Lisbon Botanical Garden (Jardim Botânico de Lisboa)
A 19th-century university garden on a steep hillside in Príncipe Real; the upper terrace is free, the lower arboretum costs €5
Listing reviewed October 2026 · Confirm hours and prices with the official venue before visiting
Opening Hours
09:00 - 20:00
Admission Price
€5 per adult
Visit Duration
20 minutes for the free upper terrace; about 1 hour for the whole garden
About This Attraction
The Jardim Botânico is a good choice for a quieter hour on a hot day, or for anyone interested in plants, but it is not a priority on a first, short call. It sits about 3.4 km from the terminal on the hill of Príncipe Real, so take a taxi (about 10 to 12 minutes) to the entrance at Rua da Escola Politécnica 58, next to the Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência. Tram 24 and buses 758 and 773 also stop outside. The garden has two levels. The upper terrace, the Classe, is free during opening hours and has benches, palms and views over the trees below; if you only have 20 minutes, see this. The lower Arboreto, reached by steep paths and steps, needs a ticket and is where the large trees, palms, cycads and ponds are. Allow an hour for both. The former butterfly house has been replaced by a sensory garden, the Jardim dos Sentidos. From October to March the garden opens 10:00 to 17:00; from April to September, 09:00 to 20:00, with last entry 30 minutes before closing. It closes only on 25 December and 1 January. Entry is free for everyone on Sundays from 10:00 to 13:00, which is also when local families come. The garden is left deliberately natural: fallen leaves and dry undergrowth are kept as habitat, and in summer only the essentials are watered, so it can look parched from July to September. Spring is when it looks its best. It pairs well with a downhill walk back towards the ship: through the Jardim do Príncipe Real, past the São Pedro de Alcântara viewpoint, down through Bairro Alto and Chiado to the Baixa, then east along the river. The Glória funicular next to the viewpoint is closed, so walk down Calçada da Glória or the side streets. From the garden to the terminal on foot is about 50 minutes, mostly downhill.
History
The site on the Monte Olivete hill had been used for teaching botany since the Jesuit college of Cotovia stood here from 1609 to 1759. A plan for a scientific garden attached to the Escola Politécnica was drawn up in 1843, but planting only began in 1873, led by the professors Conde de Ficalho and Andrade Corvo. The German gardener Edmund Goeze laid out the upper Classe and the Frenchman Jules Daveau the lower Arboreto, with plants gathered from Portuguese territories worldwide. The first seed catalogue appeared in 1878. In the late 1930s and early 1940s, director Ruy Telles Palhinha regrouped the upper beds by ecology, and the city restored the garden in 2016.
Why It Matters
It is one of Portugal's main historic scientific gardens and was classified as a National Monument in 2010. Its collections of palms and cycads, and of species from New Zealand, Australia, China, Japan and South America, show how mild Lisbon's climate is. For a visitor it offers shade and quiet in the centre of the city, and the top terrace costs nothing.
Photo Gallery
Lisbon Botanical Garden (Jardim Botânico de Lisboa). Photo: Jules Verne Times Two, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Lisbon Botanical Garden (Jardim Botânico de Lisboa). Photo: Silvia Sequeira, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Tips for Cruise PassengersEssential Info
Taxi about 10-12 minutes to Rua da Escola Politécnica 58; tram 24 and buses 758 and 773 stop outside. The lower garden is steep.
Time from port: About 2-2.5 hours: taxi up, an hour in the garden, then about 50 minutes' walk downhill back to the ship
Take a taxi up and walk back down: the garden is on a hill, and the return to the ship is mostly downhill.
The upper 'Classe' terrace is free during opening hours; pay €5 only if you want the steep lower 'Arboreto'.
Everyone gets in free on Sundays from 10:00 to 13:00.
Children aged 2 to 10 are free, and seniors 65+ pay €4.
The butterfly house mentioned in older guides has gone; it is now a sensory garden.
In summer the garden is only watered where necessary, so expect dry patches from July to September.
The Glória funicular by the São Pedro de Alcântara viewpoint is closed; walk down to the Baixa instead.
Winter closing is 17:00 with last entry at 16:30, so do not leave it to the end of the day from October to March.
What Makes This Special
- starUpper 'Classe' terrace, free during opening hours
- starLower 'Arboreto' with large trees, ponds and cascades (ticketed)
- starPalms from every continent
- starCycad collection, one of the garden's best-known features
- starSpecies from New Zealand, Australia, China, Japan and South America
- starJardim dos Sentidos, a sensory garden that replaced the butterfly house
- starNational Monument since 2010
Getting There
Address
R. da Escola Politécnica 58, Lisbon
From Cruise Port
About 3.4 km and 50 minutes on foot with steep hills, so take a taxi (about 12 minutes) to the Príncipe Real entrance, or the metro to Rato and walk 8 minutes downhill.
Nearby Attractions
Basílica da Estrela
A domed late-18th-century basilica on the tram 28E route in western Lisbon, with Queen Maria I's tomb and a Machado de Castro nativity scene.
Bairro Alto
A grid of steep, narrow streets above Chiado: quiet and walkable by day, packed with small bars at night
Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara
A free two-level garden terrace in Bairro Alto looking east across the Baixa to the castle
Mercado de Campo de Ourique
A 1934 neighbourhood market with a food hall, worth the trip only if you want a local lunch at the end of tram 28