Elevador da Glória

The Glória funicular opened in 1885, worked first by a water counterweight system, then by steam, and electrified in 1915. It climbs a two hundred and sixty metre track at a steep gradient from Restauradores at the bottom of the Avenida to the São Pedro de Alcântara viewpoint at the top of the Bairro Alto, in two counterbalanced cars that pass each other midway on a short double section. It is classified as a national monument and is part of the ordinary Carris network, so a transport pass covers it. The cars are repainted regularly and re-tagged just as regularly, so they run covered in graffiti, which is now simply what they look like. The walk up the same street takes about five minutes and is not especially hard, which is worth knowing when the queue is long.

What you actually see

• The 1885 funicular - two counterbalanced cars on a steep two-hundred-and-sixty-metre track.
• The passing point - the short double section where the cars meet midway.
• The graffiti - tagging that is repainted and reapplied continuously.
• The viewpoint - São Pedro de Alcântara at the top of the climb.

When to go

Year-round. Fifteen to thirty minutes including the queue. Evening is busiest, when people head up to the Bairro Alto.

Honest expectations

Queues at the bottom can be long for a ride of under two minutes - walking up the street beside it takes five. Cars are small and crowded. Included in transport passes, which many visitors do not realise. Pickpocketing occurs in the queue.

Nearby

São Pedro de Alcântara viewpoint is at the top; Restauradores and the Avenida are below.