Evora Day Trip From Lisbon – Everything You Need To Know

Need help planning your Lisbon to Evora day trip? You’ve come to the right place!

Evora is the capital of the Alentejo region in Portugal.

The city has a beautiful and very well preserved historic centre, home to many interesting attractions like the ancient Roman Temple, the Chapel of Bones and Evora Cathedral.

Many travellers visit this unique city on a day trip from Lisbon. In this guide I’ve put together everything you need to know about doing an Evora day tour from Lisbon, including why you shouldn’t actually do one.

Here you will find logistics information like getting from Lisbon to Evora, estimated prices for an Evora day trip, must-see highlights in Evora, where to stay and more.

So without further ado, let’s dive in and discover everything about the perfect Evora day trip from Lisbon!

How to get to Evora from Lisbon

Evora is very well connected and there are lots of ways to get there from Lisbon. I have listed the most common below.

By car

If you’re wondering how far is Evora from Lisbon, and how much you’ll have to drive, this is your section. The distance from Lisbon to Evora is 137km, or around a 2-hour drive.

The road is mostly highway and it’s very easy to drive there alone with a rental car.

By train from Lisbon to Evora

I usually prefer travelling by train than by bus, but there aren’t many trains running from Lisbon to Evora. There are only four trains a day (two in the morning and two in the afternoon) from Oriente Station in Lisbon.

The returns from Evora are also only in the morning or late afternoon. It works if you go for a full day trip starting early morning to evening, but it doesn’t allow for much flexibility.

The train costs around 12 EUR per journey.

By bus from Lisbon to Evora

If you want to have more flexibility, you can get the Rede Expressos buses (part of the intercity express service), which run from Lisbon’s Sete Rios Bus Station.

The Lisbon to Evora bus runs almost every hour, and costs around 11 EUR per journey.

With an Evora tour from Lisbon

If you don’t want to have to worry about driving or coordinating public transport, you can take one of the excellent Evora tours available. Here are some of the most popular Evora day tours from Lisbon.

From Lisbon: Private Customized Small-Group Tour to Evora – This reasonably priced private tour will allow you to see all the highlights of Evora.

Evora and Megaliths Full-Day Tour from Lisbon – Besides Evora this tour will also take you to see some unique megaliths in the countryside near Evora!

From Lisbon: Full Day Evora Tour with Lunch – If you want to make the most of the local cuisine, this tour also includes a delicious local lunch in Evora.

Evora Full-Day Tour with Wine Tasting from Lisbon – Portuguese wine is famous and for good reason! Expand your Evora day trip and taste some delicious local wines!

Discover the most popular Lisbon to Evora day tours below!

 

Best things to see and do in Evora

If you choose to do a guided Evora day trip, these are the places most tours will take you to. If you want to do it yourself, these are the must-see spots in Evora that you have to add to your day tour itinerary.

Evora Cathedral

The Cathedral of Evora was one of my favourite places to visit. I’m not a usually the biggest fan of churches, but when it came to Evora Cathedral I was pleasantly surprised.

Construction started in 1280, making it one of the oldest and most important local monuments, even if it wasn’t inaugurated until 1746.

It displays a variety of architectural styles, including Gothic, Romanesque and Manueline.

Entrance to the cathedral is 1.50 EUR, or 3.50 EUR if you visit also the cloisters and rooftop. I highly recommend purchasing the full ticket, as the cloisters and rooftop were what made me fall in love with this cathedral.

The cathedral is perched on top of a hill, meaning that from the rooftop you get incredible views over the roofs of Evora and the surrounding countryside.

For any Harry Potter fans, be ready for the cloisters to give you serious Hogwarts vibes.

Opening hours are between 9AM and 6PM. You need at least half an hour to see it all, and could easily spend up to one hour wandering around the ancient halls of Evora’s cathedral.

Roman Temple

The Templo Romano Evora, also referred to as the Templo de Diana, is an ancient temple dating back to the 1^st century AD. Together with the historical centre of Evora it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986.

