Lisbon to Sesimbra: Bus, Car or Day Tour?
Updated October 20, 2026 · 5 min read
If you only need to get to Sesimbra, take the bus: line 3721 runs from the Sete Rios terminal in Lisbon to the Sesimbra terminal, and the timetable gives 55 to 95 minutes, usually around 70. If you also want to see the Arrábida Natural Park, the 8-hour day trip with hotel pickup is the simplest way without a car, at €75 per person and rated 4.8 from 263 reviews.
The bus
Line 3721 is operated by Carris Metropolitana and is named “Lisboa (Sete Rios) – Sesimbra (Terminal)” in its timetable data. Sesimbra is roughly 40 km from Lisbon by road. Across the timetable, scheduled journey times run from 55 to 95 minutes, with a typical trip taking about 70, so allow for the long end at rush hour. The first departures from Sete Rios are early in the morning and the last ones late in the evening, but days and frequency differ between weekdays, weekends and holidays, so look up your date on the Carris Metropolitana website before you plan around the last bus.
We could not confirm a current fare, and we do not quote one. The bus ends in the town of Sesimbra, not at the beaches of the Arrábida park, which has its own summer rules (see below). It is the cheapest option and has no parking or toll worries; the cost is time and fixed departures.
Driving yourself
The car gives you the most freedom: Sesimbra, Cabo Espichel and the Arrábida viewpoints are all within reach on the same day. The day trip page itself puts the drive from Lisbon to the park at about 40 minutes.
The Ponte 25 de Abril is the usual way across the Tagus. A Portuguese motoring site gives €2.25 for a standard car and says the toll is only charged in the south to north direction, so you pay on the way back to Lisbon, not on the way out. Check the current amount before you rely on it. In summer, parking in the centre of Sesimbra and access to the Arrábida beaches are the real constraints. In 2026 the Setúbal municipality closed the roads to Portinho da Arrábida, Creiro and Galapos to most private cars every day from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm, from 4 June to 15 September, with exemptions for buses, taxis, residents and licensed tour operators, according to Time Out Lisboa. The dates are set each season, so check them if you travel then. If you want to compare car rental for Sesimbra and Setúbal, that is the flexible way for Cabo Espichel and the viewpoints, but in the restricted months a car does not take you to those three beaches during the day.
Day trips from Lisbon
Four tours cover the bus-free alternative, each with a different idea of what you came for.
| Day trip | Price | Time | Reviews | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arrábida and Sesimbra day trip | €75 | 8 hours | 4.8 · 263 | the park and the town |
| Arrábida and Sesimbra day trip with wine | €72 | 8 hours | 4.8 · 430 | wine estates |
| Sesimbra wild beach tour | €49.40 | 7 hours | 4.8 · 151 | one remote beach |
| Arrábida kayak tour from Lisbon or Sesimbra | €40 | 4 to 6.5 hours | 4.9 · 540 | paddling |
The €75 park and town day trip. You are picked up at your Lisbon hotel by an air-conditioned minivan and cross the Ponte 25 de Abril. The page lists the cliffs at Meco beach, Sesimbra with its Moorish castle, Portinho da Arrábida and the Lapa de Santa Margarida cave, where it says moderate walking is required. Lunch in Sesimbra is at your own expense, and the plan leaves free time for the beaches of Galapos, Galapinhos or Coelhos. The page lists people with mobility impairments as not suitable. Reviewers praise the guide and the unhurried pace, and one said it shows the coast without driving hours to the Algarve.
The €72 trip with wine. Choose it if the estates are the point. Its page lists a wine tasting at a family-run estate in Palmela, viewpoints in the park, and a stop in Sesimbra where you buy lunch in a local restaurant. A reviewer mentions a food market in Setúbal and lunch by the beach in Sesimbra, and another wrote that there was no time to swim. It has 430 reviews, the most of the three day trips that are not kayaking.
The €49.40 wild beach tour. The route is about 1 hour by van each way, 15 minutes of walking in Sesimbra, then 4 hours at Ribeira do Cavalo beach for swimming and snorkelling, with a stop at the Cristo Rei statue on the way back. The page rules out children under 6, people with back problems and mobility impairments, and reviewers say the descent to the beach and the climb back are demanding. Our guide to Ribeira do Cavalo by kayak, boat or on foot explains the beach in detail. The page names a meeting point at Cais do Sodré and also lists hotel pickup, so confirm which applies.
The kayak tour with a Lisbon transfer. The €40 listing offers a 4-hour kayak outing from Sesimbra, with a round-trip transfer from the Time Out Market at Cais do Sodré, which takes about 6.5 hours in total. Its page excludes pregnant women, people with back problems, mobility impairments and heart problems, and people over 110 kg. Our guide to kayaking in Arrábida from Sesimbra compares it with the other paddle tours.
A fifth option sits under dolphins: the fast-track dolphin watching trip costs €50 and is rated 4.9 from 276 reviews, with about 7 hours in total if you add its optional transfer from Lisbon. See our dolphin watching guide before you pick.
Which should you choose?
- Moving to Sesimbra for a few days, no car: the bus 3721.
- One day, no car, park and town: the €75 day trip.
- One day, you like wine: the €72 day trip.
- A week with several excursions: the car, with the summer beach rules in mind.
Once you are in town, the boat tours from Sesimbra leave from the harbour, and our things to do in Sesimbra page covers the rest. If you only book one tour from Lisbon, make it the €75 Arrábida and Sesimbra day trip.
