# Fátima and Batalha

The Fátima sanctuary, the Gothic monastery of Batalha and the Mira de Aire caves, an hour and a half from Lisbon. A day trip by car, or a night.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/central-portugal/fatima-and-batalha · Revisado: 2026-11-12

An hour and a half from Lisbon on the A1, Fátima and Batalha are 20 km apart and combine well in a day. Fátima is one of the great Catholic sanctuaries of the world: an immense esplanade where, according to tradition, the Virgin appeared to three shepherd children in 1917. Batalha is a Gothic monastery built to give thanks for the victory at Aljubarrota, a World Heritage Site, with a roofless pantheon that was never finished. Between the two, beneath the Serra de Aire, there are caves with an underground river.

## How do you get there from Lisbon?

By car, about 130 km on the A1, the northern motorway, with tolls: a little under an hour and a half to Fátima. Batalha is about 20 minutes further, on the A1 or the Leiria road, and the Mira de Aire caves about 20 minutes south of Fátima. There are scheduled buses from Lisbon to Fátima, but to combine the monastery and the caves in the same day you need a car.

If you fly from Spain, you land in Lisbon and hire a car at the airport: the A1 starts next door.

## What to see in a day?

Start early at Batalha, which opens at 9:00. The monastery of Santa Maria da Vitória was begun two years after the battle of Aljubarrota in 1385, and was built over more than a century. The visit takes in the church, the Founder's Chapel with the tombs of John I and Philippa of Lancaster, the royal cloister, with Manueline tracery, and the Unfinished Chapels, an octagon open to the sky with an overflowing portal of carved stone.

At midday, go to Fátima. The esplanade can be explored freely: the Chapel of the Apparitions in the centre, the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary at one end and the modern Basilica of the Holy Trinity at the other. Eat at Tia Alice, traditional cooking, which on Sundays opens only at midday: book.

In the afternoon, choose: the quiet walk to Aljustrel, the shepherd children's village, and the Valinhos path among olive trees; the Mira de Aire caves, an hour's guided visit underground; or Ourém castle, a walled town on a hilltop 10 km away. If you have time left, the Alcobaça monastery is half an hour from Batalha, on the way to Nazaré.

## Where should you sleep?

If you want to see the candlelight procession or start early, sleep in Fátima. The Hotel Fátima is next to the sanctuary grounds, with free parking and a garage; the Hotel Cinquentenário, a few minutes' walk away, has connecting rooms for families.

## When should you go?

In spring and autumn. On the 12th and 13th of each month from May to October the great pilgrimages arrive, with hundreds of thousands of people in May and October: hotels fill up and the road grinds to a halt. If you are not going for them, avoid those dates. In summer it is hot on the esplanade at midday; the caves stay cool all year round.

## Dónde está
- Cerca: Tomar (a 22.2 km), Nazaré (a 34.2 km), Óbidos (a 51.6 km), Coimbra (a 67.2 km)

## Qué hacer
- **Sanctuary of Fátima** (2 h · Pilgrims and the curious; everyone · Free): The sanctuary occupies a huge esplanade where, according to Catholic tradition, the Virgin appeared to three shepherd children in 1917. At one end is the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, with the tombs of the shepherd children; at the other, the modern Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity, one of the largest churches in the world. In between, the Chapel of the Apparitions, where the rosary is prayed daily.
You can enter freely and the visit is free. On the 12th and 13th of each month from May to October the great pilgrimages arrive and the esplanade fills up: if you are not coming for that, avoid those dates.
- **Batalha Monastery and the Unfinished Chapels** (1 h 30 · Art and history; everyone): The Monastery of Santa Maria da Vitória was begun by royal commission two years after the Battle of Aljubarrota in 1385, and was built over more than a century. It has been a National Monument since 1907 and a World Heritage Site since 1983. Inside you can see the church, the Founder's Chapel with the tombs of John I and Philippa of Lancaster, the Royal Cloister and, at the back, the Unfinished Chapels, an octagonal roofless pantheon with a Manueline portal.
From 16 October to 31 March it is open from 9:00 to 18:00, and from 1 April to 15 October from 9:00 to 18:30. It is closed on 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May and 25 December. Tickets are bought on its website or at the ticket office.
- **Aljustrel and the Valinhos path** (1 h 30 · 3 km · Everyone; dirt track without steep slopes · Free): About 2 km south of the sanctuary, Aljustrel is the hamlet where Lúcia, Francisco and Jacinta lived: low stone houses, some open as house museums. From there the Valinhos path begins, a Way of the Cross between olive trees and stone walls that passes the sites of other apparitions.
It is a quiet, almost flat walk, out and back, that gives an idea of the rural Fátima of 1917, far from the esplanade.
- **Mira de Aire Caves** (1 h · Families; there are stairs): One of Portugal's great caves, in the Serra de Aire e Candeeiros, about 20 minutes from Fátima: limestone galleries and chambers with stalactites, flowstone and an underground river, lit along the route.
The visit lasts about 60 minutes: it starts with a short video and continues with a guide. There are no fixed times: when you buy your ticket you are given the time of the next tour, and the wait is not usually more than 30 minutes. The ticket office is open from 9:30 to 17:00 from October to March, until 18:00 in April, May and September and until 18:30 from June to August; the last tour leaves at closing time. Groups of fewer than 20 people do not need to book.
- **Ourém castle and medieval town** (1 h · Everyone; cobbled slopes): On a hill east of Fátima, the old town of Ourém keeps its wall, cobbled streets and the castle with its 15th-century palace of the counts, with views over the whole valley. It is a short, quiet walk for the afternoon, when the sanctuary esplanade is full.
Drive up to the upper town and park outside the wall.

