Amadora travel guide
Neolithic tombs, a comics festival and fast trains to Lisbon
Amadora is a dense residential city just north-west of Lisbon, with Neolithic tombs at Carenque, the Amadora BD comics festival in autumn and quick metro and train links. Come in autumn for the festival or any time as a budget base. A few hours covers the sights.
Amadora is a dense commuter city about 10 km north-west of central Lisbon, packed into less than 24 square km. It has few sights. What it does have is the blue metro line and the Sintra railway, which make it a cheaper base than the capital, with Sintra itself up the same line.
The best thing to see is the Necrópole de Carenque, three late Neolithic tombs dug into the rock around 3000 BC and now a national monument. Each autumn the Amadora BD festival brings comic artists and publishers to town. The Águas Livres aqueduct, which carried water to 18th-century Lisbon, crosses the municipality on its way into the city.
Families head to KidZania in the UBBO shopping centre, a miniature city where children role-play real jobs. Football fans can watch Estrela da Amadora at the Estádio José Gomes, a short walk from Reboleira station. For lunch, Lugar ao Sul cooks dishes from the Alentejo.
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Top things to do in Amadora
Neolithic tombs, a comics festival and an easy rail link to Sintra.
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Best time to visit Amadora
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Mild and comfortable; autumn brings Amadora BD.
Hot and dry, with less shade than central Lisbon.
Amadora BD runs in autumn; check the festival dates before you book if comics are your reason to come.
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Getting there
Blue metro and the Sintra line
Arrive on the blue metro line or a Sintra line train. The blue line ends at Reboleira after Alfornelos and Amadora Este and runs straight to Restauradores and Baixa-Chiado. Sintra line trains from Rossio stop at Santa Cruz-Damaia, Reboleira and Amadora. From the airport, take the red line to São Sebastião and change to the blue line.
- From the airport
- Red line to São Sebastião, then blue line to Amadora Este or Reboleira
- Metro
- Blue line, direct to Restauradores and Baixa-Chiado
- Train
- Sintra line from Rossio or Oriente to Amadora, Reboleira and Santa Cruz-Damaia
- Road
- IC19 towards Sintra, plus the CRIL and A16 ring roads
- Reboleira is served by both the metro and the train, so a room near that station gives you both lines.
- Avoid driving the IC19 at rush hour, when it is among the most congested roads around Lisbon.
- Some Sintra line trains start at Oriente.
- A taxi or ride-hail car from the airport uses the ring roads (CRIL and A16) and spares you the change.
Getting around
Two rail lines and Carris Metropolitana
Walk the centre and use the metro and Sintra line for longer trips. The streets around the CP station are walkable, though hilly in places. Take a Carris Metropolitana bus to the Carenque tombs in the Serra das Brancas or the UBBO shopping centre with KidZania. One reusable Lisbon card covers metro, trains and buses.
- Rail
- Metro and Sintra line stations close together in the centre
- Bus
- Carris Metropolitana routes to Carenque and UBBO
- Taxi
- Ride-hail apps work across the city and out to Sintra
- For Sintra's palaces, the train from Amadora station runs straight there without a change.
- Regional buses also link Amadora with Sintra, Oeiras and Odivelas; touch in on every bus.
Know before you go
What makes Amadora worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- The Carenque tombs, five thousand years old and free to visit.
- Amadora BD, the long-running comics festival each autumn.
- KidZania, where children get to run a miniature city for an afternoon.
Good to know
- Mainly residential, so do not expect a historic centre.
- Stay near a station if you are using it as a base for Lisbon and Sintra.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Amadora, month by month
Month-by-month climate figures for Amadora are being researched.
Sleeping cheap between Lisbon and Sintra
Stay in Amadora to pay less than in central Lisbon and keep both the city and Sintra one train ride away. The blue metro line runs from Reboleira and Amadora Este to Restauradores and Baixa-Chiado, and Sintra line trains from Amadora station reach the palaces in the other direction. Choose a room near Reboleira, where both lines meet.
Hotels here cost less than in central Lisbon, and the trade-off is a train or metro ride each morning. The blue line runs from Reboleira and Amadora Este straight under Avenida da Liberdade to Restauradores and Baixa-Chiado, so the old centre is a single trip. Sintra line trains from Amadora station go the other way, out to Sintra for its palaces and wooded hills, and bring you back to Rossio in the evening.
