How To Make The Most Of Lisbon In 4 Days

In early 2023, I was searching for my next solo trip destination. I already had plans for a Belgium Battlefield trip, a Dolomites trek and a Canadian Rockies Road Trip (posts pending) with friends, family and my partner but I wanted a trip for me. To explore a new city and learn about the culture. It turned out my choice of Lisbon was trendsetting amongst my friends. I had multiple people ask for my itinerary which covered the main attractions, logistics and a Sintra Day Trip.

Lisbon Itinerary

Here is the most popular Itinerary I’ve created. My research of attractions, restaurants and a Sintra day trip ensured I made the most of my short 4-day trip in May. The daily challenge was to find the best Patel de Natas! I can safely say I’ve had my fair share of these tasty tarts, find out my favourite place later.

Day	Activity	Duration	Cost
1	Flight departs Heathrow	2h40	£83
1	Metro to Lisbon centre	0h30	Lisboa Card
1	Castelo de São Jorge & Pantheon	Afternoon	Lisboa Card
1	Home Hostel Check-In (16:00)	–	£112
1	Time Out Market	1h30	£20
2	Nicolau Cafe for Breakfast	0h45	£10
2	Morning Walking Tour	2h30	£10
2	Belem Tower	Afternoon	Lisboa Card
2	Time Out Market	Evening	£20
2	Drinking with Backpacker friends	–	£30
3	Sintra Day Trip (See below)	1 Day	£60
3	Dinner & Drinks	Evening	£40
4	Tram Ride	1h00	Lisboa Card
4	Hostel Check Out (11:00)	–	–
4	Jeronimas Monastrery	2h00	Lisboa Card
4	Estery walk and Bridge	2h00	£0
4	Metro then Lisbon Flight	2h40	Lisboa Card

Lisboa Card & Transport

Let me introduce the Lisboa Card. Most cities offer a discount card but they are usually overpriced. The Lisboa card is easy to get value for money! Starting by booking online at Tiqets, I selected a 72-hour duration card for £45 and booked my Sintra trip on the same app. It was quick to swap the code for the physical card at the Ask Me Lisboa stand in the airport and get an online guidebook. The benefits are access to 40 museums & monuments including the Castelo de São Jorge, Torre de Belém and Mosteiro dos Jerónimos. As well as the unlimited free travel by bus, metro, tram and elevators which is handy if you don’t fancy hiking up the Lisbon hills!

I used Tap Airline to fly from Heathrow to Lisbon with return flights costing £83 so overall cheap flights. I picked the earliest London flight and latest Lisbon flight to maximise my time in Lisbon. I had an afternoon to occupy before Hostel Check-In so soaked up the Castle views and sun! The Lisboa Card helped reduce the stress at the airport of buying metro tickets too.

The Hostel

Food & Drink

Lisbon surprised me by the quality of the food! I was slightly worried that most of the food would be fish but there were plenty of vegetarian options and I had the best pancakes I’ve ever had in a cafe…. which happened to be next to the Hostel! The queues for Nicolau Lisboa are definitely justified. I went as soon as they opened to beat the crowds and would have gone back more if not for plans!

Time Out Market

Time Out Market Lisboa is the go-to place to explore the cuisine. The building has a real atmosphere and can be challenging to find a seat on the benches which only indicates popularity. But the quality of the food far exceeded my expectations. The 1st night, I had Veg Gyoza’s and a Tofu Pad Thai at Asian Lab which had a nice balance of spice and tang. My friend tested my itinerary out a week before I went and his Vegetarian wife raved about Asian Lab and I can second that recommendation. The 2nd night I tried Marlene Viera’s stand which had a nice chowder dish but lacked carbs and didn’t blow me away compared to the day before.

Tu & Eu 2 & Pastel de Nata

After Sintra, Harrison (new Aussie mate) and I luckily got a table at Lisboa Tu & Eu 2 which was the culinary highlight for me. We shared bread, ordered beer and I had Veggies a bras which is made of shredded leeks and potatoes. I was surprised by the flavour of such a simple dish, when combined with the small restaurant and graffiti walls, it was a true Portuguese experience. The real reason to visit Portugal was for those small flaky pastry, custard-filled delights known as Patel de Nata. On average they cost around 1 euro and were worth every bite, in particular when still warm and I recommend sprinkled with cinnamon.

