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Where to go in March / Portugal in March / Lisbon / March

Portugal · City

Lisbon
in March.

Illustration of Terracotta rooftops above the Tagus in Lisbon; representative Alfama panorama, no church or exact lookout claimed.
Lisbon rooftops above the TagusDestination view, not month-specific.

Is March a good time?

Temperature unit

Mild days.
A steady visitor season.

March averages 64°F afternoons and 58°F seas, with about 7 rain days. Later March is typically warmer.

Afternoons
64°F
Sea
58°F
Visitor demand
76%of August peak

Historical Grande Lisboa regional averages, not a forecast or a measure of queues. Overnight demand compares average stays per day. Covers Lisbon, Sintra and Cascais; conditions vary within the region.

Overall match

7.4/10 · scores & priorities

What matters most?

Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%

#9 of 12 months here · Balanced mix

Weather7.8/10Very good
CrowdsSteady all yearsimilar all year; overnight stays do not measure queues
CostModeratefor Europe

Overall combines weather, overnight demand and cost. It does not include sea temperature.

Plan your March

What to expect.

What should I pack?

Afternoons around 64°F (18°C): light layers; nights around 49°F (10°C): a sweater and a light jacket. About 12 hours of daylight. About 7 rain days in a typical March.

Can I swim in March?

The sea averages 58°F. Our swimming guide: very cold: wetsuit weather. Your comfort will vary. This is open water near the coast, not a beach-specific reading.

Monthly coastal averages from NOAA, 2011–2025. Sea temperature is separate from the weather and Overall scores.

A typical day: temperatures & daylightAfternoons, nights, sea temperature & daylight Show detailsHide details

About 12 hours of daylight.

Sunrise 06:50Sunset 18:4349°F64°F00:0006:0012:0018:0024:00

The sun rises about 06:50 and sets about 18:43 (local time, mid-month). Mornings start around 49°F (10°C); afternoons reach about 64°F (18°C). Expect rain on about 7 days in a typical March.

Typical afternoon
64°F (18°C)
average daily high, 15 recent Marches
Night low
49°F (10°C)
average daily minimum
Sea
58°F (14°C)
very cold; open water near the coast, NOAA satellite record 2011–2025
Daylight
11h 53m
on the 15th, computed from latitude

Early, middle or late?

Early or late March?

Late March is typically warmer. The afternoon high averages 62°F on the 1st, versus 65°F on the 31st.

Early March 1 March

62°F

Typical afternoon high

28% historical wet-day frequency

Mid March 15 March

64°F

Typical afternoon high

28% historical wet-day frequency

Late March 31 March

65°F

Typical afternoon high

27% historical wet-day frequency

Historical daily averages from 2011–2025, smoothed over two weeks. A seasonal pattern, not a forecast. This does not establish which week has the lowest prices or fewest visitors.

Public holidays · 2027: 26 Mar Good Friday; 28 Mar Easter Sunday.

Daily calendar & holiday datesMarch 2027 · historical weather & dated holidays Show calendarHide calendar

March 2027 calendar

Weather shows historical patterns, not a forecast. Holidays and events use the dates shown for 2027.

MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
162°262°362°462°562°662°763°
863°963°1063°1163°1264°1364°1464°
1564°1664°1764°1864°1964°2064°2164°
2264°2365°2465°2565°2665°2765°2865°
2965°3065°3165°

Afternoon high rain likely (25%+) local school holidays public holiday event

Afternoons warm from about 62°F (17°C) in the first week to 65°F (18°C) in the last. The chance of a wet day runs 26–32%. Local schools are out 22–31 March 2027.

Schools here are off 22–31 March 2027 (Easter holidays). Public holidays: 26 Mar Good Friday; 28 Mar Easter Sunday. Elsewhere in March 2027, the share of people living where schools are out on a typical day: Germany 27%, Spain 30%, Italy 19%, France 10%. (School holidays: OpenHolidays, ODbL.)

Crowds, cost and getting there

Visitor season

Will it be busy?

Steady all year. March averages 76% of August's overnight stays per day. Overnight demand varies little across the year.

Overnight stays across Grande Lisboa do not measure queues, day visitors or congestion at individual sights.

Hotel price season

Will it be cheaper?

Well below usual. Historical regional hotel revenue (2024–2025 monthly average): €77 per guest-night. An average, not a booking quote.

Fewer overnight stays do not automatically mean cheaper rooms. Check actual quotes for your trip.

Historical hotel average
€77
2024–2025 monthly average; hotel revenue per guest-night; not a current booking quote. −13% vs this region's usual month.
Portugal as a whole
Well below EU average
2024 restaurants and hotels price level: 76 where the EU average is 100. A relative index, not a room rate.
Recorded US nonstop flights · 2024
Recorded this month
from Newark, Boston, New York JFK and Washington Dulles and 4 more; 2024 schedule, Eurostat

The historical regional amount comes from INE Portugal, Inquérito à Permanência de Hóspedes: hotel room revenue per guest-night; the country price level is national. Hotel averages are not live booking quotes.

Year-to-year variation

How much does March vary?

Across the recorded years

In the 15 years from 2011 to 2025, the month's afternoons averaged between 60°F (16°C) and 67°F (20°C); in 10 of them they were within 3°F (1.5°C) of the typical 64°F (18°C). Rain days ranged from 1 to 22; half the years had 3–16.

