52 of the best attractions in Lisbon

There’s no better way to kick-start your trip than with a dash of Lisbon history. This old palace and summer residence, formerly Museu da Cidade (City Museum) is the main site of five Lisbon museums created in 2015 (Palácio Pimenta, Teatro Romano, Santo António, Torreão Poente and Casa dos Bicos). The permanent exhibition takes you through Lisbon’s history from prehistoric times to the start of the 20th century, while the garden’s Black and White Pavilions host temporary exhibitions.

Listing Lisbon’s attractions without referencing this monument would be like having Christmas without turkey. Considered one of the city’s most recognisable landmarks, Belém Tower was built as part of a defence system at the mouth of the Tagus river, and is now an architectural icon of King Manuel I’s reign. It achieved the status of UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983 and was voted one of Portugal’s Seven Wonders in 2007.

The azulejo is a sign of the pragmatism of the Portuguese, who chose this cheap and low-maintenance material to decorate their buildings and interiors. But the azulejo cannot be reduced to its ease of cleaning. In the museum, located in the Madre de Deus Convent, you will find some of the most significant pieces of national azulejo craftsmanship, from the 15th century to today.

São Roque Church is not only dominated by mannerist and baroque architecture, but it is one of the rare buildings that survived Lisbon’s 1755 earthquake... escaping with barely a scratch. As such, the church and auxiliary residence were donated to charitable organisation Santa Casa da Misericórdia, (to replace its own buildings and church which were destroyed in the seism). The relationship is still present today, and the church is a centre of attention for tourists and locals alike. Commissioned at the end of the 16th century and built in collaboration by architects Afonso Álvares and Bartolomeu Álvares, it’s undeniably one of the most beautiful churches in the city. 

Club supporters aside, since the new Águias stadium opened its doors in 2003, the spot has received over 10 million visitors (at least according to the venue’s registry). Plan your visit to coincide with a game and you’ll take the experience to the next level. If you don’t think you can handle the thrill of a game, opt for a tour of the Cosme Damião Museum and a few moments of reflection next to the statue of legendary player Eusébio, aka The King.

Construction began at the end of the eighteenth century by order of Queen Maria I, who promised on her wedding day that, were she to give King Pedro a son, she would build a convent for Carmelite nuns, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus - the first such temple in the world. The queen has her a sepulture in the Basilica, which makes her the only monarch from House Bragança not to be buried in São Vicente de Fora Church.

Pop quiz: who’s the majestic figure on on the edge of this boat-shaped monument? It’s Prince Henry the Navigator, to whom architect Cottinelli Telmo paid tribute in this construction, with sculptures by Leopoldo Almeida. The original monument was erected in 1940 for the Portuguese World Exhibition, to pay homage to the historical figures involved in the Portuguese discoveries. The stone and concrete used on the current replica, inaugurated in 1960, guarantee the longevity of this Lisbon emblem.

This is Lisbon’s own triumphal arch and boy does it offer up a marvellous vista. It was commissioned in 1759 – as part of the reconstruction of Lisbon, following the 1755 earthquake – but the famous Arch was only completed in its current form in 1873. As a celebration of the grandeur of the Portuguese Empire, which discovered many new peoples and cultures, the top of the arch reads "VIRTVTIBVS MAIORVM VT SIT OMNIBVS DOCVMENTO.PPD”. And if you don’t speak Latin, the phrase roughly translates as “The Virtues of the Greatest, to serve as an example to all. Dedicated to public expenses.” Profound.

Even when there are no stars in the sky, the Planetarium always gets a five-star rating. Why? Well, in the sky of the 23-metre dome, you can see constellations, moons, planets, nebulae, galaxies and other parts of the infinite universe. Plus, it remains a good reason to head to Belém, and an especially sweet idea if you’re planning a romantic date. Star-crossed lovers, indeed.

Bury your morbid preconceptions. Made almost exclusively of burial vaults, the Prazeres Cemetery was built in the Romantic era in 1833, after the outbreak of a “cholera morbus” epidemic. The chapel houses the old autopsy room and, since 2001, of the Museum Centre. Follow the guided tour around the last residence of various celebrities and admire the architectural heritage. This is also the site of the largest and oldest concentration of cypress trees in the Iberian Peninsula.

Everyone calls it Miradouro da Graça, but this viewpoint’s official name, registered by Câmara de Lisboa, is Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen’s Viewpoint. The poet's bronze bust watches over the city and you can read one of her poems while you enjoy the views: from the castle all the way up to the river, Mouraria and baixa pombalina.

Miradouro da Graça is one of the best viewpoints in Lisbon.

The building was erected in 1523 on order of Alfonso de Albuquerque, son of the second governor of what was then Portuguese India, but it lost its top two floors in the 1755 earthquake. The Albuquerque family sold it in 1973 (to be used as a warehouse and as the headquarters of cod trade). Today, it houses a foundation dedicated to the life and work of Portuguese Nobel Prize in Literature José Saramago, inaugurated in 2007 and relocated to this Alfama space in 2012. The visit includes a permanent exhibition about the writer (1922-2010). If you check the agenda, you can catch book launches, seminars and other events.

