Santa Justa Lift: Is It Open and What to Do Instead

The Santa Justa Lift is the lacy iron tower that carries people from the Baixa up to Largo do Carmo, and for years it was one of Lisbon’s busiest sights. The first thing to know is that it’s closed. Here’s the latest status, why it shut, and the easiest ways up the hill without it.

Quick answer: as of October 2026 the Santa Justa Lift is still closed, as it has been since September 2025. Carris, which runs it, lists it as temporarily closed and has not confirmed a reopening date; reports of early 2027 are not official. You can still photograph the tower from Rua do Ouro. To get up to Chiado and Carmo, ride the free escalators inside Baixa-Chiado metro station, or take the Carris minibus 51E from Rossio to Largo do Carmo.

Is the Santa Justa Lift open? Current status

No, it has been shut since September 2025. The closure followed the Glória funicular accident on 3 September 2025, when the cable linking the funicular’s two cars gave way and a car crashed into a building on Calçada da Glória, killing 16 people. The city suspended its other historic lifts and funiculars for inspection. An independent technical committee, with members from the Order of Engineers, the National Civil Engineering Laboratory (LNEC) and Instituto Superior Técnico, must now approve each one before it carries passengers again.

Santa Justa is the furthest along. It had new motors fitted in 2024, and in March 2026 the committee said it could run safely, with a return expected before the summer. That didn’t happen. At the end of August 2026, the president of Carris said the work was more advanced than on the others but would take time, partly because specialist parts are slow to source. In October 2026 Carris still lists it as “temporarily closed”, so check carris.pt before you go.

What the Santa Justa Lift is

The lift opened on 10 July 1902 to link the flat Baixa with Largo do Carmo, high above. It was designed by Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard, an engineer born in Porto, and it’s a 45-metre iron tower decorated with neo-Gothic arches and lattice work. It ran on steam at first and switched to electric motors in 1907.

Inside are two wood-panelled cabins, each built for 24 passengers. At the top, an iron walkway crosses the rooftops to the Carmo side, and a small viewing deck sits on the roof. It’s the only vertical lift of its kind in Lisbon and has been a National Monument since 2002.

Can you still see and photograph it?

Yes. The tower stands at the western end of Rua de Santa Justa, where it meets Rua do Ouro (also called Rua Áurea), one block south of Rossio.

• Straight on: stand on Rua Augusta and look west along Rua de Santa Justa. The tower closes the end of the street.
• From below: on Rua do Ouro you can look straight up the ironwork. Early morning is quietest.
• From above: the terraces around Largo do Carmo show the top of the tower and its walkway, and you can pick it out across the Baixa from the castle walls.

Can you still reach the top?

Not by lift, and the viewing deck on the roof was already closed before the accident. The iron walkway is different. It joins the tower to the lane beside the Carmo Convent (Travessa Dom Pedro de Menezes), a minute from Largo do Carmo, and reports since the closure say you can still walk out onto it for a free view over the Baixa. Carris hasn’t published anything about access, though, so treat it as a bonus.

How to get up to Chiado and Carmo without the lift

• Baixa-Chiado metro escalators (free): go in at the lower entrance on Rua do Crucifixo and ride the long escalators up to the exit at Largo do Chiado, by the café A Brasileira. You don’t pass the ticket gates. From there, walk along Rua Garrett and up Calçada do Sacramento to Largo do Carmo in about five minutes.
• Minibus 51E: Carris’s small electric bus, set up to replace the Glória funicular, loops from Restauradores via Rossio and Rua do Ouro to Largo do Carmo, then past São Pedro de Alcântara. It usually runs from about 7am to 9pm, every 15 to 30 minutes, at the normal bus fare.
• Terraços do Carmo: Álvaro Siza’s terraces, finished in 2015, link Rua do Carmo and Rua Garrett with Largo do Carmo by ramps, stairs and a public lift. Check the lift is working.
• On foot: from Rossio, Rua do Carmo climbs gently to Rua Garrett, then Calçada do Sacramento leads to Largo do Carmo, about 10 to 15 minutes in all. Calçada do Carmo, past Rossio station, is shorter but steeper.

Viewpoints near the lift

• Carmo Convent and terraces: the roofless Gothic church on Largo do Carmo, ruined by the 1755 earthquake, is worth a visit (about €7, closed Sundays). The free Terraços do Carmo beside it look over the Baixa to the castle.
• São Pedro de Alcântara: about ten minutes’ walk from Largo do Carmo, a two-level garden terrace facing the castle, with a kiosk.
• Arco da Rua Augusta: a view straight down onto the Baixa for €5 (free with the Lisboa Card).
• São Jorge Castle: the highest views in the old town, for €17. The free public lifts from Rua dos Fanqueiros save most of the climb.
• Graça and Senhora do Monte: the Graça viewpoint is by the top of the Graça funicular, and Senhora do Monte, the highest miradouro, is about ten minutes further uphill.

The other funiculars, and how to use the Graça funicular

• Glória: closed. Carris plans new equipment that keeps the historic look, expected in the first half of 2029.
• Lavra: closed, and due to be replaced with a new system. No date.
• Bica: closed. The committee cleared it in March 2026, but there is still no reopening date.

The Graça funicular is the one you can ride. This small modern funicular, opened in 2024, runs between Rua dos Lagares in Mouraria and the Miradouro da Graça, and it reopened on 30 April 2026. The ride takes about a minute and a half and carries only 14 people, so expect a short wait. It usually runs daily from about 7am until 8pm or 9pm, depending on the season. Tap your navegante card, or pay on board (about €4.30 for two trips). Rua dos Lagares is about ten minutes’ walk uphill from Martim Moniz metro.

FAQ

Is the Santa Justa Lift open in 2026?

No. It has been closed since September 2025 and is still listed by Carris as temporarily closed.

When will the Santa Justa Lift reopen?

There is no official date. Some Portuguese papers reported early 2027, but Carris hasn’t confirmed it. Check carris.pt before your trip.

Can you still go up to the top of the Santa Justa Lift?

Not by lift, and the roof deck is closed. Reports say you can still walk onto the walkway from beside the Carmo Convent, but access can change.

What is the easiest way from the Baixa to Chiado without the lift?

Ride the free escalators inside Baixa-Chiado metro station from Rua do Crucifixo up to Largo do Chiado, or take minibus 51E from Rossio to Largo do Carmo.

More: things to do in Lisbon and Lisbon public transport.

See also: Lisbon trams, the best Lisbon viewpoints, Chiado and Bairro Alto, Graça, São Jorge Castle, the Carmo Convent and Baixa and Rossio.

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