Planetário de Marinha

The Planetário de Marinha is the Portuguese Navy’s planetarium, part of the Museu de Marinha (the Navy museum) building on Praça do Império in Belém, next to the Jerónimos Monastery. It was designed by the architect Frederico George and built between 1963 and 1965, fulfilling the dream of a naval officer and amateur astronomer, Commander Eugénio Conceição Silva. The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation paid for most of it, which is why older guides call it the Planetário Calouste Gulbenkian. It opened on 20 July 1965, a date the planetarium still marks with free entry.

In 2004 and 2005 it was renovated with Ciência Viva and reopened with a new main projector and auditorium. Besides the dome, the building has an exhibition gallery and a library of more than 1,000 astronomy titles.

The lights go down and the dome turns into a night sky with far more stars than anyone sees from a Lisbon street. The projector is a Zeiss Universarium IX with 32 star projectors, showing more than 9,000 stars, as well as the Milky Way, star clusters, nebulae, the constellation figures and guide lines to help explain what you’re looking at. Each star is lit through its own optical fibre, the brightest ones slightly red, blue or yellow as they really are, and the projector can make them twinkle. The planetarium points out that only a clear night far from any lights looks better.

Each session has a recommended age, and the programme from 15 September to 20 December 2026 mixes films with live shows led by a presenter:

• Capitão Schnuppes, ages 3 to 10: a 34-minute film in which the good-humoured Captain Schnuppes tours the planets of the solar system in his super-intelligent spaceship, Argo, while clumsy Sergeant Took gets them into trouble. It’s on at 10:00 on Wednesdays and Fridays and at 10:30 and 15:00 at weekends.
• Heróis e Berlindes no Céu (heroes and marbles in the sky), ages 6 to 11: a 50-minute live show in which children imagine pictures in the stars, visit the Sun and Moon and “become astronauts”. One session on 27 November 2026 at 11:00 is in English.
• A Olhar para o Céu (looking at the sky), for families: a 50-minute live show about the stars, constellations and galaxies you can see with the naked eye, with a visit to the International Space Station.
• Os Guardiões da Terra (the guardians of the Earth), from age 6: a 24-minute documentary about how satellites help scientists study climate change, available in Portuguese, English and French.
• For older children, Da Terra ao Universo (from Earth to the Universe, 32 minutes, from 10), Sol, a Nossa Estrela Viva (the Sun, from 10), Estrelas, Galáxias e Mais Além (a live show on navigating by the stars, from 12) and Fantasma do Universo (dark matter, from 12).

On weekdays the live shows run at 11:00 and 14:00. The planetarium says the recommended ages are guidance only.

Sessions run Tuesday to Friday at 10:00, 11:00, 14:00, 15:00 and 16:00, and on Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30, 11:30, 14:00, 15:00, 16:00 and 16:30. Public holidays follow the Saturday programme. The planetarium is closed on Mondays, 1 January, Easter Sunday, 1 May and 25 December.

When we checked, it was closed for maintenance from 29 September to 2 October 2026, and a few sessions in October and November had been swapped (for example, O Regresso à Lua: Projeto Artemis, about returning to the Moon, on 8 and 10 October at 16:00). Check the sessions page before you go.

2026 prices, set by the Navy in January, are €7 for ages 13 to 64, €3.50 for ages 4 to 12 and over-65s, and €18 for a family of two adults and two children, with €3 for each extra child. Tickets are sold at the Museu de Marinha ticket desk. Arrive 15 minutes before the first weekday session at 10:00 and 30 minutes before the others; nobody is let in once a session starts, and there’s no refund.

The combined Planetário + Museu ticket covers one planetarium session and the Museu de Marinha on the same day: €29 for a family, €12 for an adult and €6 for ages 4 to 12. It isn’t sold on Mondays. The Passe CulturaMAR (€54 for a family) adds the frigate D. Fernando II e Glória and the Aquário Vasco da Gama, valid for four months.

Entry is free on 20 May (Navy Day), on 1 June (Children’s Day, for ages 4 to 12) and on 20 July (Planetarium Day), unless it falls on a Monday.

Children under 3 aren’t allowed in. The price list shows three-year-olds as free, but the access rules say entry is barred from 0 to 3, so check with the planetarium before bringing a three-year-old. It’s dark inside, which most children find exciting but a few find frightening, so sit near the end of a row if yours might want to leave. Some films include bright or flashing images that aren’t advised for people with photosensitive epilepsy.

Phones must be switched off, and no photos, torches, food or drink are allowed during sessions. The building has access for people with reduced mobility. The air conditioning keeps the dome cool, so bring a light layer in summer.

The combined ticket with the Museu de Marinha next door is good value if your child also likes ships, since the museum is full of boats and navigation instruments. Belém’s gardens, the monastery and the riverside are all within a few minutes’ walk, and Pastéis de Belém is round the corner for a custard tart.

What age can children go to the planetarium?

From 4 in practice: children under 3 aren’t admitted, and the rules for three-year-olds are unclear. Capitão Schnuppes is made for ages 3 to 10, and the family live show suits all ages.

How long is a planetarium session?

Between 24 and 50 minutes. Films run 24 to 34 minutes and the live shows about 50.

Are there sessions in English?

Some films, such as Os Guardiões da Terra and Da Terra ao Universo, are available in English, and one Heróis e Berlindes no Céu session on 27 November 2026 is in English. Ask at the desk which sessions that day are in English.

Is it open on Mondays?

No. It’s closed every Monday, and the combined ticket with the museum isn’t sold on Mondays.

Where do you buy tickets?

At the Museu de Marinha ticket desk, before the session. Arrive 30 minutes early (15 minutes for the 10:00 weekday session).