Lisbon attraction tickets: what to book ahead

Book ahead for Jerónimos Monastery, the Oceanário and São Jorge Castle in high season: those are the three queues that cost people real time. Almost everything else you can buy at the door. The Lisboa Card pays off only if you visit two or three included monuments a day and use public transport.

Option	Usual length	Best for
Lisboa Card (24, 48 or 72 hours)	1 to 3 days	Monument-heavy days with lots of public transport	Check prices on GetYourGuide
Jerónimos Monastery ticket	1 to 1.5 hours	Skipping the ticket-office line in Belém	Check prices on GetYourGuide
São Jorge Castle ticket	1.5 to 2 hours	The best view over the old city	Check prices on GetYourGuide
Oceanário de Lisboa ticket	2 to 3 hours	Families and rainy days	Check prices on GetYourGuide
Hop-on hop-off bus	24 or 48 hours	Limited mobility, or seeing the spread-out sights	Check prices on Viator

The three that are worth booking

Jerónimos Monastery (Belém). The longest queue in Lisbon. There are usually two lines: one for the church, which is free, and one for the cloister, which is the paid part and the reason to come. A ticket bought in advance lets you skip the ticket office, though not the security check. Go at opening time or in the last two hours of the day.

São Jorge Castle. The walls and the view are the attraction, more than anything inside. Lines build from mid-morning. The climb from Baixa is steep: take bus 737 or a tuk-tuk up and walk down through Alfama afterwards.

Oceanário de Lisboa. One of the largest aquariums in Europe, in Parque das Nações, about 20 minutes from the centre on the red metro line (Oriente station). It is busiest on weekends and on rainy days, when every family in the city has the same idea.

The ones you can decide on the day

National Tile Museum (Museu Nacional do Azulejo): rarely a queue, and one of the best museums in the city. It is out of the centre, so go by bus or taxi.
Santa Justa Lift: the queue is for the lift, not the view. Walk up to the top platform from Largo do Carmo behind it and you skip the wait entirely.
Padrão dos Descobrimentos and MAAT, both in Belém: tickets at the door.
Gulbenkian Museum: buy at the door, and stay for the gardens, which are free.
Miradouros (viewpoints): all free, always open.

Is the Lisboa Card worth it?

The card bundles three things: unlimited public transport (metro, buses, trams, lifts, and the trains to Sintra and Cascais), free entry to a list of monuments and museums, and discounts on others.

It is worth it when you plan a day like this: Jerónimos in the morning, another included monument in the afternoon, and five or six rides on public transport. It is not worth it when you mostly walk, visit one paid sight a day, or spend your time on things the card does not include.

Three things to know before buying:

The list of included sights changes. Check the current list on the day you buy, especially for the sights you care about most.
Some big names are only discounted, not free. The castle and the Oceanário have historically been in that group.
Free entry does not mean skipping the line. At some monuments you still have to queue to exchange the card for a ticket.

Check closing days before you plan

Many state-run monuments and museums in Lisbon close one day a week, most often Monday. Belém is the classic trap: people keep their Belém day for a Monday and find the monastery shut. Confirm opening days on the official site of each monument before you fix your plan.

Belém Tower has also had long closures for restoration work. If it matters to you, check whether it is open before you go. From the outside it is free to see at any time, and that is the better half of the visit anyway.

How to fit it together

Our 3-day itinerary groups the sights by area, so you are not crossing the city twice. Sintra’s palaces use a separate ticket system with timed entry: see Lisbon to Sintra.