Rain days in each March

Historical rain days; exact figures in the table below. 2011: 10 rain days1020112012: 1 rain days12013: 22 rain days222014: 7 rain days72015: 3 rain days32016: 7 rain days72017: 8 rain days82018: 19 rain days192019: 3 rain days32020: 3 rain days32021: 2 rain days22022: 16 rain days162023: 4 rain days42024: 13 rain days132025: 19 rain days192025
Rain days
7
at least 1 mm, typical year; about 19 in a wet year
Mostly sunny days
8 of 31
cloud cover under 30%
Years with a 95°F+ day
0 of 15
no March in the last 15 years had a day at or above 95°F (35°C)
Good weather days
22 of 31
rated very good or better
See every recorded MarchHistorical monthly averages, year by year Show detailsHide details
Historical monthly averages, not daily extremes.
YearAfternoon highRain days
201163°F10
201267°F1
201361°F22
201463°F7
201564°F3
201661°F7
201764°F8
201860°F19
201967°F3
202064°F3
202166°F2
202263°F16
202365°F4
202464°F13
202563°F19

Checked against official climate averages for Lisboa (Instituto Geofisico). How we check

Compare dates

February, March
or April?

Historical regional averages. Overnight demand vs August peak, measured as average stays per day.
Typical conditionsFebMarApr
Afternoons61°F64°F67°F
Sea58°F58°F60°F
Rain days878
Overnight demand63%76%85%

February: Cooler afternoons than March. February guide →

April: Warmer afternoons than March. April guide →

Overnight demand measures accommodation stays, not queues. Sea temperatures are monthly coastal averages.

Compare any of the 12 monthsChoose another month and compare it with March Show comparisonHide comparison

Yellow marks the top three months on the Balanced mix. March stays as your reference.

Hotel stays vary little through the year. April to October have a Weather score at least 1.0 point higher than March.

Your comparison

March or February?

Overnight stays vary little through the year.

Historical regional hotel revenue (2024–2025 monthly average): €68 per guest-night. An average, not a booking quote.

Read the February guide →
March compared with another month
Typical conditionsMarchFebruary
Afternoons64°F61°F
Nights49°F48°F
Sea58°F58°F
Rain days78
Visitor seasonSteady all yearSteady all year
Overall / 107.47.3
Month rank#9#11
Every month, in detail Show detailsHide details
All 12 months. Scores and ranks follow your priorities. Explore the whole year.
MonthOverallRankHighLowSeaRain daysWeatherVisitor season
January7.2#1260°F47°F59°F97.1Steady all year
February7.3#1161°F48°F58°F87.3Steady all year
March7.4#964°F49°F58°F77.8Steady all year
April7.8#767°F52°F60°F88.8Steady all year
May8.2#372°F55°F62°F210.0Steady all year
June8.2#476°F58°F64°F110.0Steady all year
July8.4#180°F59°F65°F010.0Steady all year
August8.4#281°F60°F65°F010.0Steady all year
September8.1#578°F60°F66°F210.0Steady all year
October8.0#673°F59°F65°F89.6Steady all year
November7.4#865°F53°F63°F118.1Steady all year
December7.3#1062°F49°F61°F77.4Steady all year

Near here

Nearby places in March

Nearby regions, nearest first. Distances are centre to centre, as the crow flies; they are not road distances or journey times.

Elsewhere in Europe

Same dates, elsewhere in Europe

Lisbon's weather ranks 4 of 41 city regions this month. We found no city regions outside Portugal with a weather score at least 1.0 point higher on these dates.

All of Portugal in March · Everywhere in March

How we knowSources, regional scope & scoring method Show detailsHide details

Hotel stays are steady all year here: this month is 76% of the busiest and about average. That counts overnight stays, not how busy the sights are.The figures cover the whole Grande Lisboa region, suburbs included. That means about 52,000 overnight visitors on a typical March night across the region, 19% of them from Portugal itself. Rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor add up to 28,000 more: 54 for every 100 counted above. Some are the same properties counted twice.

Climate suitability (HCI:Urban, 0–100)74
How our weather was checkedOfficial climate averages for Lisboa (Instituto Geofisico) from the national weather service, every month: afternoon highs typically within 3°F (1.7°C), night lows within 2°F (1.3°C).
Tourist nights per 1,000 residents per day24
Busiest month hereAugust · 32
Visitors as share of people present2.4%
Rank among Europe's regions this month90th percentile
Domestic share of nights19%
Platform rental nights per 100 counted nights54
Visitor share if every platform night were extra3.6%
Population used2.2 million
Statistical regionPT1A · Grande Lisboa

Crowds: Eurostat nights spent at tourist accommodation, by month and NUTS 2 region, 2024–2025 average. Overnight visitors per night is the month's nights divided by its days; the per-1,000 figure is Eurostat's, against each year's population. Platform rentals: Eurostat nights booked via Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor, 2024–2025 average, shown separately because some properties are in both counts. Weather: Holiday Climate Index computed from ERA5 reanalysis with daily highs, night lows and rain days corrected from open national weather-service station records, 2011–2025, population-weighted to the region; day-by-day figures are the same data averaged by date. Heat and rain odds are counted across those years. Sunrise and sunset: NOAA solar equations, local time. Prices: Eurostat price level index and HICP, national; the first figure is regional (INE Portugal, Inquérito à Permanência de Hóspedes: hotel room revenue per guest-night). Full method · this region's data.