Choose a room within a short walk of Reboleira or Amadora station. Reboleira is the pick, as the metro and the train share it. Hotels near the Alfragide retail park, such as the Ibis, suit drivers better than rail users.
Settle into a routine: Lisbon days on the metro, a Sintra day on the train, and one morning at home for the Carenque tombs or, with children, KidZania. On match days at the Estádio José Gomes, west of Reboleira station, expect crowded platforms after the final whistle.
Prato do dia, migas and cachupa
Nobody comes here for the food, but Amadora eats well and without fuss. Lunch is the main meal for the office crowd, and most cafés and tascas put up a prato do dia (dish of the day) on weekdays: grilled fish, a stew, or bitoque, a thin steak topped with a fried egg and served with chips and rice.
Lugar ao Sul on Avenida Eduardo Jorge cooks from the Alentejo, the plains south-east of Lisbon. Look for migas, bread fried with garlic and pork fat, and carne de porco à alentejana, pork and clams in one pan. Maria Azeitona on Rua Alfredo Keil covers Portuguese meat and fish dishes, while O Quintal on Rua Bernardim Ribeiro serves home-style comfort food in a small, cosy room.
Many Amadora families have roots in Cape Verde, and small cafés in neighbourhoods such as Cova da Moura sometimes serve cachupa, the islands' slow-cooked stew of maize, beans and meat. It is filling enough to skip dinner.
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How we research our Amadora travel guide
Amadora's metro and Sintra-line details were matched to the municipal website, with Visit Portugal for the Lisbon connections and IPMA for weather.
Last updated . Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
Checked against trusted sources:
Official website of AmadoraVisit PortugalIPMA, Portuguese weather service
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Amadora.
General
The blue line, from Baixa-Chiado and Restauradores out to Amadora Este and Reboleira. Sintra line trains from Rossio or Oriente are the alternative.
Yes for budget travellers. It sits on both the metro and the Sintra railway, though it has little to see itself.
Three late Neolithic collective tombs cut into the rock around 3000 BC in the Serra das Brancas, a national monument with free entry.
Inside the UBBO shopping centre in Amadora. Children role-play adult jobs in a miniature city, and a visit usually lasts about three hours.
Reboleira, because both the blue metro line and the Sintra line trains stop there.
Estrela da Amadora play at the Estádio José Gomes, about 500 m west of Reboleira station.
No. A few hours covers the Carenque tombs; stay longer only as a cheaper base for Lisbon and Sintra.
Walk the centre and use the metro and Sintra line for longer trips. The streets around the CP station are walkable, though hilly in places. Take a Carris Metropolitana bus to the Carenque tombs in the Serra das Brancas or the UBBO shopping centre with KidZania.
Cancellations & changes
Take the red metro line to São Sebastião and switch to the blue line towards Reboleira. A taxi via the ring roads avoids the change.
Timing & weather
It is held every autumn; check the official programme for this year's dates.
The best time to visit Amadora is Apr to Jun, Sep to Oct. Mild weather, with the comics festival in autumn.
- Spring and autumn: April - June, September - October (Mild and comfortable; autumn brings Amadora BD)
- Summer: July - August (Hot and dry, with less shade than central Lisbon)
Stay & facilities
Lugar ao Sul, which brings the cooking of the plains south-east of Lisbon to a commuter suburb. Go at lunchtime on a weekday, when the office crowd fills it.
Getting there
Arrive on the blue metro line or a Sintra line train. The blue line ends at Reboleira after Alfornelos and Amadora Este and runs straight to Restauradores and Baixa-Chiado. Sintra line trains from Rossio stop at Santa Cruz-Damaia, Reboleira and Amadora.
Visa & documents
Portugal's entry rules are the Schengen area's. Citizens of the EU and of many other countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, can visit visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; other nationalities need a Schengen visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) records non-EU travelers' fingerprints and a photo at the border.
Health & safety
Portugal is one of Europe's safest countries, and pickpocketing on Lisbon's tram 28 and in crowded tourist areas such as Baixa is the main risk. Strong Atlantic waves and currents make lifeguarded beaches the safe choice, and wildfires are a summer risk inland. Call 112 for police, fire or ambulance.
