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Free museums in Lisbon, and when

Official sources checked Oct 5, 2026

Read the small print, because most free hours in Lisbon are for residents. National museums and monuments give residents of Portugal 52 free days a year and nothing to tourists. City-run sites such as the castle charge visitors every day. MAAT's first Sunday and MAC/CCB's Sunday mornings are also residents only. Open to everyone: the Gulbenkian from 14:00 on Sundays, Museu do Oriente on Fridays 18:00–20:00, the university's science museum and botanical garden on Sundays 10:00–13:00, and the always-free Museu do Dinheiro.

Lisbon

At a glance

MuseumFree whenFor whomBooking
Calouste Gulbenkian Museum (Sunday afternoon)Sundays · from 14:00 to closing at 18:00, last entry 17:30. Closed Easter Sunday, 24 and 25 December and 1 JanuaryEveryone. Under-18s are free at any timeNo advance booking needed for the free slot. Ask for the free ticket at the desk
Museu do Oriente (Friday evening)Fridays · 18:00–20:00, last entry 19:30Everyone. Children up to 5 are free at any timeNot needed
Natural History and Science Museum (Sunday morning)Sundays · 10:00–13:00. The museum closes at 17:00 and is shut on Mondays and public holidaysEveryoneNot needed
Arpad Szenes–Vieira da Silva Museum (Sundays)Sundays · 10:00–18:00. Closed Mondays and public holidaysEveryone on Sundays. Under-25s and Lisbon residents are free every dayNot needed
Medeiros e Almeida Museum (first Saturday)First Saturday of the month · 10:00–13:00. Free guided tours at 10:00 and 11:30, no bookingEveryoneNot needed, tours are first come
MAC/CCB (Sunday mornings, residents)Sundays · 10:00 until 14:00. The museum stays open to 18:30, and to 19:00 from July to SeptemberResidents of Portugal only, with ID and proof of address. Children up to 6 are free for everyoneNo online booking. Free tickets only in person at the MAC/CCB desk
Museu do DinheiroAlways · Wednesday to Sunday 10:00–18:00. Closed Monday and TuesdayEveryoneNot needed
Galerias MunicipaisAlways · Tuesday to Sunday 10:00–13:00 and 14:00–18:00. Each space closes between exhibitions, so check what is onEveryoneNot needed

Museums with a free day or free hours6

Illustration: Calouste Gulbenkian Museum (Sunday afternoon)€16FREE

Calouste Gulbenkian Museum (Sunday afternoon)

Avenidas Novas
Free on certain daysIndoorGood with kidsArtHistory

One man's collection, and one of the best small museums in Europe: Egyptian pieces, Persian carpets, Rembrandt, Turner, Monet and a room of René Lalique jewellery. It is free every Sunday from 14:00.

  • Lalique dragonfly brooch is in the last room
  • Rembrandt's old man is in the Dutch gallery
  • Garden windows frame the Islamic art rooms
Free when
Sundays · from 14:00 to closing at 18:00, last entry 17:30. Closed Easter Sunday, 24 and 25 December and 1 January
Free for whom
Everyone. Under-18s are free at any time
Reservation
No advance booking needed for the free slot. Ask for the free ticket at the desk
Time needed
1h30–2h
How to get there
Metro to São Sebastião or Praça de Espanha (blue line), 5 minutes on foot
Worth it? Yes.The single best free museum slot in Lisbon, with no residency condition. A line forms from about 13:45, so see the garden first and join it then. Two hours covers the collection if you skip the temporary show.
Source: Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps
Illustration: Museu do Oriente (Friday evening)€10FREE

Museu do Oriente (Friday evening)

Alcântara
Free on certain daysIndoorGood with kidsArtHistory

A converted 1940s cod warehouse on the docks holding Portugal's Asian story: Namban screens from Japan, Macau porcelain, Timorese carvings and a large collection of Asian masks and puppets. Entry is free for the last two hours every Friday.

  • Japanese Namban screens show Portuguese ships arriving
  • Shadow puppets and masks fill the second floor
  • The building's dock-side reliefs are from 1940
Free when
Fridays · 18:00–20:00, last entry 19:30
Free for whom
Everyone. Children up to 5 are free at any time
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
1h–1h30
How to get there
Train from Cais do Sodré to Alcântara-Mar, then 6 minutes on foot. Buses 714, 728 and 732 stop on Avenida 24 de Julho nearby
Worth it? Yes.A rare free evening slot, and it is seldom crowded. Ninety minutes is enough for the two permanent floors. Arrive at 18:00 sharp, because the galleries are large and dimly lit and you will want the time.
Source: Fundação Oriente · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps
Illustration: Natural History and Science Museum (Sunday morning)FREE

Natural History and Science Museum (Sunday morning)

Príncipe Real
Free on certain daysIndoorGood with kidsHistoryArchitecture

The University of Lisbon's museum in the old Polytechnic School. The draw is the 19th-century chemistry laboratory and lecture theatre, kept as they were, plus minerals, dinosaurs and hands-on physics for children.

  • Laboratorio Chimico has its original benches and glassware
  • Steep wooden lecture theatre next to the lab
  • Mineral hall is on the upper floor
Free when
Sundays · 10:00–13:00. The museum closes at 17:00 and is shut on Mondays and public holidays
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
1h–1h30
How to get there
Metro to Rato (yellow line), then 5 minutes down Rua da Escola Politécnica
Worth it? Yes.Old-fashioned in places, and better for it. Go straight to the Laboratorio Chimico on the ground floor, then let children loose in the physics rooms. The same free Sunday morning covers the botanical garden behind it.
Source: Museus da Universidade de Lisboa · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps
Illustration: Arpad Szenes–Vieira da Silva Museum (Sundays)€7.50FREE

Arpad Szenes–Vieira da Silva Museum (Sundays)

Amoreiras
Free on certain daysIndoorArtLocal life

A former royal silk factory on a quiet square under the aqueduct arches, showing the abstract painter Maria Helena Vieira da Silva and her husband Arpad Szenes. It is free for everyone all day on Sundays.

