minutes before closing, and closes on 1 January, 1 May and 24, 25 and 31 December (Padrão dos Descobrimentos). MAAT charges €12 and opens from Wednesday to Monday (MAAT); the National Coach Museum, with around 70 mostly royal coaches, opens from Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm, for €15 (Museus e Monumentos de Portugal).

Belém is the day that suits a Lisboa Card best, because the monastery and tower are both included (Visit Lisboa). Head back to the centre in the late afternoon for a final dinner near the river.

Should you swap a Lisbon day for Sintra?

Only if palaces matter more to you than Belém. Sintra needs a full day: the CP Sintra line from Rossio, Oriente or Entrecampos, then the 434 bus up to Pena, because private cars cannot reach the palace. Book a dated Pena ticket ahead. With more days, the 7-day plan gives Sintra its own day.

Pena’s park opens from 9am to 7pm and the palace from 9.30am to 6.30pm on the timetable shown in October 2026; the full palace tour costs €45, a shorter essential visit €20 and the park alone €12, and advance tickets carry a fixed date that can be rescheduled online (Parques de Sintra). Parques de Sintra lists the Sintra line’s departure stations and the 434 bus from Sintra station (Parques de Sintra).

If you swap, give up Belém rather than Alfama, because Alfama and the castle are closest to most bases. The 24-hour Carris, metro and CP ticket, €11.40, covers the Sintra line (Carris). For a second opinion on the palaces, see is the Moorish Castle worth it, and for other options, best day trips from Lisbon.

The UK government warns of wildfire risk in Portugal from April to October, when roads can close at short notice (FCDO), so check conditions before Sintra’s hillside trails in summer.

How do you adjust the plan for rain, heat or strikes?

Lisbon’s wet season runs from November to February, with more than 100mm of rain in each of those months in IPMA’s 1961–1990 normals, while July averages a 27.4°C high. In rain, lean on the Pantheon, the Fado Museum and Belém’s museums; in heat, climb early. Strikes can be announced at short notice.

IPMA’s normals, as published by the WMO, count 14 to 15 days a month with at least 0.1mm of rain from November to February, against two such days in July and August (IPMA via WMO). Lisbon’s hills and stone pavements turn slippery in rain, so wear shoes with grip and use the tram for the steepest climbs.

The UK government notes that strikes, including at airports, can be called at short notice in Portugal (FCDO). On a public-transport strike day, keep to one walkable district: day one’s Baixa and Chiado plan works entirely on foot. For more indoor ideas, see Lisbon in the rain.

How do you get around Lisbon for three days?

Walk within each district and use tram 28, buses and the metro between them. A 24-hour Carris and metro ticket costs €7.25, or €11.40 with CP trains for Sintra and Cascais. A tram ticket bought on board is €3.30. The airport is about 7km from the centre, close enough for a short ride.

Fares come from Carris’s occasional-journey page, which also lists a 24-hour Carris, metro and Transtejo ticket for €10.35, including river ferries (Carris). With the funiculars and the Santa Justa lift closed, tram 28 is the main shortcut up the hills, so expect queues at its busiest stops.

Visit Lisboa puts the airport about 7km from the centre (Visit Lisboa); see Lisbon airport to the city for the options and getting around Lisbon for the full network.

If you buy a Lisboa Card, it covers Carris, the metro and the Sintra and Cascais trains (Carris), so you will not need separate day tickets on the days it runs.

Which tours fit three days in Lisbon, and who should change the plan?

A food walk suits day one, a fado evening day two, and a guided Belém or Sintra trip day three if you would rather not manage tickets. Families can trade the Pantheon for a longer castle visit, and wheelchair users should check Jerónimos access. Anyone staying a week should switch to the 7-day plan.

Before booking a Sintra tour, check whether Pena entry is included and for which visit type, since the full palace tour costs €45 and the park alone €12 (Parques de Sintra), and check the time allowed at each stop and the cancellation terms. For Belém, a guided visit adds context but not speed, because entry slots still apply.

Families can find more ideas in Lisbon with kids and things to do in Lisbon. With a full week, use the Lisbon 7-day itinerary, which adds Sintra, Cascais, the Gulbenkian and the Oceanário. Our GetYourGuide vs Viator vs Klook comparison explains the platforms’ cancellation rules.