Things to Do in Belém Lisbon: 5 Sights in Order

The things to do in Belém, Lisbon, sit along one riverside road, so you can see all five in half a day. This list follows the order that avoids backtracking, with the opening days and the price of each stop.

Prices and hours below come from the operators' own pages, read on 19 and 21 October 2026. Check them for your travel date.

1. Jerónimos Monastery: go first, before the queue builds

King Manuel I decided in 1496 to found the monastery, Turismo de Lisboa says. Its church holds the tombs of Vasco da Gama and the poet Luís de Camões. Both Belém monuments belong to one operator, which lists the ticket at €18. Ages 13 to 24 and over 65s pay half, and children up to 12 go in free.

The cloister is open Tuesday to Sunday, 9:30 to 17:30, with the last admission at 17:00. The church is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10:30 to 17:00, and on Sundays and religious holidays from 14:00 to 17:00. Ticket offices close at 16:30. The monastery is closed on Mondays, on 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May, 13 June and 25 December.

The operator advises buying online ahead, because tickets often sell out and cannot be bought on the day itself. The Jerónimos entrance ticket on GetYourGuide is from €18, the same as the operator's price. Reviewers rate it 4.2 across 16,302 reviews, and the page says it is non-refundable.

Lisboa Card holders go in free, but they must book a date and time with their card number. Do that before the day.

2. Pastéis de Belém: the custard tart stop

The bakery at Rua de Belém 84 to 98 says it began baking its original pastéis in 1837, following a recipe from the Jerónimos Monastery. The bakery opens every day. From 1 October to 30 June the hours are 8:00 to 21:00, and from 1 July to 30 September they are 8:00 to 22:00.

The page lists no prices and gives no queue times. Turismo de Lisboa's page for the bakery gives the same address and hours.

Go straight after the monastery. The bakery's own history says baking began next to the monastery, so the two belong together.

3. Belém Tower: the river fortress

The tower stands on the Tagus and has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1983, together with the monastery. At the operator the tower costs €15, with the same discounts as at the monastery. The operator prints one block of hours for both monuments, Tuesday to Sunday, 9:30 to 17:30, and adds that the tower may close when the weather makes it unsafe. The tower is closed on Mondays and on the same holidays as the monastery.

The Belém Tower entry ticket is from €15, which is the operator's price. Reviewers rate it 4.1 across 9,043 reviews, and the page says it is non-refundable. Lisboa Card holders need a booked date and time here too.

Buy the ticket before you queue, and check the sky. A windy day can mean a closed tower.

Pro Tip Book the tower for the afternoon and the monastery for the morning. The two tickets then fit one half day without a rush.

4. Monument to the Discoveries: the stone caravel

The monument is a huge stone caravel on the riverbank. It was built for the 1940 Portuguese World Expo and made permanent in 1960, and it shows Vasco da Gama, Bartholomew Dias, Pedro Álvares Cabral and Magellan. The monument's own ticket page lists €10 for the viewpoint, the exhibition and the film, and €5 for the exhibition only.

Between 1 October and 28 February the doors are open daily, 10:00 to 18:00, with the last entry at 17:30. From 1 March to 30 September it is open until 19:00. It closes on 1 January, 1 May and 24, 25 and 31 December. The film runs on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays at 11:15 and 16:00. Adult Lisboa Card holders go in free.

A ticket covers three things, the viewpoint, the exhibition and the film. Decide which you want before you queue, because the exhibition-only ticket costs half.

5. MAAT: the modern museum on the waterfront

The MAAT is Lisbon's museum of art, architecture and technology on Avenida Brasília. Its visit page lists opening Wednesday to Monday, 10:00 to 19:00, and closing on Tuesdays. Standard admission is €16 for visitors who live outside Portugal. Expect the ticket desk to close early when it is busy.

Visit it if you have time left. That makes it the one Belém stop with a Monday opening.

A neighbourhood like Belém rewards one early start more than an extra hour at the end of the day.

Getting to Belém: train, tram and bus

The fastest way is the train. The CP timetable in effect from 5 July 2026 lists trains from Cais do Sodré about every 20 minutes during the day, reaching Belém 8 minutes later. Carris tram 15E runs from Praça da Figueira and lists stops at Belém (Museu Coches) and Mosteiro Jerónimos. Carris has replaced trams with buses between Praça da Figueira and Belém in the past, so check the current notice before you rely on the tram.

How to choose things to do in Belém, Lisbon

Pick by the weekday first, then by budget. The table puts the hours and the price of each stop side by side.

Key Takeaway The monastery and the tower close on Mondays and the MAAT closes on Tuesdays, so only the pastry shop and the Monument to the Discoveries are open on every weekday.

Should you book a tour or go alone? The two entry tickets cost €33 together at the operator's prices, and you need no guide for a first look. The Belém and Jerónimos guided tour is from €69 and lasts 3 hours. It includes the monastery ticket, a guided visit of the church and Vasco da Gama's tomb, a pastel de Belém and a guided visit of the Monument to the Discoveries. A visit to Belém Tower is an extra you book separately. It is rated 4.9 from 1,313 reviews, and the page offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before.

The tour is the wrong choice if you only want to see the buildings. The page also warns that the church is closed on Sunday mornings during mass and that the tour is not suitable for wheelchair users. In that case, buy the two entry tickets and take your own time.

Things to Do in Lisbon's count of GetYourGuide listings in October 2026 found 16 listings with Belém in the title, from €15 to €542, with a middle price of about €72. Only one of them, the Belém Tower ticket, cannot be cancelled for free.

For entry tickets to other sights, see our entry tickets for Lisbon's sights, including Jerónimos Monastery and Belém Tower.

Where to stay in Belém

Staying in Belém gets you to the monastery before the day visitors arrive. The Altis Belém Hotel & Spa is a design hotel with a spa on the Belém waterfront, close to the tower. The Geronimo Guest House Belém has a garden and a terrace, and is a four-minute walk from the monastery. Booking.com shows them at 9.3 and 9.1 as of 21 October 2026.