7-day Lisbon self-drive itinerary

A week in Lisbon with independent city days plus DIY Sintra, Cascais, and Arrábida, Évora, or Óbidos — Metro and trains first.

A week in Lisbon is easily done without renting a car for the city itself — the Metro, trams, and regional trains cover Alfama, Belém, Sintra, Cascais, and even an Alentejo day out to Évora. This independent itinerary keeps you on foot, tram, Metro, and train for most of the week, with an optional one-day hire car suggested only if you want to drive the Arrábida coast or Óbidos yourself. Prefer hosted packages and coach pickups instead? Switch to 7-day Lisbon itinerary with guided tours.

How to pace a week

Base yourself in Baixa/Chiado for central walkability, on the Alfama edge for early-morning atmosphere before the coach groups arrive, or in Príncipe Real for a quieter, leafier feel — all sit within walking or one-Metro-stop reach of this route’s city-centre stops. Do not hire a car for central Lisbon: steep cobbled streets, one-way lanes, and near-zero parking near any ticketed site make driving a genuine liability, and the Metro and trams will always beat it between sights here.

• Buy a 7-day-equivalent Navegante pass on arrival, or top up a Viva Viagem card across the week
• Book Jerónimos Monastery and Sintra’s Pena Palace or Quinta da Regaleira timed entry before you fly; both routinely sell out early slots in high season
• Reserve Évora train seats a few days ahead in summer
• Consider a one-day hire car for the Arrábida coast or Óbidos loop only if you want full flexibility — trains and buses work too, with more transfers

Alternate ticketed, walk-heavy days with softer ones. Do not schedule Sintra and a full day trip back to back — both involve a fair amount of walking on hills. Use best day trips from Lisbon for train and bus timings to Sintra, Cascais, Évora, and Óbidos, and keep day 7 loose for packing, a last market visit, or a soft finish.

• One Lisbon base all seven nights
• No hire car needed for the city or most day trips — Metro, trams, and regional trains cover almost everything
• Book Jerónimos and Sintra tickets ahead of arrival
• Alternate a hard ticketed day with a soft one throughout the week

The route at a glance

• Day 1 — Arrive; Alfama’s lanes and miradouros
• Day 2 — Belém: Jerónimos Monastery, the tower, and pastéis de nata
• Day 3 — Chiado, Bairro Alto, or Príncipe Real and LX Factory
• Day 4 — DIY Sintra by early train
• Day 5 — Cascais, soft by train
• Day 6 — Arrábida, Évora, or Óbidos, one-day hire car or train/bus
• Day 7 — Soft neighborhood morning; depart

Day 1 — Arrive; Alfama and the miradouros

Book São Jorge Castle timed entry online ahead of your climb, then head into Alfama, Lisbon’s oldest neighborhood and one of the few districts to survive the 1755 earthquake largely intact. Climb through the tiled lanes to Miradouro das Portas do Sol and Miradouro de Santa Luzia for a first sweeping view over the rooftops toward the Tagus, then continue up to the castle for the highest vantage point in the old city. Finish at Miradouro da Graça for an early dinner before an early night — you will want the energy for the week ahead.

Day 2 — Belém: Jerónimos, the tower, and pastéis de nata

The tram or a short train from Cais do Sodré reaches Belém, where Jerónimos Monastery’s Manueline cloisters, funded by the wealth of the Age of Discovery, are worth an unhurried couple of hours. Walk along the river to Belém Tower and the Padrão dos Descobrimentos monument, then close the day with pastéis de nata at the original Pastéis de Belém bakery, serving the same recipe since 1837.

Day 3 — Chiado, Bairro Alto, or Príncipe Real and LX Factory

Spend the morning in Chiado, among Belle Époque cafés like the historic A Brasileira and the roofless earthquake ruins of Convento do Carmo, before an afternoon in Bairro Alto’s narrow lanes, which come alive with bars well after 10pm. Alternatively, wander Príncipe Real’s leafy square and independent boutiques in the morning, then take the Metro and tram out to LX Factory for riverside street art, shops, and a sunset walk toward the 25 de Abril Bridge. Either version leaves your legs fresher for tomorrow’s train day.