Day 1 – Castelo & Time-Out

After arriving at the centre from the airport, I scouted out where the hostel was and dropped off the bag. I was now free to discover the beautiful city of Lisbon. I first noticed the lack of supermarkets to grab a cheap lunch in the centre but made do at a small café before heading to Praça do Comércio. I took in the vast square and the Tagus riverfront before heading to conquer the castle. I followed Google Maps along the crowds up the winding roads and was amazed by the orange rooftops and views over the city. The Castelo de São Jorge is a magnificent and well-kept ancient fortress perched on the hill. I spent hours roaming around the groups, absorbing the panoramic views and evading the roaming Peacocks.

After the Castelo, I walked down to the Pantheon to climb the dome and see the crypt. I used my Student ID to get a 50% discount so was only £3.50 to see the epic interior architecture and to climb to the roof terrace which offered great views over the river and up to the hill. After a quick stop off at the hostel to relax and recharge, I ventured out for an evening walk to Time Out Market and as mentioned above tried out Asian Lab for dinner. After that, I had a short stroll to the pink street then into a sports bar to watch F1 and met some locals who were watching the Fusball Champions League final which was more interesting than the Premier League game. Finally, I headed back to the Hostel after a long 1st day in Lisbon.

Day 2 – Lisbon Tour & Belem

The second day started off with the best pancakes I’ve ever had from Nicolau Lisboa and then walked past the central station to Praça Luís de Camões for the Free Walking Tour with Fraga. I found this tour and booked it via Guruwalk. It was fantastic to learn about the origins of Lisbon, its relationship to the Spanish, architecture, the famous people and the highlight was the free Patel de Nata! On this tour, I started chatting to an Australian backpacker called Harrison and then met another Londoner called Nicole. After checking out a great viewpoint near the Castelo, we grabbed a bite to eat then Nicole and I got the train to Belem while Harrison explored the Castelo.
We scouted out the Jerónimos Monastery but it was busy so went to the best Pastel de Nata place in Lisbon… Pastéis de Belém. This place has 82K reviews on Google and is worth the hype. I enjoyed all 6 of the delicious tarts I bought for a reasonable price! The next stop was to see Belem Tower which was unfortunately shut by the time we arrived and then I took pictures of the Discovery Statue. We got a busy commuter train back to the centre and headed to Time Out Market for food and drinks once Harrison eventually found us. This led to

Day 3- Sintra Day Trip

Sintra was one of the main reasons for visiting Lisbon and found useful tips for when to see the Palace, Castle and other sites! I planned the trip for a solo excursion but Harrison was keen to join so we met at the station, narrowly missed a train thanks to missing my alarms. I had pre-booked my time slot at Pena Palace for an early slot and Harrison had a slightly later slot which was booked while in Lisbon. After a quick Starbucks to rid the hangover and charge the phones, we got on the train and ventured to Sintra.

Place	Time	Duration	Cost
Lisbon Station – Train Departure	08:50	0h40	Lisboa Card
Hike up the Hill	09:30	0h30	–
National Palace of Pena	10:00	1h30	£17
The Moorish Castle	12:00	1h30	£10
Quinta da Regaleira	14:00	1h00	£10
Lunch – Burgers	15:00	0h30	£10
Palace of Sintra	15:30	1h00	£11
Sintra Station- Train Departure	16:50	0h40	–
Arrive in Lisbon	17:30	–	Lisboa Card

Palace of Pena and Moorish Casle

First was a fast march from the station to the palace. as I only had 30 mins to hike up 300m hill. We shaved off 20mins from Google’s estimates after ignoring the tempting taxis. We arrived with minutes to spare to see long queues, a welcome break. The Palace was hidden in fog which gave it a magical feel despite the queues. The cloister was the best of the interior palace but was slow to follow people around. I preferred the outside views where you could appreciate the vibrant colours. I met Harrison after his tour and we went off to the Moorish Castle which was a quick 15/20min walk. I preferred the Castle to Pena Palace because it was less crowded and it had better views of the Palace in the fog. It was a fun castle to walk the walls of before descending the hill to Quinta da Regaleira.

Quinta de Regaleira & Sintra Palace

Quinta da Regaleira was the only place I had not pre-booked and was glad to visit. The exterior gothic architecture of the main house is captivating with the green surroundings. The main attraction is the Initiation Well, an inverted tower you descend down away from the daylight. The decor is typical of Quinta de Regaleira with beautiful carvings along the staircases. By the bottom, it is cool and damp with a feeling of being submersed underground. It is quite unlike any human structure I have visited which ended in exploring tunnels and underground pools.

After Quinta, we had a quick lunch stop for a burger to refuel before our final stop at the Palace of Sintra. The Sintra Palace is less grand than Pena but has an impressive throne room and 2 conical chimneys towering above. It capped off a busy day in Sintra before we walked downhill to the station and went back to Lisbon. A quick recharge in the Hostel before meeting Harrison for dinner at Lisbon Tu & Eu 2. A tiny restaurant with long queues for a reason. A fantastic place for local Portuguese cuisine and we were lucky to get a table but this was my most memorable dinner. After we went to Cerveja Canil for craft beer and then an ice cream to top off a wonderful day.

