Plan a group trip to Lisbon
Everything below is the planning detail rather than the sightseeing. Currency, climate, what to pack for it, and a day structure that works, so you can put your dates in and fill the days.
Weather and what it means for planning
Mild all year. Summers around 28°C but drier and more bearable than inland Spain, winters mild at around 15°C with some rain.
On your Holiday Board, each day shows a forecast once a reliable one exists, which is roughly two weeks ahead. Further out than that we show nothing rather than guessing, because a made-up forecast is worse than none when you are deciding what to pack.
What to pack for Lisbon
- Shoes with real grip. Lisbon pavements are polished limestone and are slippery even when dry
- Layers for hills, since you will be warm walking up and cool at the top
- Sun protection, as the light is strong even in spring
- A light waterproof between November and March
Add these to your plans as bring items while you are setting up the trip and they turn up on everyone’s packing list automatically, with duplicates merged.
An example Lisbon day structure
A workable shape for a 3 to 5 days trip. Copy whichever of these fit onto your own days and ignore the rest.
Day 1Arrival day
Somewhere flat and near your accommodation. The hills can wait.
Day 2Alfama
A morning of steep narrow streets and viewpoints. Start early before the heat.
Day 3Belém
Half a day, best combined with lunch. Easy by tram or train.
Day 4Sintra
A full day. Do not attempt it alongside anything else.
Day 5Bairro Alto
An evening rather than a day. Late, and best on foot.
Practical things worth knowing
- Euro. Cards are widely accepted, though small cafés may prefer cash
- Tram 28 is genuinely useful and genuinely crowded. Go early or accept standing
- The hills are steeper than photos suggest. Lifts and funiculars exist and are worth using
- Sintra needs its own day, and the return trains fill in late afternoon
Getting around
The metro is clean and cheap but the city is defined by its hills. Add time to every leave time for walking uphill, and use the funiculars without embarrassment.
This is the reason leave time exists as its own field on every plan. The start time is when the thing happens. The leave time is when you actually need to be out of the door, and in Lisbon the gap between those two is bigger than people expect.
Money on a Lisbon trip
Lisbon uses the Euro. If your group counts in pounds, set EUR as the local currency and GBP as the home currency when you create the holiday. Every expense then shows both, and the rate is saved with the expense so past spending never shifts when rates move.
At the end, the expense splitter nets everything off into the fewest possible payments.
Lisbon planning questions
- What currency is used in Lisbon?
- The Euro (EUR). Euro. Cards are widely accepted, though small cafés may prefer cash
- How long should I go to Lisbon for?
- 3 to 5 days suits most groups. That gives you enough days to include a full day trip without every day being booked.
- When is the best time to visit Lisbon?
- March to June and September to October. Mild all year. Summers around 28°C but drier and more bearable than inland Spain, winters mild at around 15°C with some rain.
- How do I get around in Lisbon?
- The metro is clean and cheap but the city is defined by its hills. Add time to every leave time for walking uphill, and use the funiculars without embarrassment.
Next
Start your Lisbon board
Put your dates in and every day of the trip appears, ready for the structure above.
Create your Holiday BoardFree to start. No card needed. £6.99 per holiday if you want the lot.