Lisbon, June 19, 2026 (Lusa) - More than 15,000 people visited the Belém Tower in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon, during the first three weeks following its reopening to the public, after the completion of conservation and restoration work on one of the country’s most iconic monuments.
The number of visitors recorded since 27 May was announced by the state-owned organisation Museus e Monumentos de Portugal (MMP), which stated on its website that this reflects “the cultural and heritage significance” of the monument, which has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1983 and is considered one of the main symbols of the city of Lisbon.
The monument’s reopening took place following around a year of work carried out under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), involving an investment of approximately €1 million aimed at the conservation and enhancement of this fine example of 16th-century Manueline architecture, as the director noted on the eve of the reopening during a guided tour for journalists.
Margarida Donas Botto stated that visitors would find the tower “refreshed, gleaming inside and out”, noting that the monument had been restored to its “original splendour”.
She also highlighted the restoration of the characteristic lustre of the lioz stone – the material used in the tower’s construction – the cleaning of which has restored the monument to its original appearance.
The work carried out included the consolidation and cleaning of the stone surfaces, the refurbishment of window frames, structural reinforcement and the modernisation of technical and electrical systems, in an operation that constituted the first major restoration since 1998.
The reopening was accompanied by the introduction of a new visitor management system, based on pre-booked entry slots, with the aim of enhancing the visitor experience and ensuring the monument’s preservation.
The system sets a maximum of 60 admissions every half hour, with a daily limit of around 900 visitors, thereby reducing pressure on the interior spaces, particularly the spiral staircase connecting the tower’s various floors.
According to Margarida Donas Botto, the change was intended to address the long queues that used to form before the tower closed for renovation work, when many visitors were exposed to the weather for long periods and, in some cases, were ultimately unable to enter.
The director also argued at the time that the slight reduction in daily capacity stemmed from safety and heritage conservation concerns, considering it essential to ensure the future sustainability of a monument that received over 400,000 visitors annually.
She also said that the possibility of offering evening visits is being considered as a way of diversifying the offering to the public.
Until it closed for renovation, the majority of visitors to the Belém Tower were from abroad, although the monument’s management had expressed a desire to increase the number of Portuguese visitors, taking advantage of the free admission scheme that allows residents of Portugal to visit national museums and monuments up to 52 times a year.
Located on the north bank of the river Tagus, the Belém Tower was built in the early 16th century as a defensive structure at the mouth of the river and is one of the most recognisable symbols of Portuguese maritime expansion.
Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983, alongside the Jerónimos Monastery, it remains one of the country’s most visited monuments and one of the capital’s main cultural and tourist attractions.
AG/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
