Christmas in Lisbon: the lights, Wonderland and what closes on 24, 25 and 31 December

💡 The Short Version: The city’s Christmas lights come on at Terreiro do Paço on a Saturday in late November: 22 November, at 18:30, in 2025. On 25 December the Jerónimos Monastery, Belém Tower, São Jorge Castle and every Sintra palace are closed; the Oceanário is open from 11:00. The castle and Sintra also shut on 24 and 31 December, and Sintra on 1 January. In 2026 the 24th, 25th and 31st are a Thursday, a Friday and a Thursday, and 1 and 8 December are Tuesdays and public holidays. Or book a tour: a guided walk with entry, such as the Best of Lisbon walking tourad (from £18.79, GetYourGuide, 1 October 2026), is the fallback for the open days.

The Christmas lights

Switch-on at Terreiro do Paço · a Saturday in late November

The city hangs its lights along the streets of Baixa and on the avenues and squares, and marks the switch-on at Terreiro do Paço, beside the giant Christmas tree. In 2025 the switch-on was on Saturday 22 November at 18:30, and the Câmara Municipal announced it on 2 November. The city put up about 1,000 light structures and 5,700 decorative pieces, and the lighting hours were 17:30 to 23:00 from Sunday to Thursday and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, with an extra hour on Christmas night and on New Year’s Eve (NiT, 2 November 2025, citing the Câmara and Expresso).

The Christmas tree on Praça do Comércio, in front of the Rua Augusta Arch. Photo: TeWeBs, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

The 2026 date and hours are announced in early November. In December the city’s average high is 15.4°C, with 109 mm of rain on 10 days (IPMA, 1991 to 2020), so take a coat and an umbrella; see best time to visit Lisbon.

Two small tuk-tuk tours run past the lights: the 2026 Christmas lights tuk-tuk tourad (from £32.46, 4.8 stars from 17 reviews, 1 hour) and the private Christmas lights tour by eco tuk-tukad (from £29.47, 4.9 stars from 51 reviews, 1 hour).

A giant bauble of lights among illuminated trees in a Lisbon square. Photo: Matt Kieffer, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Wonderland Lisboa

Parque Eduardo VII · free to enter

Wonderland Lisboa is the big Christmas fair, in Parque Eduardo VII at the top of Avenida da Liberdade: a giant ferris wheel, an 800 m² ice rink, Santa’s House and a market of crafts and food stalls. In 2025 it ran from 28 November to 4 January (Lisboa Central Park Hotel, opposite the park). Avenida da Liberdade is flat, and the Santos Populares parade in June uses the same avenue.

The Wonderland Lisboa ferris wheel in Parque Eduardo VII. Photo: Jules Verne Times Two, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

What is closed, 24 December to 1 January

From each operator’s own page, 1 October 2026. Weekdays are for 2026 and 2027.

Sources: mosteirojeronimos.torrebelem.gov.pt, castelodesaojorge.pt, parquesdesintra.pt, oceanario.pt, gulbenkian.pt and maat.pt. Sintra can also close for wind or fire risk.

The days either side are the ones to book. Put Belém on 23 or 26 December, a Wednesday and a Saturday, and buy the Jerónimos Monastery and Belém Tower slots as soon as your dates are fixed, since the operator says they often sell out. Pena Palace is a timed slot and is closed on 24 and 25 December; the Sintra day trip guide has the rest. The São Jorge Castle’s winter hours are 9:00 to 18:00, with last admission at 17:30; see São Jorge Castle tickets. 3 days in Lisbon shows how to move the days round these closures. Óbidos runs its Vila Natal Christmas village from late November to early January; the Óbidos and Nazaré day trip guide has the buses, and Batalha Monastery is closed on 25 December.

What stays open

• The Oceanário in Parque das Nações, every day of the year, with the hours above; see Oceanário tickets.
• The streets and the lights, every evening, to 23:00 or midnight in 2025.
• A fado evening: the fado show with winead is from £16.35 (4.8 stars from 7,138 reviews, 50 minutes), a fixed-time show in a small room, so book the date you want; Lisbon food tours and fado evenings compares the other rooms.

Where to stay

The switch-on and the tree are at Terreiro do Paço, in Baixa. The Pousada de Lisboa, at Praça do Comércio 31-34, is on the square (Hotels.comad); where to stay in Lisbon compares Baixa with the other areas, and every hotel adds the €4 a night tourist tax for up to 7 nights.

For the next dates in the calendar, see New Year in Lisbon; for the rest of the year, best time to visit Lisbon; and for the bookings that sell out whatever the month, what to book before you go in Lisbon.