  • Vieira da Silva's city grids on the upper floor
  • Aqueduct arches frame the square outside
  • Kiosk in the garden for a cheap coffee
Free when
Sundays · 10:00–18:00. Closed Mondays and public holidays
Free for whom
Everyone on Sundays. Under-25s and Lisbon residents are free every day
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
45 min–1h
How to get there
Metro to Rato (yellow line), then 6 minutes to Praça das Amoreiras
Worth it? Yes.Small, calm and never busy. You need 45 minutes. The real bonus is the square outside, Jardim das Amoreiras, with mulberry trees and the aqueduct running along one side. A good second stop after the botanical garden.
Source: Fundação Arpad Szenes – Vieira da Silva · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps
Illustration: Medeiros e Almeida Museum (first Saturday)€8FREE

Medeiros e Almeida Museum (first Saturday)

Avenida da Liberdade
Free on certain daysIndoorArtHistory

A collector's mansion two blocks from Avenida da Liberdade, left furnished as he lived in it and stuffed with clocks, Chinese porcelain, silver and French furniture. Entry is free on the first Saturday morning of the month.

  • Clock and watch room, Breguet pieces included
  • Tile-lined chapel on the ground floor
  • Join the 10:00 tour, it is the quieter one
Free when
First Saturday of the month · 10:00–13:00. Free guided tours at 10:00 and 11:30, no booking
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed, tours are first come
Time needed
1h–1h30
How to get there
Metro to Marquês de Pombal (blue or yellow line), then 4 minutes to Rua Rosa Araújo 41
Worth it? Yes.Almost nobody outside Lisbon knows this place. The watch and clock room alone holds hundreds of pieces. In autumn 2026 the second floor is shut for maintenance, so you see less than usual.
Source: Museu Medeiros e Almeida · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps
Illustration: MAC/CCB (Sunday mornings, residents)

MAC/CCB (Sunday mornings, residents)

Belém
Free on certain daysResidents onlyIndoorGood with kidsArtArchitecture

The contemporary art museum inside the Centro Cultural de Belém, home of the former Berardo collection: Warhol, Picasso, Bacon, Paula Rego. It used to be free for all. Now it charges €15, with free Sunday mornings only for people who live in Portugal.

  • Pop art room with Warhol and Lichtenstein
  • Upper terrace garden looks over the Tagus
  • Arrive by 12:30 to see it properly before the cut-off
Free when
Sundays · 10:00 until 14:00. The museum stays open to 18:30, and to 19:00 from July to September
Free for whom
Residents of Portugal only, with ID and proof of address. Children up to 6 are free for everyone
Reservation
No online booking. Free tickets only in person at the MAC/CCB desk
Time needed
1h30–2h
How to get there
Tram 15E to Centro Cultural de Belém. Train from Cais do Sodré to Belém, then 10 minutes on foot
Worth it? Yes.If you live in Portugal, this is two hours well spent. Visitors from abroad pay the full €15. The CCB terraces and olive garden over the river are open to anyone at no charge, and worth the stairs.
Source: Centro Cultural de Belém · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps

Museums that are always free2

Illustration: Museu do DinheiroFREE

Museu do Dinheiro

Baixa
Always freeIndoorGood with kidsHistoryArchitecture

The Bank of Portugal's money museum, set inside the former church of São Julião. You can lift a real gold bar, mint a coin with your face on it, and go down to a stretch of King Dinis's 13th-century city wall in the crypt.

  • Lift the real gold bar in the vault room
  • King Dinis wall is in the basement, with its own entrance
  • The nave of the old church is the main hall
Free when
Always · Wednesday to Sunday 10:00–18:00. Closed Monday and Tuesday
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
1h–1h30
How to get there
Metro to Baixa-Chiado or Terreiro do Paço, 5 minutes on foot to Largo de São Julião
Worth it? Yes.The best always-free museum in Lisbon and a proper rainy-day answer. You pass a security check with a bag scan at the door. Children get more out of it than out of most paid museums nearby.
Source: Banco de Portugal · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps
Illustration: Galerias MunicipaisFREE

Galerias Municipais

Campo Grande and Belém
Always freeIndoorArtLocal life

The city runs five contemporary art spaces with free entry, showing mostly Portuguese and Portuguese-speaking artists. The two worth planning for are Pavilhão Branco, in the garden of the Palácio Pimenta at Campo Grande, and the Torreão Nascente da Cordoaria Nacional near Belém.

  • Peacocks roam the Palácio Pimenta garden by Pavilhão Branco
  • Cordoaria was the navy's rope factory, 400 metres long
  • Free exhibition handouts at each door
Free when
Always · Tuesday to Sunday 10:00–13:00 and 14:00–18:00. Each space closes between exhibitions, so check what is on
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
30–45 min per gallery
How to get there
Pavilhão Branco: Metro to Campo Grande (yellow or green line), 5 minutes on foot. Cordoaria: tram 15E to Hospital Egas Moniz
Worth it? Depends.Hit and miss, as contemporary art is, but it costs nothing to find out. Pavilhão Branco is the nicest one, with peacocks in the garden outside. Mind the lunch closing from 13:00 to 14:00.
Source: Galerias Municipais de Lisboa / EGEAC · checked Oct 5, 2026Open in Maps

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