If you see a group of open-mouthed New World tourists in front of the cathedral, it’s normal. This romantic-style building is very, very old. Construction started in 1147 and ended in the first decades of the 13th century. The project, which includes three naves and a triforium, a protruding transept and a pew with three chapels, is very similar to the Cathedral of Coimbra. If some of these terms sounded strange, stay calm. You can always present this venue as the place where, year after year in June, young Lisbon couples swear to love each other forever. If, however, you like history, discover all the alterations the cathedral went through over the years and depending on the preferences of each of Portugal’s rulers. The gothic-style cloister, for example, dates back to the reign of King Denis, while his successor, Alfonso IV, modified the rear area of the building. In the first half of the 20th century, a large-scale restoration project was undertaken to bring the edifice back to its original aspect. It was inaugurated in a pompous ceremony in 1940, during the Estado Novo dictatorship. Seven years later, it was the site of the celebration of the 800-year anniversary of the Siege of Lisbon. But this would be a whole other story.

The Berardo collection is a journey through the main artistic movements of the 20th and 21st centuries, starting with "Tête de Femme", a cubist painting by Pablo Picasso. It holds close to 1,000 pieces by over 500 artists, including Marcel Duchamp, Piet Mondrian, Francis Bacon, Andy Warhol, Sol LeWitt, Fernando Botero and Andreas Gursky, among many others. The museum, which opened its doors in 2007, was free until May 2017, when it started charging five euros per ticket. Saturdays are still free. Enjoy.

This is the Lisbon equivalent to Madrid’s El Rastro or London’s Portobello Market. Feira da Ladra started in the 13th century and moved around town, from São Jorge Castle to Rossio through Campo de Santana, before setting up camp at its current Campo de Santa Clara location in 1903. Get there early to snatch the best deals on new or second-hand objects. With clothes, books, vinyls and antiques, there’s a bit of everything.

It used to be called Parque da Liberdade (Freedom Park), but in 1903 it was renamed Parque Eduardo VII in tribute to King Edward VII of the UK, who visited Portugal the year before. It covers 25 hectares in the centre of Lisbon, including a monument dedicated to the April 25 Carnation Revolution, and a greenhouse. And it’s the perfect location for the book fair (Feira do Livro) that takes place there every year.

It opened, then it closed, then it opened again, but what’s certain is that this project by the EDP Foundation is much more than its acronym. MAAT’s architectural lines struck the city at its 2016 launch, and now justifies regular pilgrimages to the area of Belém. If nothing else, the structured designed by British architect Amanda Levete, combined with a sunset backdrop, makes a killer pic to share on social media. But of course you shouldn’t stop there: we recommend consulting the agenda for information on permanent and temporary exhibitions.

Armenian businessman Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian came to Portugal in
 the 1940s. He was just passing
 through, but fell ill and had to stay until he'd recovered. Fortunately for the 
city, he fell completely in love with it and created 
his foundation and museum
 here. The vast and valuable
 collection encompasses several 
historic centuries, ranging from 
Egyptian and Greco-Roman art
 to the works of Rembrandt and Manet. You must also visit the
 Centre of Modern Art and get lost in those endless gardens, with its charming duck ponds.

In a country with an extensive coastline and an age-old maritime tradition, it would be a crime to think fish only has its place in plates. In 1998, the World’s Fair (Expo ‘98) that took place in Parque das Nações found one of its high points in this oceanarium. There, children and adults can find a giant aquarium with millions of litres of saltwater inhabited by countless creatures (for example the strange Port Jackson shark). The aquarium is divided between temperate, tropical and cold waters, since our planet is made of diversity. On top of the top-notch permanent exhibit, it has temporary shows, multiple activities (wanna sleep with sharks?), and enough foot traffic to send waves way past Lisbon.

The construction of the centre fountain started in 1769 as part of the urbanisation ordered by the First Marquis of Pombal. Around it are a number of interest points from various eras. It’s on Carmo Square that the ruins of the Carmo Convent, built in the fourteenth century, still stand, and now house the Carmo Archaeological Museum. You should also check out the quarters where Prime Minister Marcelo Caetano took refuge during the Carnation Revolution that overthrew his government.

This piece of UNESCO’s World Intangible Cultural Heritage became tangible in 1998, when the Fado Museum opened its doors in the heart of Alfama. Get to know the collections donated by hundreds of singers, lyricists, musicians, composers, instrument makers, researchers and aficionados who converged here to share a bit of their story.

We’ve created a fado itinerary in Lisbon.

Two billion animals and over 300 different species. The Lisbon Zoo was inaugurated in 1884 and it continues to amaze generation after generation. Housing birds, mammals and reptiles, it is the perfect place to bring your aunts, much like Vasco Santana did in the 1933 comedy classic A Canção de Lisboa, which was filmed here.