Day 4 – Jerónimos Monastery

The final day of my solo trip and a day to enjoy the city to myself. I started with an early morning walk to the start of the No.28 Tram from Martim Moniz and enjoyed the journey through Alfama, Braixa towards Bairro Alto. I got to the tram stop around 8:30 and managed to get a seat so would recommend going before rush hour. I walked back via the Elevador de Santa Justa but did not ride up it as had to get back to the hostel to finish packing, put my bag in the storage room and checked out. My last proper excursion out was to visit Jeronimos Monastery and the stunning cloister. I jumped on a bus near
Praça do Comércio and it took about 30mins along the riverfront to arrive at Belem. What I hadn’t expected was a huge Police Parade outside the Monastery with huge crowds. A little warning, it was not clear which queue was for tour groups, which for the monastery and which for the Church of Santa Maria (with the tomb of Vasco de Gama). I queued for 45mins and was nervous as I expected my Lisboa card to expire at 11 am so got in with minutes to spare.

Jerónimos Monastery

The Jerónimos Monastery’s cloister over 2 storeys is one of the most beautiful and intricately detailed architecture I have seen, simply breathtaking! The Cloister was my favourite attraction to visit in Lisbon and I saved the best until the end. After the monastery, I enjoyed the parade with a prime view to see the vehicles, horses, patrols and dog units march past, it was a very elaborate parade! It was a scorching hot day, so after a supermarket lunch outside Belem monastery gardens, I decided to take a 6.5km walk along the river back to the Baixa area. The highlight was the Ponte de 25 Abril Bridge which made me feel like I was in San Francisco and the nice relaxed stroll along the promenade.

Lisbon Cathedral

I fancied a spot of souvenir shopping where I picked up cork and ceramic tile gifts, typically Portuguese. Then with the remaining time, I visited Lisbon Cathedral after snapping iconic Tram pics out front. It was a few euros entry with beautiful stained glass and lots of history so highly worth it and quieter than other attractions. After I collected my Backpack from the Hostel, I grabbed an early dinner at Boa Bon for Lebanese food which was tasty and reasonably priced but not mind-blowing like some of the other dishes. Before leaving Lisbon, with the little change I had left, I treated myself to one final Pastel de Nata at Manteigaria which was my 2nd favourite after Belem. Then on the metro at Baixa Chiado (2 euros) to the airport for my evening flight back to the UK.

Packing List

For this trip, I used my trusty Packing List for Hostelling as I needed minimal gear and with the hot weather, I travelled very light without layers. And this gave me extra space for a couple of souvenirs.

Trip Budget & Costs

Overall this was one of the cheapest and best-value trips I have done with the overall around £450 (£112 per day approx.). The food and drink are where these costs fluctuate but the Lisboa card and the Sintra attractions were reasonably priced.

Item	Cost
Flights – Tap Air	£83
Hostel – Home Hostel Lisbon	£112
Lisboa Card 72-Hour Card	£45
Sintra Day Trip (Pena Palace, Moorish Castle, Sintra Palace, Quinta da Regaleira)	£49
Food & Drink (4 Days)	£150
Other (Souvenirs)	£10
Sub Total (approx)	£450

Journal Sketches

Lisbon lessons & Next Time

Lisbon is simply amazing and for backpacking it has numerous quality and affordable hostels. The nightlife is active and the drinks are cheap (compared to my benchmark of London). As someone who enjoys climbing mountains, Lisbon was fun to walk up the hills and narrow streets but it should be said the hills are STEEP! My average steps were well over 30,000 a day and even though I had the Lisboa Card, I enjoyed discovering the districts by foot. My main lessons were the quality of food was higher than most places I’ve been to with great local produce and incredible flavour. There is a diverse range of attractions and history to embrace. Over the 4 days, I tried as much as possible but I could happily go back to properly visit Belem Tower, Carmo Archelgiocal Museum and ride the Justa Elevador.

As mentioned, I could have made more of the Hostel I stayed at and met more people but it was nice on a solo trip to meet people naturally on a walking tour and then making plans to explore Lisbon and Sintra. I will say the lack of convenient shops/ supermarkets in the centre meant food was mainly from cafes and restaurants which isn’t bad given the good prices and flavour. Overall, my itinerary ensured I made the most of my time in Lisbon and would highly recommend it if you’re looking for a sunny warm city with plenty of history, things to see and an exquisite culinary scene to indulge in!