Santa Justa Lift – The Lisbon Elevator – Photos and Planning Tips

Inaugurated in 1902, the Santa Justa Lift Lisbon is a landmark of the city. Located at its heart, the Lisbon elevator offers splendid views all around over the rooftops. Have a look at the photos! A place not to miss on your itinerary.

Information to plan your visit at the end of the article

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The Lisbon Elevator from bottom entrance

The elevator can be reached from the top or the bottom.

The foot access is in the heart of Lisbon. I missed it on my way from the sea. I don't know how I missed it.... It is quite structure! 

Anyway, I turned around and spotted it between the buildings.

As you approach the entrance, you can see the detailing in the iron structure:

Note: other transportations are called elevators in Lisbon: Elevador da Gloria and Elevador da Bica. But they are funiculars. Whereas Santa Justa is vertical. But they all help with the steep hills of Lisbon Portugal.

Inside the Santa Justa Lift

After that you enter inside the cabin of the Santa Justa Lift., which is also called the Carmo lift. Everything is wood. Most people have to stand up inside for the short ride.

As you exit at the top, the view is blocked by wiring. But don't worry!

You can climb a few steps to reach the open viewing platform with 36O° views!!!

Santa Justa Lift facts

Before I show you photos of the amazing views, below are a few facts for those interested:

• Construction started in 1900
• Opened in 1902
• Height of 45m (148ft) (equivalent of 7 stories)
• It is a National Monument in Portugal
• It connects the lower street of the Baixa neighbourhood (from Rua Santa Justa) to the Carmo square where you can find the Carmo Convent
• Its capacity nowadays is 29 people
• The structure is in iron, decorated in Neo-Gothic style 
• it was designed by Raoul Mesnier (a student of Gustave Eiffel - the one from the Eiffel tower...)
• Originally it had a steam engine. But it was soon changed to an electrical motor

Not to be missed on your Lisbon itinerary!

Santa Justa Lift Lisbon - Viewing plaform

So here we go. We are now at the viewing platform fo the Lisbon elevator.

Even on a rainy day, the view is amazing!

There is quite a lot of space which is great, since I hear it is quite busy in Summer.​

I tried taking a panorama to show you the whole thing, but failed miserably.

Panoramas from Lisbon Elevator

Below are 5 shots in the various directions.

This is the view towards the sea:

Then the view just straight in alignement with the lift.

This is the view towards the Lisbon Castle:

below is the view towards the Praça dom pedro 4 and the National theater.

And towards the back are the ruins of the Carmo Convent:

Rooftop Views from Elevator Lisbon

What I loved the most compared to the other viewpoints in Lisbon is that you are in the center and just above the roofs. So you can get a better feel for the architecture of the buildings. 

And you get great views of the street decorations:

Zoom on Lisbon's Highlights

From the Santa Justa Platform you can see many of Lisbon's Landmarks such as:

Upper exit fo the Carmo Lift

There is also an upper access to the the Lisbon Elevator. It is just nearby the ruins of the Carmo Convent.

A long beautiful corridor with sculpted iron takes you from the ground to the top of the elevator.

This is where you go if you just want to access the platform without paying for the lift

Want to see more of PORTUGAL?

Discover more things to do & places to see in my Travel Portugal Destination Guide.

Do you enjoy metal structures?

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