Portugal
Lisbon: how much to budget
Plan €1445 for 7 nights in Lisbon, return flight from London included, or €623 travelling cheap. On the ground that works out at €197 per person per day.
Lisbon’s hills and Atlantic light. Plan flights, stay, and daily spend before you go.
- From
- €81/day
- vs. London
- 97%
- Best month
- May
Your trip to Lisbon
Set the length, the number of travellers and the comfort level: the figures recompute here.
€1,445
per person, flight included
- on the ground
- €1,379
- flight from London
- €66
- per person per day, on the ground
- €197
InstantTripCost estimate
Full 7-night budget breakdown
Per-person estimate including flights from London, split across the six expense categories.
per person · Comfort
| Category | Budget | Comfort | Luxury |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flights | €56 | €66 | €99 |
| Hotel | €196 | €504 | €1400 |
| Food | €294 | €588 | €1260 |
| Transport | €28 | €70 | €175 |
| Activities | €21 | €112 | €420 |
| Misc | €28 | €105 | €392 |
| 7-night total | €623 | €1445 | €3746 |
Flight from London (annual median).
Unit prices
comfort
Enough to check the total yourself, line by line, at the comfort level you picked.
- €13
- Breakfast
- €24
- Lunch
- €48
- Dinner
- €3
- City ride
- €16
- Site admission
- €197
- A full day
Orders of magnitude derived from our measured ranges, not surveyed venue by venue. Prices vary by neighbourhood and season.
Why go
Why visit Lisbon
People come to Lisbon for the atmosphere, food, and heritage, but budget is the least-anticipated dimension of any trip: from €81 to €521 per day depending on travel style, the gap between budget and premium is easy to measure.
Lisbon's climate stays temperate year-round, peaking in comfort during May (18-25 °C) - the most desirable and therefore the most expensive window.
Real budget
What a trip to Lisbon actually costs
Let's break it down. Lodging: a hostel dorm or entry-level hotel runs around €28 per night, a well-rated 3-star around €72, and 4 to 5-star around €200. Food: around €14 a day eating local, €28 mixing canteens and restaurants, €60 if you sit down for dinner every evening.
Local transport: roughly €4 a day on public transit, €10 adding a few taxi rides. Activities: about €20 a day at a normal sightseeing pace, €50 if you stack paid entries and day trips.
On a 5-to-7-day trip, lodging accounts for roughly 35-45 % of total budget, food 15-20 %, flights 20-30 % depending on the booking window, with the remainder split between local transport, activities, and miscellaneous (visa, insurance, tipping, SIM card). A Lisbon trip that goes over budget is almost always because the hotel is oversized for the rest, rarely because of activities.
Seasonality
When to go and what it costs
The best price-weather compromise is May: temperatures in the 18-25 °C sweet spot, crowds still manageable, and airfares near the annual median. If budget is the priority, February delivers the cheapest flight of the year (€48 round-trip from London in median), at the cost of generally less pleasant weather.
Money saving
How to cut the Lisbon budget
Flights to Lisbon shed up to 66 % of their price in shoulder season. It's the easiest saving to capture: just move the dates. For the hotel, booking 6 to 8 weeks out beats both last-minute and extreme anticipation.
Two more habits round it out. First, stay one or two metro stops away from the center: hotel rates often drop by half for identical comfort. Second, cap paid activities at one per day. A good guided tour or workshop beats four back-to-back tickets every time.
Practical info
Language, currency, and logistics in Lisbon
Language: Mirandese, Portuguese, English is understood in most hotels and restaurants in tourist areas. Currency: Euro (€) - plan €50-100 in cash for the first days and use a fee-free card for the rest.
The three tiers
What a budget traveller, a comfort traveller and a premium traveller typically spend.
Budget
€74
per day, approx
- Hotel / night
- €28
- Meal
- €14
- Transit / day
- €4
Comfort
€166
per day, approx
- Hotel / night
- €72
- Meal
- €28
- Transit / day
- €10
Luxury
€405
per day, approx
- Hotel / night
- €200
- Meal
- €60
- Transit / day
- €25
Weather & best time to visit
Average temperatures and conditions by month in Lisbon.
Best month to visitMay
Where to sleep in Lisbon
The hotels we measured
Accommodation picks by price range.
Samps Hostel
Hostel, standard (5.8/10) from 725 reviews.
Daora Lisbon Beds
Hostel, standard (5.6/10) from 897 reviews.
OuriqueStay Hostel
Hostel, standard (4.4/10) from 27 reviews.
Paradouro
guesthouse, very well rated (8.6/10) from 3,629 reviews.
Residencial Horizonte
guesthouse, decent (7.4/10) from 3,059 reviews.
Local House Lisbon
guesthouse, well rated (8.2/10) from 1,786 reviews.
Upon Lisbon Prime Residences
Hotel, very well rated (8.9/10) from 3,049 reviews.
TURIM Alameda Hotel
Hotel, very well rated (8.5/10) from 2,950 reviews.
