3 Days in Lisbon: The Perfect First-Time Itinerary

Three days is the sweet spot for a first visit to Lisbon: enough time for the old town, Belém and a day trip to Sintra, without rushing. This is the plan we’d give a friend, built around the questions that come up most in our groups.

The plan: Day 1 is the old town (Baixa, Alfama, the castle). Day 2 is Belém and the riverside. Day 3 is a day trip to Sintra. Book the timed tickets for Pena Palace and Belém before you go.

Before you start

• Get a navegante card (€0.50) and load it with “zapping” credit. It covers metro, buses, trams and ferries. See our Lisbon transport guide.
• Book ahead: Pena Palace in Sintra and the Belém monuments now use timed entry slots, which can sell out in busy months.
• Check the day of the week: the Jerónimos Monastery is usually open Tuesday to Sunday, so don’t plan Belém for a Monday. Swap Days 1 and 2 if you need to.
• Wear proper shoes. Lisbon’s polished stone pavements are slippery and the hills are real.
• Know what’s closed: the Santa Justa lift and the Glória, Bica and Lavra funiculars have been shut since the September 2025 accident. The Graça funicular reopened in April 2026.
• Tourist tax: hotels and rentals add €4 per person per night (under-13s are free).

Day 1: Baixa, Alfama and the castle

Morning

• Start at Praça do Comércio, the huge riverside square rebuilt after the 1755 earthquake, then walk up Rua Augusta through the arch to Rossio. Allow about an hour, with stops.
• Grab a pastel de nata and a bica (espresso) standing at a café counter like a local.
• Look into the grid of streets named after old trades, like Rua do Ouro (gold) and Rua da Prata (silver). This is the Pombaline Baixa, one of the first planned earthquake-proof districts in Europe.

Afternoon

• Head up to Alfama. Walk it, or save your legs with a tuk tuk (see our tuk tuk tours guide or book a 3-hour tuk tuk tour).
• Visit São Jorge Castle for views over the whole city (adult tickets are about €17; allow 1.5 to 2 hours), then wander down past the Lisbon Cathedral (Sé), the city’s oldest church, begun in the 12th century. The castle closes at 9pm from March to October and 6pm from November to February.
• Stop at the Miradouro de Santa Luzia and Portas do Sol viewpoints.
• Got energy left? Walk on to Graça for the São Vicente de Fora monastery and quieter viewpoints. See our Alfama guide.

Evening

• Dinner with fado in Alfama. Small, family-run places are the most atmospheric. Book ahead at weekends, and expect a minimum spend per person at most fado houses.

Tram 28 tip: the famous yellow tram is lovely but often packed and a pickpocket favourite. Ride it early in the morning, or take a quieter route like tram 12 or 24. Use your navegante card, as buying on board costs €3.30.

Day 2: Belém and the riverside

Morning

• Take tram 15 or the Cascais-line train to Belém.
• Visit the Jerónimos Monastery (tickets about €18 for the cloister; the church is free), with its carved stone cloister and the tomb of Vasco da Gama. Allow about an hour.
• Then Belém Tower (about €15), which reopened on 27 May 2026 after restoration with timed entry and a daily visitor cap. Book both in advance.
• Queue (it moves fast) for the original pastéis de Belém, or walk inside to find a table.

Afternoon

• Walk along the river past the Monument to the Discoveries to the MAAT museum, or head to LX Factory for shops, street art and lunch.
• Rainy day? Swap the riverside walk for the Gulbenkian Museum, one of the best art collections in Portugal (closed on Tuesdays).

Evening

• Sunset at Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara or Senhora do Monte, then dinner in Chiado or Príncipe Real.
• Night out? Bairro Alto or Pink Street in Cais do Sodré. Since February 2026, Lisbon shops can’t sell alcohol to drink outside after 11pm (midnight on Fridays and Saturdays).

Day 3: Sintra

Sintra’s fairy-tale palaces are 40 minutes away by train from Rossio station. Go early. By late morning the queues and the roads up to the palaces get busy. Private cars can’t drive up to Pena, so use the 434 bus, a tuk-tuk or a taxi from the station. A 24-hour ticket for the 434 and 435 buses costs about €13.50. Our Lisbon to Sintra guide has the details.

• Pena Palace (book a timed ticket; the Essential Visit is about €20 and is for a set date and time) and the Moorish Castle (about €12) are next to each other on the hilltop.
• Quinta da Regaleira and its famous initiation well are in town. Tickets are about €20, with timed entry slots. Book tickets here.
• Try a travesseiro (almond puff pastry) or a queijada (small sweet cheese tart), Sintra’s two local treats.
• Don’t want the hassle? A day tour covering Pena, Cabo da Roca and Cascais takes care of transport and timing.

Our 20 essential Sintra tips and best Sintra tours cover everything else.

What to eat over three days

• Grilled sardines in summer, especially around the June festivals.
• Bacalhau (salt cod), cooked a hundred ways. Try bacalhau à Brás.
• Bifana: a garlicky pork sandwich, the classic cheap lunch.
• Ginjinha: a sour cherry liqueur sold by the shot near Rossio.

Lunch is the best-value meal: look for the prato do dia (dish of the day) in local tascas.

Got an extra day?

• Cascais for beaches and a seaside lunch (40 minutes by train from Cais do Sodré).
• Óbidos, the walled medieval town. See our Óbidos guide.
• More ideas in our best day trips from Lisbon.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Baixa or Chiado puts you within walking distance of Day 1, with easy transport for Days 2 and 3. Compare areas in our where to stay in Lisbon guide.

FAQ

Is three days enough for Lisbon?

Yes, for a first visit: it covers the old town, Belém and Sintra at a comfortable pace. Add a fourth day for Cascais or Óbidos.

Is the Lisboa Card worth it for three days?

The 72-hour card costs about €62 and covers city transport and the Sintra and Cascais trains, plus free entry to Jerónimos, Belém Tower and São Jorge Castle. It pays off if you see all three and ride a lot; Pena Palace is not included.

Can you do Sintra and Cascais in one day?

Yes, with an early start. Carris Metropolitana bus 1624 runs from Portela de Sintra station (not the station in Sintra village) via Cabo da Roca to Cascais, and the train brings you back.

Want more ideas? Browse tours and tickets in Lisbon.

See also: 2 days in Lisbon, 5 days in Lisbon, things to do in Lisbon, Lisbon on a budget, 4 days in Lisbon and Lisbon Cathedral.

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