Lisbon - tram one way from Belem?

[aquilegia]

We are docking at Jardim do Tobaco and are planning to take the 728 bus to Belem. Afterwards, we'll probably come back as far as Praca do Comercio then walk to the ship. For a change of scenery, I though it might be nice to travel back from Belem to Praca do Comercio on the tram rather than the bus. Does anyone know whereabouts in Belem you can purchase tram tickets, please?

[dogs4fun]

We are docking at Jardim do Tobaco and are planning to take the 728 bus to Belem. Afterwards, we'll probably come back as far as Praca do Comercio then walk to the ship. For a change of scenery, I though it might be nice to travel back from Belem to Praca do Comercio on the tram rather than the bus. Does anyone know whereabouts in Belem you can purchase tram tickets, please?

Actually, you can purchase them onboard the tram. :) 2.85 euro ... Pay the driver as you enter the tram.

[aquilegia]

Actually, you can purchase them onboard the tram. :) 2.85 euro ... Pay the driver as you enter the tram.

 

Oh, that's great! Many thanks.

[Pet Nit Noy]

We are docking at Jardim do Tobaco and are planning to take the 728 bus to Belem. Afterwards, we'll probably come back as far as Praca do Comercio then walk to the ship. For a change of scenery, I though it might be nice to travel back from Belem to Praca do Comercio on the tram rather than the bus. Does anyone know whereabouts in Belem you can purchase tram tickets, please?

 

Rather than the typical help desk set up in the cruise terminal (Jardim do Tobaco), the city of Lisbon provided an expert on board our ship. When I asked the expert about taking the tram to Belem from our pier, the options resulted in our taking a taxi. In particular, when we were told the price of a taxi ride (somewhat under 5 Euros), we decided that was the best option. We were happy to discover that the predicted price was the actual price both coming and going.

 

To take Tram 15 from Jardim do Tobaco port, we would have had to take the ship-provided shuttle into the center of the city and pick up the public tram to ride to Belem. Between waits for the shuttle and tram and the rides combined, that would have involved about an hour to travel the 5 miles north to Belem. That didn't make sense to us when the taxi option was so inexpensive.

 

Another option would have been to take a bus -- perhaps the 728 route which you mention -- which runs past the port and has stops right in front of the monastery (and the pastry shop) For our needs, the taxi beat the bus since the bus added time by going an inland route through much of its route.

[aquilegia]

Yes, Pet Nit Noy, the 728 bus is the one which runs inland, but I don't mind that. I've read your longer (and helpful) post on the other thread a week or two ago, but I'm still not clear why you were advised that you would have to take the ship shuttle into the city centre if you wanted to catch the 15E tram to Belem. The tram stops at Praca do Comercio and according to groovechick on the other thread, who had also docked at Jardim do Tobaco, Praca do Comercio is only a 10 minute or so level walk from where the ship docked?

[Pet Nit Noy]

Yes, Pet Nit Noy, the 728 bus is the one which runs inland, but I don't mind that. I've read your longer (and helpful) post on the other thread a week or two ago, but I'm still not clear why you were advised that you would have to take the ship shuttle into the city centre if you wanted to catch the 15E tram to Belem. The tram stops at Praca do Comercio and according to groovechick on the other thread, who had also docked at Jardim do Tobaco, Praca do Comercio is only a 10 minute or so level walk from where the ship docked?

 

Reading your post, I was struck by your mention of the 15 E tram. (That's the tram that dogs4fun mentioned when I posted some months ago.) However, I have this nagging feeling that I said tram 15A when I spoke to the person at the help desk.

 

When the expert said the tram didn't go past the port, I chalked this up to different port locations (Alcanta VS Tobaco). I now feel I was asking about a different tram route to Belem with 15A being accessible in the city center and 15E being accessible along the waterfront. I don't know if there are two tram routes to Belem, but that, at least makes more sense than the city expert not knowing her own city.

 

Wouldn't be the first time I made a mistake! Won't be the last!

[aquilegia]

Well, all I know about the trams is what I've read on these forums, so I don't know if there's more than one route going to Belem. I got the impression that Praca do Comercio was as far along the waterfront as the 15E goes, hence the walk to get to it from Jardim do Tabaco. I wasn't planning doing that in the morning, just on the way back to the ship. Mind you, once we've walked all round Belem, our feet may be too tired for that!