Upon Angels - Adults Only
Hotel, very well rated (8.9/10) from 1,821 reviews.
All observed hotels in Lisbon
24 properties, nightly rate for a 2-night stay arriving 15 October 2026.
| Hotel | Category | Rating | From / night |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samps Hostel | Budget | ★ 5.8 | €8 |
| Daora Lisbon Beds | Budget | ★ 5.6 | €8 |
| OuriqueStay Hostel | Budget | ★ 4.4 | €8 |
| BrotherStay rooms lusotile | Budget | ★ 5.6 | €8 |
| Auristelas Hostel | Budget | ★ 5.6 | €8 |
| Maison Abade | Budget | ★ 6.5 | €9 |
| Lisboa Parque Guest House | Budget | ★ 6.4 | €9 |
| Bagetti hostel only for girls | Budget | ★ 6.5 | €10 |
| Paradouro | Mid-range | ★ 8.6 | €61 |
| Residencial Horizonte | Mid-range | ★ 7.4 | €65 |
| Local House Lisbon | Mid-range | ★ 8.2 | €77 |
| Lisbon Calling Rooms & Studio | Mid-range | ★ 8.5 | €87 |
| Lisbon Sao Bento Hotel | Mid-range | ★ 8.2 | €90 |
| Livô Boutique Living | Mid-range | ★ 8.8 | €93 |
| Upon Lisbon Prime Residences | Luxury | ★ 8.9 | €96 |
| Hotel Roma | Mid-range | ★ 8.6 | €104 |
| Azulejos Cais Sodré B&B | Mid-range | ★ 7.9 | €107 |
| TURIM Alameda Hotel | Luxury | ★ 8.5 | €107 |
| Upon Angels - Adults Only | Luxury | ★ 8.9 | €115 |
| Hotel Real Palacio | Luxury | ★ 8.2 | €121 |
| Westlight Lisboa Madalena | Luxury | ★ 8.5 | €150 |
| Hotel Principe Avila | Luxury | ★ 9.3 | €151 |
| LUSTER Hotel | Luxury | ★ 9.2 | €160 |
| HF Fénix Lisboa | Luxury | ★ 8.7 | €161 |
Things to do in Lisbon
Recommended activities and tours.
Belém Tower
Belém Tower (Portuguese: Torre de Belém, pronounced [ˈtoʁɨ ðɨ βɨˈlɐ̃j]; literally: Bethlehem Tower), officially the Tower of Saint Vincent (Portuguese: Torre de São Vicente), is a 16th-century fortification located in Lisbon, Portugal, which served as a point of embarkation and disembarkation for Portuguese explorers and as a ceremonial gateway to Lisbon. The tower symbolizes Portugal's maritime and colonial power in early modern Europe.
Tourist attraction
National Museum of Ancient Art
The Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga (Portuguese pronunciation: [muˈzew nɐsiuˈnal dɨ ˈaɾtɐ̃ˈtiɣɐ]; MNAA), also known in English as the National Museum of Ancient Art, is a Portuguese national art museum located in Lisbon. With over 40,000 items spanning a vast collection of painting, sculpture, goldware, furniture, textiles, ceramics, and prints, MNAA is one of the most visited museums in Portugal.
Art museum
Church of Santa Engrácia
The Church of Santa Engrácia (Portuguese: Igreja de Santa Engrácia, pronounced [iˈɣɾeʒɐ ðɨ ˈsɐ̃tɐ ẽˈɡɾasiɐ]) is a 17th-century monument in Lisbon, Portugal. Originally a church, it was converted into the National Pantheon (Panteão Nacional, pronounced [pɐ̃tiˈɐ̃w nɐsiuˈnal]), in which important Portuguese personalities are buried.
Church
National Archaeology Museum
The National Museum of Archaeology, of Doctor Leite de Vasconcelos is the largest archaeological museum in Portugal and one of the most important museums devoted to ancient art found in the Iberian Peninsula. Located in Lisbon, the museum was founded in 1893 by the archaeologist José Leite de Vasconcelos.
Notable place
Padrão dos Descobrimentos
The Monument of the Discoveries (Portuguese: Padrão dos Descobrimentos, Portuguese pronunciation: [pɐˈðɾɐ̃w duʒ ðɨʃkuβɾiˈmẽtuʃ]) is a monument on the northern bank of the Tagus River estuary, in the civil parish of Santa Maria de Belém, Lisbon. Located along the river where ships departed to explore and trade with India and the Orient, the monument celebrates the Portuguese Age of Discovery (or "Age of Exploration") during the 15th and 16th centuries.
Monument
Praça do Comércio
The Praça do Comércio (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpɾasɐ ðu kuˈmɛɾsju]; transl. Commerce Square), more commonly known in Portuguese as Terreiro do Paço ([tɨˈʁɐjɾu ðu ˈpasu] (transl.
