Lisbon rewards the broke traveller better than almost any capital in Europe. The hills are free, the miradouros are free, the city museums are free before 14:00 on Sundays, and a €1.65 commuter ferry gives you the exact skyline the €25 cruises sell.
A free 4.6-hectare romantic garden open 07:00–24:00, with duck ponds, a wrought-iron bandstand shipped from Porto in 1884 and free-roaming peacocks. The basilica opposite is free to enter (09:00–19:00); only the roof terrace costs €4.
The forgotten sibling of the 28E: a 20-minute circular route through Graça and Alfama on the same 1930s Remodelado trams, usually with seats free. €1.85 with a Navegante card versus €3.20 onboard, and it passes Portas do Sol.
Seven hectares of palms, dragon trees and Macanese pavilions behind the Jerónimos crowds, almost empty on weekday afternoons. Entry is €5, but free on the first Sunday of each month, and the peacocks roam the Praça do Império side freely.
You can walk under the 65-metre arches of the 18th-century aqueduct for nothing in Parque Amoreiras and along Calçada da Quintinha. Walking on top of the arches costs €4 and only opens Tuesday–Saturday, 10:00–17:30.
A 1934 neighbourhood market where locals still buy fish and produce on the outer aisles while the centre holds cheap food stalls. Open 10:00–23:00; a plate of grilled sardines runs €7–9, half the Time Out Market price for the same idea.
The bifana Anthony Bourdain ate: marinated pork in a crusty papo-seco roll for around €3.20, plus an imperial beer for €1.50. A cramped standing counter in Chiado, cash-friendly, open 07:00–20:00 and closed Sundays.
Since 1840 this one-metre-wide bar has poured sour-cherry liqueur through a hatch onto the street. A shot is €1.50, €1.80 com elas (with the cherry). No seats, no menu, no card machine — bring coins.
A Mouraria tasca where lunch plates of roast pork ribs with rice land at €8–10 and house wine is €1 a glass. Long shared tables, paper cloths, no English menu; closed weekends and it fills by 12:30 sharp.
A ten-minute commuter crossing of the Tagus for €1.65 with a Navegante card, giving the full Lisbon skyline from the water. Boats run every 10–20 minutes from 05:35; the top deck outside is where the view is.
Lisbon's 1,000-hectare forest park, entirely free, with a viewpoint over the 25 de Abril bridge that almost no visitor reaches. Bus 711 from Marquês de Pombal gets you close; trails are open sunrise to sunset.
Five centuries of Portuguese tile inside a 1509 convent, including a 23-metre panorama of pre-earthquake Lisbon. Entry is €8 but free for everyone on Sunday mornings until 14:00; open Tuesday–Sunday 10:00–18:00.
A residential terrace above Graça with a full sweep from the castle to the river, used almost entirely by people who live on the street below. Free, always open, with a kiosk selling €1.20 beers until late.