[dogs4fun]

Well, all I know about the trams is what I've read on these forums, so I don't know if there's more than one route going to Belem. I got the impression that Praca do Comercio was as far along the waterfront as the 15E goes, hence the walk to get to it from Jardim do Tabaco. I wasn't planning doing that in the morning, just on the way back to the ship. Mind you, once we've walked all round Belem, our feet may be too tired for that!

You are correct. :) Regarding Jardim do Tabaco, the 15E goes only as far as Praca do Comercio.

There are 3 tram routes in Lisbon: 12E, 15E and 18E. The 15E is the only one that serves Belem. (the "E" designation after the number simply refers to "ELECTRIC")

The Carris site (Lisbon's transportation site for bus, metro, tram, train) shows ALL routes for all forms of transportation. Here is the link for the bus and tram routes and schedules:

http://www.carris.pt/en/buslines/

I hope you have a wonderful time ... and, those Belem pastries (custard tarts) ARE delicious!

[aquilegia]

Thank you, dogs4fun. I certainly am looking forward to the Belem pastries!

[hkto]

I would concur that taxi is a better & safer option from either dock especially if more than one person is traveling. 15E is a modern & overcrowded tram with high occurrence of pickpocketing. 28E (going to Alfama) is an old style one but still has pickpocketing issues.

[EmsMom]

Regarding the pickpockets......we watched them go from one tram to another looking for victims. They got on the one we were on and tried to crowd us by getting very close to us. i told them to back off which they did but we stood facing them until they got off at the next stop. A Portuguese man next to us confirmed to us that they were in fact pickpockets. They were pretty obvious about it which leads me to believe that the authorities in Lisbon don't care about catching them. This occurred on one of the old trams....maybe #15. We did ride the tram back from Belem with no problem, however. Just watch your surroundings and don't have anything in a place that someone could steal your stuff.

[Saligo]

You can buy tickets on the tram, but it is expensive and inconvenient to have to mess about with change, especially if like me you don't speak Portuguese.

 

The Lisbon public transport website, http://www.carris.pt, has a section giving the addresses of concessionaires and payshops in each area, and I am sure it will have entries for Belem, but I have to say that it is only slightly more expensive to buy a day ticket before you start your travels and use that on the bus and the tram (you can also use it on the metro and the elevators in the city). The nearest payshop to Jardim do Tabaco is on the street of the same name which is one street back from the road in front of the quayside. Turn left as you leave the port, take the first crossing you come to and go straight down the nearest side street. Turn right at the end of it (a very short distance) and walk along the street until you pass the Museum of Fado. Just a few yards further along on the other side of the street is a lottery shop, I think it is at no.123, where they also sell bus and tram tickets. Walk back down the short street down the side of the museum and there is a bus stop on the main road where you can catch the 728.

 

Alternatively, if little shops down side streets don't appeal, turn right as you leave the port and buy your ticket at Santa Apolonia metro station. The 728 stops just outside it.

 

Hope this helps.

 

John

[Saligo]

When we travelled back from Belem to the city centre on modern tram no.15 (or 15E for eletrico) it wasn't at all crowded (we got seats). In contrast, tram no.28 was so ridiculously overcrowded that we didn't use it. Apart from the pickpocket problem, we have heard people say that with it being so crowded they couldn't really see out anyway. We really wanted to travel on one of the antique trams like they use on the 28 so we took a no.12 instead. It's a shorter circular route starting and finishing at Praça Figueira, and it still takes you through quaint narrow streets up and down hills round the Alfama district and back past the cathedral (Sé). When we used it it was nothing like as crowded as all the 28Es we saw.

 

John

[Cruzinbabe06]

When we travelled back from Belem to the city centre on modern tram no.15 (or 15E for eletrico) it wasn't at all crowded (we got seats). In contrast, tram no.28 was so ridiculously overcrowded that we didn't use it. Apart from the pickpocket problem, we have heard people say that with it being so crowded they couldn't really see out anyway. We really wanted to travel on one of the antique trams like they use on the 28 so we took a no.12 instead. It's a shorter circular route starting and finishing at Praça Figueira, and it still takes you through quaint narrow streets up and down hills round the Alfama district and back past the cathedral (Sé). When we used it it was nothing like as crowded as all the 28Es we saw.

 

John

 

I'll keep this in mind. We have 2 people in our group who have never ridden on a tram or trolley. One is from Jamaica and one from Pakistan.:D

 

Thanks for suggesting this alternate tram.