3 days in Lisbon Portugal
Lisbon is the capital of Portugal. In recent years the city has become very well known for digital nomads to retreat to for a couple of days or even a longer period of time. If you want to visit this sunny city for a short vacation or city trip, here’s how you should spend your time in Lisbon.
Day 1 – Exploring the main sights of the city
On your first day in Lisbon, head to the city center to explore some of Lisbon’s main touristy sights. You can start your day by walking from Rossio Square through the Centro Commercial Colombo to get down to the Arco da Rua Augusta. This city wall and gate were the old entrance of the city and is therefore the perfect place to start your city tour. Across from the Arco da Rua Augusta there is a huge city square called Praça do Comércio. This square is the biggest square in Lisbon. From there you can walk to the waterfront and have a view over the Ponte de 25 de Abril and the statue of Jesus Christ which are located a bit further outside the city center on the other side of the river.
After exploring this area head to the Alfama district to see what the old Lisbon used to look like. This district is one of the few areas which survived the earthquake of 1755 and still has a lot of historic buildings dating prior to 1755. The cathedral of Lisbon (Se Lisboa) is also located in this area. From there you can head to some of Lisbon’s most famous viewpoints called Miradouro das Portas do Sol & Miradouro de Santa Luzia.
In the afternoon head to the S. George Castle located at the top of the hills in Lisbon. An entrance ticket is 11 euro (or 7,5 euro reduced rates). Paying for a ticket allows you to get views which tower over the whole city center. You can also visit the castle itself and the surrounding gardens.
Finish your evening with a nice walk following the tracks of the famous yellow trams all the way to Miradouro do Monte Agudo for sunset.
Day 2 – Belem and LX Factory
On your 2nd day in the city head a bit outside of the city center and go to the district of Belém and the LX Factory. This district is located near the Tagus River, is covered with greenery and has beautiful colorful houses. If you want to visit inside of some of the main sights of Belém, head there first. Otherwise, start your day with a lovely brunch in the LX Factory.
There are many cute places to have brunch in the LX Factory. If you want some amazing avocado toast, head to Chef Nino. After your brunch visit some of the local shops to find some nice jewelry, clothes, and trinkets. Once you are done shopping make sure to also explore the graffiti of the area.
The walk from the LX factory to Belém takes about 30-45 minutes and is an easy, flat walk. I highly recommend walking over taking an uber or bus down. As you get to see some of the beautiful colorful houses in the area.
In Belém, there are 3 main sights to see. The Belém tower, the Jerónimos Monastery and the Palácio Nacional da Ajuda. The monastery was built over an existing church. They placed the monastery there as a celebration of the successful voyages of the Portuguese sailors to India. Nowadays it’s mainly visited to see the amazing architecture of the building as well as to visit the 2 museums which are inside the Jerónimos Monastery. There is a huge crowd who want to get every day in and they only let people in per 10 people at a time (for circulation purposes). If you want to visit inside the monastery I recommend going here early in the morning and get in line before the wait gets too long.
Next up is the Belém tower. This tower was the official point of embarkation and debarkation for Portuguese explorers. I decided against going inside as many told me it was a bit underwhelming. You cannot go all the way to the top, so you can only see the views from the second floor. However, the area is still nice to visit and you can get some pictures from the gardens around the tower.
Lastly the Palácio Nacional da Ajuda was the residence of the Portuguese Royal family as of the 19th century. Inside there is an important collection of decorative art. You can visit it on all days except Wednesdays and Holidays. Now the palace is still used as an official site for ceremonies.
Once you have seen some of the main sights in Belém, make sure to check out Pasteis de Belém. This is the place where Pasteis de Nata were made since 1837, following an old recipe from the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos. They still make the pastry by hand and use the original recipe. You can either wait in line to order just the Pasteis de Nata to go or wait a bit longer to get seated and have a nice drink with your pastry.
At night, end your evening with a traditional Portuguese dinner & a Fado performance. Fado is a form of music which has its origins in Lisbon, Portugal. The songs are often the sea, or the life of the poor. Although the songs might have a mournful undertone, it is a unique and must do activity in Lisbon.
Day 3 – Day trip from Lisbon
One of the main reasons Lisbon is a great place to base yourself in for a while is because there are many amazing day trips you can do from Lisbon. Some of the most popular day trips from Lisbon are to Sintra, Cascais or Ericeira. If it’s your first time in Lisbon, or don’t have as much time. I recommend going to Sintra. However if you have the time, make sure to check out all 3 cities to its full extent.
Sintra
If you want to get the most out of your day exploring Sintra, going on a guided tour is the way to go. This way there is a vehicle which takes you from place to place and this is so much more efficient rather than going on your own. Many hostels offer guided tours to Sintra so look into this once you are in your hostel. You can plan a trip to Sintra on your own but if you do this, I recommend staying overnight to be able to beat the crowds in the morning/evenings.
Pena Palace & the Gardens
Pena Palace (the famous colored castle) is probably the one you’ll see on instagram from Sintra. However, the crowds to get into the Palace are extremely long, especially in high season (April-September). Our guide told us it was not worth it to go inside if you are short on time due to the long waiting lines and big crowds. Instead go explore the gardens. This will still give you the views of Pena Palace, but you just don’t go “inside the castle”. This will also help you save some money.
The gardens are beautiful on their own and you can easily spent about an hour to an hour and half to wander around. A must do is the valley of the lakes. This is such a beautiful spot, and it seems like the crowds disappear once you arrive into the gardens as most people queue up to visit the palace.
Quinta da Regaleira + Initiation Well
A second place your guided tours will take you is to the Quinta da Regaleira & the Initiation Well. In my opinion, these are more beautiful to visit than the Pena Palace. The Pena palace is more unique, but I’d say this place is a true fairytale place. Start exploring by heading to the Initiation Well. Many people want to grab a photo from this spot, so there is usually a queue to enter. But it is worth the wait to wander down the Initiation well. There are also some mini “waterfalls” at the bottom that are worth checking out. Afterwards, take your time to explore the grounds of Quinta da Regaleira.
Cabo da Roca
When looking at tours to Sintra, try and find a tour which will also take you to Cabo da Roca. This is the westernmost point of mainland Europe. There is not necessarily much to see here but it is a fun stop on your way back to Lisbon from Sintra.
Praia Do Guincho
A bonus stop on your day trip to Sintra can be at the beaches of Cascais. The beach Praia do Guincho is easy to access by car. The waves are a bit rough around here so if you want to go for a dip, you can however, be prepared for some waves. There is also a nice little restaurant at the beach, Bar do Guincho, which sells amazing sangria.
