Free admission to museums, monuments and palaces under the supervision of the State is no longer restricted to Sundays and public holidays and, as of today, it will be possible to choose 52 days a year of free access, the Government revealed.
The measure, which covers only Portuguese nationals and residents in Portugal and will allow for the management of visitor flows, was explained to journalists today by the Minister of Culture, Dalila Rodrigues, at the Ajuda Palace in Lisbon, putting into practice a decision she had revealed in May.
As of today, what changes is that Portuguese citizens and residents in Portugal will have 52 days a year, any day of the week, to visit the 37 museums, monuments and palaces under public supervision free of charge. Until now, free visits were only available on Sundays and public holidays, a system that came into force in September 2023.
“Freedom is complete. We can visit any day of the week. Free admission, which until now has been limited to Sundays and public holidays, will now have full freedom of action and choice. There is no reason why the Portuguese and residents of Portugal should not visit our museums and monuments,” up to a limit of 52 days, the Minister of Culture said today.
To guarantee access to these spaces, visitors must present their citizen’s card at the ticket offices for registration, so that the 52-day limit can be counted in a central database.
The minister herself, the Secretary of State for Culture, Maria de Lurdes Craveiro, and the president of the company that oversees these 37 cultural facilities (Museus e Monumentos de Portugal), Alexandre Pais, quickly registered at the ticket office of the Ajuda National Palace.
As the measure comes into force today, August 1, the free admission for 2024 will only account for 22 days of free admission by the end of the year. But it allows you to visit various museums, monuments and palaces on each chosen day.