I loved visiting the Roman Temple since it’s incredibly well preserved, and it displays a stark contrast to the more modern white houses. You won’t need long to visit it, but make sure to stop by after seeing the Cathedral.

Chapel of Bones

The Chapel of Bones is one of the most famous monuments and attractions in Evora. Located right next to the entrance of the Church of St Francis, it’s a small interior chapel with a rather unique style.

As you might guess from the name, the interior walls of the chapel are entirely covered and decorated with human skulls and bones.

And when I say entirely, I really mean it. Everything, from columns to the ceiling, is covered in bones. It’s a bit of an eerie place to visit, but an important one for those who want to learn more about Portugal’s history.

Entrance to the chapel is 2 EUR, and the opening times are 9 – 12:50 and then again 14:30 – 17:45, so make sure to plan your Evora city tour accordingly.

The chapel is fairly small so you won’t need more than 15-30 minutes to visit it.

Praça do Giraldo

Praça do Giraldo is the main square in Evora. It might not be as impressive as other sights in Portugal, but it’s a lovely square to walk around and admire the architecture.

There are many bars and restaurants facing the square, where you can sit in the sun and taste the delicious local cuisine.

Igreja da Graça

We found this church while wandering to the Chapel of Bones from the Cathedral of Evora. It doesn’t always feature on the lists of top things to do in Evora, but we found the façade so beautiful I had to include it.

It’s a church and convent whose construction was concluded in 1511.

Wander around the historical old town centre

Most of the attractions listed above are located in the old town centre of Evora, so you will be able to experience it while getting from one place to the next, but make sure to save some time for simply wandering around the cobbled streets.

The old town centre of Evora is incredibly well preserved, with narrow cobbled streets, white houses and yellow details around the house doors. Walking through these streets will feel like stepping back in time.

Make sure to look up from your phone if you’re Google Mapping your way around, and just take some time to walk around without a specific destination in mind. Trust me, you won’t regret it!

Taste the delicious local cuisine!

If you’ve read my blog before, you know how much I love trying local food while I travel.

In Evora you will have the opportunity of trying some delicious cuisine typical of Alentejo, which can differ massively from other parts of Portugal.

In a local restaurant called O Trovador I ate a traditional dish of pork and clams. It sounds like a weird combination, but it tasted delicious! Other local dishes include a lot of meat, potatoes or are soup based.

Best Evora day tours

In this Evora guide I included information on how to get to Evora from Lisbon and on the best things to do so that you can arrange your own day trip.

However if you prefer an organised tour, so that you don’t have to worry about transport and will have a local guide showing you around, these are some of the most popular ones online.

From Lisbon: Private Small-Group Tour to Evora

If you’re travelling in Portugal as a group or family, you can take this reasonably priced private tour which will allow you to see all the highlights of Evora.

Here you can see prices and availability for your private Evora tour with GetYourGuide and Viator!

Private Walking Tour of Highlight Locations in Evora 

This tour is perfect for those who want to make their own way to Evora, but still want a local guide to show them the beauties of this town. The price includes admission to the Chapel of Bones and Evora Cathedral.

 Click here to book your private walking tour in Evora!

 

Evora and Megaliths Full-Day Tour from Lisbon

The Alentejo offers many other exciting sights besides Evora. Starting in Lisbon, this tour will take you to see some unique megaliths in the countryside around it!

If you want to make your own way to Evora, and explore the town alone, you could also takea shorter tour to only the megaliths starting in Evora.

Click here to see prices and availability for your Evora and Megaliths tour!

Evora Full-Day Tour with Wine Tasting from Lisbon

For the wine lovers, this tour offers the opportunity of exploring Evora, but also trying delicious Portuguese wine at a local winery. It includes also the transfer to and from Lisbon.

Here you can see prices and availability for your Evora & wine tasting tour on GetYourGuide and Viator!

From Lisbon: Full Day Evora Tour with Lunch 

As already mentioned, the local cuisine is one of the highlights in Evora. Make sure you don’t miss out with this tour, which includes also a delicious local lunch in Evora.

Click here to book your full day Evora tour with lunch!