## Dónde comer
- **Tia Alice** (Restaurant, Fátima, €€€). Qué pedir: the roast veal or the chanfana from the wood oven (€29), and the bolo do convento for dessert.

## By car: Fátima, Batalha and Mira de Aire by car
With a car, Fátima is the centre of a short triangle: Batalha to the west and the Mira de Aire caves to the south, about 20 minutes each, and Ourém to the east, 10 km away. Alcobaça is half an hour beyond Batalha.
Presupuesto orientativo: 60–120 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir if you're driving
- **Hotel Fátima** (Hotel): The hotel closest to the sanctuary
The Hotel Fátima is next to the sanctuary grounds, beside the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity and the Chapel of the Apparitions. It has been open for more than 70 years and has 117 rooms and suites, some with a view over the esplanade.
Services
Free wifi, free outdoor parking, a garage, an electric car charger, a restaurant and bar, cable TV, minibar and safe, and 24-hour reception. It has adapted rooms and the common areas are accessible.
Who it is for
For anyone who comes for the ceremonies and wants to walk to the esplanade, at night too, for the candlelight procession. From here, Batalha and the Mira de Aire caves are about 20 minutes by car.
- **Hotel Cinquentenário** (Hotel): Half a century welcoming pilgrims
The Cinquentenário is a hotel in Fátima with 50 years of history, on Rua Francisco Marto, a few minutes' walk from the sanctuary. It has a restaurant, shops and souvenir galleries and a conference centre.
For families
It publishes a family programme with connecting rooms for two adults and two children up to 12 years old, with buffet breakfast, a welcome basket and, subject to availability, early check-in and late check-out. This programme is not offered from the 10th to the 15th of each month from May to October, the dates of the great pilgrimages.

## By plane: Flying to Lisbon and driving to Fátima and Batalha
Fátima is about 130 km north of Lisbon, and Lisbon is the gateway, with direct flights from almost every large city in Spain. From the airport, by car, it is a little under an hour and a half along the A1. There are scheduled buses from Lisbon to Fátima, but to combine Batalha, Mira de Aire and Ourém in a day, a car is the practical choice.
### Dónde dormir if you're flying
- **Hotel Fátima** (Hotel): The hotel closest to the sanctuary
The Hotel Fátima is next to the sanctuary grounds, beside the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity and the Chapel of the Apparitions. It has been open for more than 70 years and has 117 rooms and suites, some with a view over the esplanade.
Services
Free wifi, free outdoor parking, a garage, an electric car charger, a restaurant and bar, cable TV, minibar and safe, and 24-hour reception. It has adapted rooms and the common areas are accessible.
Who it is for
For anyone who comes for the ceremonies and wants to walk to the esplanade, at night too, for the candlelight procession. From here, Batalha and the Mira de Aire caves are about 20 minutes by car.
- **Hotel Cinquentenário** (Hotel): Half a century welcoming pilgrims
The Cinquentenário is a hotel in Fátima with 50 years of history, on Rua Francisco Marto, a few minutes' walk from the sanctuary. It has a restaurant, shops and souvenir galleries and a conference centre.
For families
It publishes a family programme with connecting rooms for two adults and two children up to 12 years old, with buffet breakfast, a welcome basket and, subject to availability, early check-in and late check-out. This programme is not offered from the 10th to the 15th of each month from May to October, the dates of the great pilgrimages.

## As a family: Fátima and Batalha with children

With children, balance the sanctuary with the cave: the Mira de Aire caves, with their underground river, are what they will remember most. Batalha impresses by its size and the cloister is quickly covered; Ourém has walls to climb.

### What works best
The Mira de Aire caves, a one-hour guided tour

Ourém castle, with its wall and views

Batalha Monastery and the roofless Unfinished Chapels

The walk to Aljustrel, the shepherd children's hamlet

### Where to stay
Hotel Cinquentenário, with connecting rooms

Hotel Fátima, next to the esplanade

### Where to eat
Tia Alice, with dishes to share

### Bear in mind
The caves have stairs: a baby carrier is better than a pushchair

On the 12th and 13th from May to October the esplanade fills up

### Qué hacer as a family
- Sanctuary of Fátima
- Batalha Monastery and the Unfinished Chapels
- Aljustrel and the Valinhos path
- Mira de Aire Caves
- Ourém castle and medieval town

## Consejos

### Start with Batalha
It opens at 9:00 and first thing there are few people.

### Check the pilgrimage calendar
On the 12th and 13th from May to October the esplanade fills up.

### Bring something warm for the caves
Underground it is cool even in August.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### How long does it take from Lisbon to Fátima?
A little under an hour and a half by car on the A1, about 130 km.

### Can you see Fátima and Batalha in a day?
Yes. They are about 20 km apart and each can be seen in a few hours. With the full day you add the Mira de Aire caves or Ourém.

### How much does it cost to enter the Fátima sanctuary?
Nothing: the esplanade and the basilicas are free to enter.

### What are the opening hours of Batalha monastery?
From 9:00 to 18:00 from October to March and until 18:30 from April to mid-October. It is closed on 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May and 25 December.

### What is near Fátima for children?
The Mira de Aire caves, with a one-hour guided visit, and Ourém castle.