23 October 2026 · 2 min read
Lisbon without the Tram 28 queue
The famous yellow tram is worth riding, just not the way most people do it. How to see the same hills, views and pastries with half the wait.
Every guide to Lisbon tells you to ride Tram 28. That is exactly the problem. In summer the queue at Martim Moniz can take longer than the ride itself, and once you are on board you will mostly see other people's elbows.
The good news: the city that tram rattles through is easy to enjoy without it.
Ride the yellow tram the smart way
- Start at the other end. Board at Campo de Ourique instead of Martim Moniz. Most visitors get off before they reach this side of the line, so you are far more likely to get a seat.
- Take the 12E instead. It uses the same vintage carriages and climbs through the same corner of Alfama, past the cathedral and the Santa Luzia viewpoint, with a fraction of the crowd.
- Go early. Before 8 in the morning the tram is mostly locals on their way to work, which is also how it was meant to be used.
The views are free
Lisbon is built on hills, and its viewpoints (miradouros) are the best thing in the city that costs nothing.
- Miradouro da Senhora do Monte: one of the highest in the city, with the castle and the river below you. Quieter than the famous ones.
- Santa Luzia and Portas do Sol: next to each other in Alfama, with tiled walls and the river behind the rooftops. Go at sunset.
- Graça: a terrace café under pine trees, where locals actually sit.
Belém, but in the right order
Belém has the Jerónimos Monastery, the riverside Belém Tower and the bakery that has been making pastéis de Belém since 1837. Most people queue for the pastries first and the monastery second. Do it the other way round: the queue for custard tarts moves fast, and they taste better warm after a walk.
When you've had enough of the hills
- LX Factory: an old industrial complex under the 25 de Abril Bridge, now full of bookshops, studios and places to eat.
- Sintra: the fairytale palaces in the hills are about 40 minutes by train from Rossio station. Go on a weekday and start early.
Our Lisbon guide has more of what locals do instead, and decide can turn it into a day-by-day plan in under a minute.