Facing the Atlantic Ocean at the southwestern corner of Europe, Portugal (officially the Portuguese Republic, República Portuguesa) has a very distinguished maritime history. Portuguese sailors launched and led the European age of discovery and Portuguese ships have been returning home from the far corners of the globe for about 600 years. It's not surprising that lighthouses have played an important role in Portuguese culture and that they are treasured national monuments today. This page has information on the lighthouses of the central part of the Portuguese mainland, from Sines through the Leiria District, including the metropolitan area of the capital, Lisbon. There are separate pages for Northern Portugal and Southern Portugal. Lighthouses of the Azores and Madeira (islands discovered and settled by the early Portuguese explorers) are also on separate pages. The Portuguese word for a lighthouse is farol, plural faróis; a small lightbeacon is often called a farolim. In Portuguese ilha is an island, ilhéu is an islet, cabo is a cape, ponta is a promontory or point of land, rocha is a rock, recife is a reef, baía is a bay, estreito is a strait, rio is a river, and porto is a port or harbor. Formerly owned by the Navy, the lighthouses in Portugal are now operated by the Lighthouse Directorate (Direção de Faróis), an agency of the National Maritime Authority (Autoridade Marítima Nacional). ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. PT numbers are from the Portuguese Navy list, as recorded by the Portuguese Wikipedia. Admiralty numbers are from volume D of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 113.
|
|
Setúbal District Lighthouses
|
|
![]() Outão Light, Setúbal, January 2024 ex-Instagram photo by setubal.explorers |
|
|
|
![]() Cacilhas Light, Cacilhas, August 2024 ex-Instagram photo by Miguel Ramos |
Lisbon Area (Lisboa District) Lighthouses
|
![]() Mama Sul Light, Lisboa, March 2022 Instagram photo by André Barragon |
|
|
|
|
Leiria District Lighthouses
|
|
|
Information available on lost lighthouses: Notable faux lighthouses:
|
Adjoining pages: North: Northern Portugal | South: Southern Portugal
Return to the Lighthouse Directory index | Ratings key
Posted December 17, 2005. Checked and revised September 13, 2025. Lighthouses: 38. Site copyright 2025 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.