Day 4 — DIY Sintra by early train

Trains to Sintra leave frequently from Rossio station and take about forty minutes — catch one of the first departures to beat the midday coach surge. Pena Palace’s candy-colored towers above dense forest and Quinta da Regaleira’s mystical initiation well are the two headline sites; pick one or two rather than every palace, since Sintra’s hilly, one-way roads make moving between sites slower than the map suggests. The 434 Scotturb bus loops between the train station, the historic centre, and the palaces, saving a steep uphill walk.

• Book Pena Palace or Quinta da Regaleira timed entry online before you go
• The 434 Scotturb bus loop saves the steep walk between the station, town centre, and palaces
• Catch a return train before late afternoon to avoid long queues for the uphill bus

Day 5 — Cascais, soft by train

A direct train from Cais do Sodré reaches Cascais, a relaxed former fishing village turned seaside resort, in about forty minutes. Walk the marina, browse the old town’s shops, and detour to the dramatic sea cave at Boca do Inferno for a proper Atlantic-air reset after Sintra’s hills. Keep the rest of the day unhurried — this is meant to be a lighter counterpoint between two harder days.

Day 6 — Arrábida, Évora, or Óbidos

This is the one day in the week where a hire car genuinely earns its cost, depending on which direction you pick. Arrábida Natural Park, south across the 25 de Abril Bridge, has some of Portugal’s best beaches — turquoise water backed by pine-covered cliffs — and is realistically reached only by car or an organized tour, since public transport there is sparse and slow. Alternatively, a direct intercity train from Oriente station reaches Évora, a walled UNESCO World Heritage Alentejo town, in around ninety minutes, home to the Roman Temple of Diana and the eerie bone-lined Chapel of Bones — no car needed. A third option, Óbidos, is a compact medieval walled town reachable by direct bus from Campo Grande in about an hour, known for its cobbled main street, whitewashed houses, and ginjinha (cherry liqueur) served in chocolate cups. Pick Arrábida if you rent a car for the day, or Évora or Óbidos if you would rather stay on public transport all week.

• A one-day rental from central Lisbon is straightforward for Arrábida; return it the same evening rather than keeping it overnight
• Évora and Óbidos are both comfortably reached by direct train or bus with no car needed
• If driving unfamiliar Portuguese roads for a day sounds like more hassle than it is worth, a guided day tour covers Arrábida or Évora without a rental — see the companion 7-day Lisbon itinerary with guided tours

Day 7 — Soft neighborhood morning and departure

Keep departure day unticketed. A last wander through Alfama or Chiado, a stop at Mercado da Ribeira if it fits your schedule, and an unhurried coffee in Príncipe Real beat squeezing in one more sight. Build in real margin for the Metro’s red line, which reaches Lisbon Airport directly from Alameda or Saldanha.

Self-drive vs packages for a week

Independent weeks in Lisbon cost less in tour fees and let you linger where you like — an extra hour at Jerónimos, a longer tasca dinner, a detour down an Alfama lane that looked interesting. Guided weeks cost more but remove the planning for Sintra, Cascais, or Évora, and hotel pickup helps on early countryside mornings. Mix freely: DIY city days plus one guided countryside tour is a popular hybrid. Full package stack: 7-day Lisbon itinerary with guided tours.

Eating without wasting half the day

Tascas away from Rua Augusta’s tourist menus in Alfama and Mouraria are better value and better food than sit-down spots with touts outside. Book one nicer dinner mid-week and keep the other nights simple — petiscos and a glass of vinho verde at a neighborhood tasca beats chasing the same few restaurants every guidebook lists. If your week is shorter than seven nights, see the 5-day Lisbon self-drive itinerary for a tighter version of this same route, best day trips from Lisbon for more day-trip ideas, and the Lisbon destination guide for neighborhood-level detail.