 

Our experience in Evora      

Personally, we didn’t do a day trip to Evora. We drove to Evora in the late afternoon from Sintra, spent the night there, explored Evora in the morning and then set off again enroute to the Algarve.

It’s also what I suggest doing in my Portugal itinerary as it allows you to maximise the time there, without spending too long in the car driving to Evora and then back to Lisbon.

Many people base themselves in Lisbon and then do day trips from there, but unlike places like Obidos, Nazaré and Ericeira, which are quite close and can be combined to other sights, Evora is quite far for a daily return trip.

Besides the logistics, our experience in Evora was very positive. It’s a lovely town where we tasted some delicious local food, and got to explore some historical medieval sights you won’t see anywhere else.

Is doing a Evora day trip worth it?

Yes and no. While I definitely recommend adding Evora to your Portugal itinerary, I wouldn’t personally do a day trip to Evora from Lisbon. If you can, I would spend at least one night in Evora.

The old town of Evora is gorgeous, with many interesting things to see, you don’t want to be rushing through it! The journey from Lisbon is also quite long, and you’d end up spending more time travelling than visiting Evora.

You could spend a night in Evora and then from there drive on to explore Monsaraz, Mertola and other gorgeous towns in the Alentejo region of Portugal.

If you don’t have many days in Lisbon, and can’t fit an extra night in Evora then no worries, you can still visit it as a day trip.

In that case I would recommend taking one of the above tours, so you don’t have to worry about arranging travel.

Where to stay for your Evora day tour

In Lisbon

Whether you’re joining a tour or travelling by public transport, here are some great places to stay in Lisbon for every budget.

Budget: Lisbon Destination Hostel – Located inside Rossio Train Station this hostel is perfect for those taking the train to Evora. The hostel has a very cool interior common area, and offers both dorms and private rooms.

Click here to book your stay at Lisbon Destination Hostel!

Mid-range: This Is Lisbon Hostel – This hostel is a little more expensive, as it has a gorgeous rooftop where you can eat breakfast while taking in the views over Lisbon.

Click here to see prices and availability at This Is Lisbon!

Luxury: Lisboa Pessoa Hotel – If you want to treat yourself, this is the perfect place to do so. With their spacious rooms and gorgeous rooftop terrace, it’s the perfect place to relax after a Evora day tour.

Book your stay at Lisboa Pessoa Hotel here!

In Evora

I wanted to include also some cool accommodation options for every budget in Evora, in case you decide to spend longer than a day trip there.

Budget: Heaven Inn Suites & Terrace – This hostel offers a great option for budget travellers. It’s conveniently located in the centre of Evora, has spacious dorms and a terrace with views of Evora.

Check out prices and availability at Heaven Inn Suites & Terrace here!

Mid-range: Burgos Guest House – We stayed in this guest house and can recommend it. It’s not fancy, but it has clean and spacious rooms located in the heart of Evora. It’s affordable and close to all the attractions, as well as to convenient parking spaces.

Click here to book your stay at Burgos Guest House!

Luxury: M’AR De AR Muralhas – Located just outside the old town walls of Evora, this beautiful hotel with pool is the perfect place to treat yourself and rest after the long drive from Lisbon.

Book your stay at M’AR De AR Muralhas here!

Final thoughts on the best Lisbon to Evora tours

There you have it, the ultimate guide to doing a Lisbon to Evora day trip! Have you been to Evora before? How did you find it? Let me know in the comments below!

It might not be as famous as Porto, Benagil Cave, the Azores or other destinations in Portugal, but Evora is without a doubt a must-see on any Portugal itinerary. 

Exploring the historical centre of this medieval town will feel like stepping back in time. You can get a taste for authentic Portuguese culture, and the unique differences of the Alentejo region.

I personally think it’s better to spend at least one night in Evora, so you can make the most of it and maximise travel time. However you can also visit Evora on a day trip from Lisbon, and still have an incredible experience.

I hope you find this article useful in planning your Evora to Lisbon day trip. If you have any questions, just let me know in the comments below!

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