Lisbon is a vast, vast city, the largest one in Portugal. As such, it’s understandable that many may question whether a day or two is enough for such a place. How many days do you realistically need in Lisbon? We’ll go over that in today’s post.
One day in Lisbon
Is one day enough for Lisbon?
Going through Arco da Rua Augusta, Sé de Lisboa, Miradouro de Santa Luzia, Miradouro das Portas do Sol, Castelo de S Jorge, Praça Luís de Camões, Praça Dom Pedro IV, Elevador de Santa Justa, Elevador da Bica, Time Out Market Lisboa and Cais das Colunas will take you about 2 to 3 hours of walking, without stops, without rest and without actually entering any of these sites.
Therefore, such a walk, including breaks and perhaps actually entering a place, should take you a whole day, roughly from 9am to 3pm. If you have some time left, you can take a tram to Torre de Belem and Mosteiro dos Jerónimos – we also highly recommend taking a moment to take a seat and try the famous Pasteis de Nata in Belem!
Thus yes, you can ‘see’ most of the main tourist attractions in Lisbon in a day, but it’s an absolute rush and we cannot guarantee that you’ll enjoy such an experience much. Still, if you only have one day and you really want to see Lisbon then yes, by all means you can.
Two days in Lisbon
Is two days enough for Lisbon?
What about two days then? You can extend the plan from above with a visit to Alfama and Bairro Alto, Lisbon’s neighbourhoods. We also recommend a walk through Parque Eduardo VII, north of the city centre. We won’t add more to this list because two days will allow you to take the one-day plan above and take it much slower, take more breaks, spend some time in restaurants or on any particular site and simply enjoy it.
Three days in Lisbon
Three days to experience Lisbon
If you have one more day in Lisbon, we’d recommend going to Cascais or Sintra to see the Palácio Nacional da Pena, Castelo dos Mouros and the town itself. On top of that, you can drive a bit more on Portugal’s winding roads to the westernmost point of Europe, Cabo da Roca. There you will see one of Portugal’s most beautiful beaches, Praia da Ursa.
How many days do you need in Lisbon?
What is right for you?
If you’re really short on time, which we get is just the way it is sometimes, then you can literally run through Lisbon in a day. Two days will yield you the centre and the main chunk with a bit more breath, but it’s still a bit lacking. Truth be told, we think that to really experience Lisbon and its surroundings, a three-day trip is the bare minimum to really get it. Ideally, to have time to also see the nearby towns and villages and maybe go hiking in the nearby parks and hills, we’d say a week is perfect. Still, we get that that’s just not an option for many of you, so a weekend is what you can settle for.
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