This reservoir, which used to collect the water that arrived in Lisbon through the city’s 19km aqueduct, has some of the best acoustics in Lisbon. Though not a concert venue, it is regularly used by national bands to record sessions.

We’re starting with the National Library, but this is an invitation to explore all of the city’s libraries - please, don’t miss São Lazaro, Lisbon’s oldest library and a little delight to the eyes. In Campo Grande, you’ll find an endless collection of books written by bearded men, as well exhibits made for the curious, like the one that revisited a century of candy tradition, or the one about the mobile libraries of the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps.

Planted in the heart of Lisbon, it was designed 163 years ago and follows the careful symmetry of tropical gardens (these five hectares include Australian banyans, Cook pines, horse-chestnuts and Cedars of Lebanon). It also has a playground, lawns for picnics and lazy afternoons with a book (which you can request at the book kiosk, open from Tuesday to Saturday, 1pm to 5pm), and is one of the best running routes in the city. Oh, and it has two esplanades.

Jardim da Estrela is one of Lisbon’s best parks and gardens.

It started in 1836 and is a great way to test your and your friends’ cultural knowledge: “Give me the name of five people who rest at the National Pantheon”. We can already tell you they include Eusébio da Silva Ferreira, Aquilino Ribeiro, Almeida Garrett, Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, Humberto Delgado and Sidónio Pais.

Ordered by King Manuel I in memory of Prince Henry the Navigator, this monastery has been a National Monument since 1907 and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1983. Built in the 16th century, it was donated at the time to the monks of the Order of Saint Jerome, and in 2016 it became part of the National Pantheon. The monastery’s church (Igreja de Santa Maria de Belém) holds the tombs of Luís de Camões, Vasco da Gama and King Sebastian, whose remains were brought there by King Philip in an attempt to put an end to the popular belief that Sebastian would return to save Portugal. But few people actually believe that these remains are those of the Desired King. And let’s not forget the famous Pastéis de Belém bakery is only 500 metres away from the Monastery.

The endless lines of tourists standing outside would almost make you forget that this is part of the public transport network where you can use your Viva card. This National Monument was inaugurated in 1902, and is the work of Porto engineer Raoul Mesnier de Ponsard. It is beautiful from the outside, where you can admire the cast iron filigrees that change at every floor, and from the inside, with a cabin made of wood and brass.

It was built as a fortress by the Moors that reigned here before the arrival of King Afonso I in 1147. Along the years, it was repurposed and even became a royal palace, but it started the 20th century in ruins. A great work of restoration took place between 1938 and 1940, and it led to the discovery of countless historical vestiges, which can now be seen in the permanent exhibition or on a guided tour. The castle’s events agenda includes literary seminars, as well as musical and theatre performances.

Located inside the Alvor Palace, this is the Portuguese museum that contains the biggest concentration of national treasures and references. Between paintings, sculptures, drawings, goldsmithery, European decorative arts and furniture, Asian and African art, the museum counts close to 40,000 items from the twelfth to the nineteenth century including, for example, the Saint Vincent Panels by Nino Gonçalves, or the Triptych of the Temptation of St Anthony by Hieronymus Bosch.

It's hard now to imagine the shack made of wood and cloth that Dom José I, king at the time of the 1755 earthquake, had built here in the aftermath of the disaster. Ajuda, Portugal’s last royal palace, was built on the site of that shack and today houses items dating from the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries. Since 2014 it has been possible to visit the queen’s private chapel, where you can see a late work by El Greco – The Veil of Veronica – which in the only painting by the artist in Portugal.

Location: Pillar 7. The 25 de April bridge, inaugurated in 1966, has 14 pillars, but the one we’re interested in right now is on Avenida da Índia, at the back of Village Underground. Now that we’re situated, let’s get to it: this new tourist attraction takes visitors inside this pillar for a sensory immersion.

Lisbon’s latest viewpoint is almost 50 years old. In the past, it was a luxury restaurant, a bingo hall, a nightclub, an office building and a warehouse. Now, this architectural UFO designed by Chaves da Costa has been given a new lease of life - and a much more peaceful one: it is a viewpoint, which was always its second calling anyway. The 360º view of the city and great location, in Alto da Serafina Recreational Park, make this derelict building the best place to check out the sights in Monsanto. We won’t lie: it’s the best view of the whole city. Abandoned since 2001, the Panoramic received only sporadic visits from urban explorers, tourists, curious onlookers and people armed with spray paint, who went there to do what people generally do with spray paint. Since September 2nd, 2017, it can be visited legally and safely. Lisbon City Hall removed the rubble, put protections in place, and is soon going to tackle the walls full of sentences like “I can’t live without you Albino”. However, this won’t be the Panorâmico’s last refurbishing: the final transformation will happen in the future, after we find out who won an ideas competition due to be launched by City Hall in its next mandate. Until then, enjoy.