Square
Castle of Saint George
São Jorge Castle (Portuguese: Castelo de São Jorge; Portuguese pronunciation: [kɐʃˈtɛlu dɨ sɐ̃w̃ ˈʒɔɾʒɨ]), sometimes known in English as Saint George's Castle, is a historic castle in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon, located in the freguesia of Santa Maria Maior. Human occupation of the castle hill dates to at least the 8th century BC while the oldest fortifications on the site date from the 2nd century BC.
Castle
National Azulejo Museum
The Museu Nacional do Azulejo (Portuguese for National Museum of the Azulejo), occasionally known in English as the National Tile Museum, is an art museum in Lisbon, Portugal dedicated to the azulejo, traditional tilework of Portugal and the former Portuguese Empire, as well as of other Iberophone cultures. Housed in the former Madre de Deus Convent, the museum's collection is one of the largest of ceramics in the world.
Museum
Vasco da Gama Tower
The Vasco da Gama Tower (Portuguese: Torre Vasco da Gama, pronounced [ˈtoʁɨ ˈvaʃku ðɐ ˈɣɐmɐ]) is a 160-metre (520 ft) lattice tower with skyscraper in the civil parish of Parque das Nações, the municipality of Lisbon, in Portugal. Built on the north bank of the Tagus river, it is named after the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama (the first person to chart the maritime route from Europe to India in 1498).
Tower
Monastery of São Vicente de Fora
The Church and Monastery of São Vicente de Fora, meaning "Monastery of St. Vincent Outside the Walls", is a 17th-century church and monastery in the city of Lisbon, Portugal.
Church
Places referenced on Wikidata. Admission prices vary by season - check each venue's official site.
Paying less in Lisbon
What moves the needle
What each decision takes off the €1441 total, strongest lever first.
- − €812
Travel cheap rather than mid-range
Hostel or entry-level hotel, local canteens, public transport. Accommodation is where the gap opens up.
- − €394
Stay five nights instead of seven
Two fewer nights also removes two days of meals, transport and sightseeing.
- − €252
Travel as a pair
The room is shared, nothing else is. Travellers themselves name this as the strongest lever.
Differences computed from our own measurements, for a 7-night mid-range stay, excluding flights.
FAQ
FAQ - Lisbon
- How much should I budget for a trip to Lisbon?
- For a 7-day trip to Lisbon, expect roughly €623 - €3746 per person depending on your travel style, flights included. The budget profile (hostels, local food, public transit) sits at the lower end ; mid-range comfort sits in the middle ; luxury (premium hotel, fine dining) approaches the top.
- When is the best time to visit Lisbon?
- The best value is in May, with pleasant temperatures and usually cheaper flights than during peak tourist season. This window combines moderate crowds and lower airfare.
- How do I get around in Lisbon?
- Local transport (metro, bus, taxi) costs an average of €4 - €25 per day depending on your style. Public transit stays the cheapest option ; a day or weekly pass usually pays off after just two rides per day.
- How can I do Lisbon on a budget?
- For a cheap trip to Lisbon, target around €81 - €197 per day per person excluding flights: a hostel or budget hotel, meals at local eateries, public transit, and 1-2 free activities per day. Across a week, plan to land below the lower bound of the global range.
- What's the budget for a weekend in Lisbon?
- For a 3-day / 2-night weekend in Lisbon, plan around €296 - €653 per person, flights included. Booking 6 to 8 weeks ahead and flying out Thursday evening / back Sunday evening cuts the total by 10-20 % on average.
- Is Lisbon an expensive or affordable destination?
- At 78 % of our reference index, Lisbon ranks among the moderately priced destinations we track. In practice, a daily budget close to our average, 22 % below it.
- How many days do you need in Lisbon?
- Plan 4 days for the essentials. A full week lets you add the surroundings without rushing, for roughly €591 more per person. Beyond ten days the cost grows linearly: each extra night adds about €197, lodging and daily spending included.
- Do you need a car in Lisbon?
- Our estimates assume public transport, which covers the centre and its near surroundings. Rental, fuel, parking and tolls are not included: if your route leaves the served area, add them as a separate line.
- How much cash should you bring to Lisbon?
- Bring €50 to €100 for the first days, until you see where cards work. When paying or withdrawing, decline the conversion into your home currency that terminals offer: it applies its own rate, consistently worse than your bank's.
At a glance
Wikidata, Wikipedia and Open-Meteo data
- Population
- 546k
- Area
- 100 km²
- Elevation
- 100 m
- Language
- Mirandese, Portuguese
- Currency
- €
- Time zone
- UTC±00:00
- Avg. July temp.
- 21°
- Avg. Jan. temp.
- 11°
- Rainy days / year
- 76
inhabitants
Euro
18° - 26°
9° - 14°
About
Lisbon in brief
Lisbon is the capital and most populous city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 575,739 as of 2024, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainland Europe's westernmost capital city, and the only one along the Atlantic coast, the others being on islands. The city lies in the western portion of the Iberian Peninsula, on the northern shore of the River Tagus. The western portion of its metro area, the Portuguese Riviera, hosts the westernmost point of Continental Europe, culminating at Cabo da Roca.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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