WHAT TO DO IN SINTRA IN 2 DAYS
CULTURAL LANDSCAPE OF SINTRA - UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE
We stayed in Sintra because the Cultural Landscape of Sintra is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We had effectively a day and a half to explore and we managed to see 4 places. We began our day 1 with Pena Palace and day 2 with Castelo dos Mouros and the weather on the 2 days were absolutely opposite. Day 1, it was raining cats & dogs and we were in Pena Palace and the typical picturesque, colorful facade was very dull with a thick layer of fog; and the view from there - well, it was non-existent! Anyways.......
The terrace walk is supposed to lend some amazing views, but all we saw was 'white fog'! Do note that this area feels a bit unsafe with kids. Hold on to them tight or wear them in babywearing. The parapet walls are low with no safety railings or so! Here's the blogpost by Hand Baggage Only to show you how awesome, colorful, picturesque with amazing views, Pena Palace is supposed to give on a bright sunny day!!!
Each and every room has a board that mentions the function of the room in the periods of the Maria and Amelia (first & last women of the Palace)! The state rooms, from bedoom to reading room to banqueting hall to kitchen to main hall, look as royal and luxurious as any other palace reminding me of Buckingham & Christiansborg. The most fascinating one was the Reception Room - which was completely painted with a 3 dimensional fresco that gives an illusion of a larger and sculpted/stucco decorated room! There is a very heavy Islamic influence here too!
While the entrance of Moorish Castle is located very close by, we chose to do it the next day, hoping a better weather and it luckily was sunny. Day 2 early in the morning, our first stop was Castelos dos Mouros.
This exceptional site had been in occupation since 3000 BCE with neolithic age with pottery and ceramic fragments unearthed! By 8th C, the Moorish reign begins and by 10th C, the castle began to be built. By 1109, crusaders took over the region and the king was Sigurd I. It changed several hands and finally in 1839, King Ferdinand II took this over and renovated it in his signature moorish + romantic style! He loved watching the Pena Palace from here and did some paintings of the views from here as well!
First things here are the archaeological excavations beneath and cisterns. Till this point it is stroller/wheelchair friendly, and not the towers ahead. On the right is the castle wall that leads to the towers. Unlike Pena, the terrain here is rugged and just has dirt tracks.
This is extremely unsafe to go toddlers, more so in foggy, wet weather! The walls are shallower than and windier than Pena Palace and again, with no safety railings or mesh. If the kids are old enough to listen to your word and know to exercise caution then its OK; if they are younger, running toddlers, its better to even skip Moorish Castle. There is an alternate route to get to the highest tower, Royal Keep, and that's safer than walking on the walls. Atyudarini was on my back in babywearing and I took every step with caution and I was definitely a bit scared....
Coming back soon with Quinta de Regaleira and Monserrate Palace, the other monuments in Sintra that we managed to see.
The best thing is that Pena Palace is available to hire for weddings and other events. Just the whole idea of getting married in a super colorful palace, atop a hill, surrounded by all greenery, with a view a view of the Moorish Castle.... isn't that splendid! Here is one of your perfect destination wedding venues in Portugal! 2 more Sintra Wedding Venues coming up in next post, stay tuned...
My complete Lisbon & Sintra Travelogue: Lisbon Belem Tower & Jeronimos Monastery, Sintra - Pena Palace, Castelo dos Mouros, Quinta da Regaleira, Monserrate Palace.
SINTRA DAY-TRIP ITINERARY: Pena Palace, Castelo dos Mouros & Quinta da Regaleira (can be done as a daytrip from Lisbon)
SINTRA 2 DAYS ITINERARY: Pena Palace, Sintra Palace, Castelo dos Mouros, Quinta da Regaleira, Monserrate Palace and Cabo de Roca (the tip of Portugal looking over the vast expanse of Altantic Ocean and then the USA!).
While it is possible to visit Sintra in one or more daytrips from Lisbon, it is an amazing experience to stay in Sintra, surrounded by all greenery with a stunning view from the window, of the Moorish Castle! Airbnbs, hostels & hotels are available are various price points, esp., close to Sintra railway station. Check out my review of the historic hotel, Sintra Marmoris Palace where we stayed.
On Google Maps: Pena Palace main entrance, Castelo dos Mouros main entrance
From the main entrance of Pena, reaching the palace is a short 500m walk, but its slightly uphill. A shuttle operates from the entrance to the Palace for €3.
From the main entrance of Pena, reaching the palace is a short 500m walk, but its slightly uphill. A shuttle operates from the entrance to the Palace for €3.
The public bus service in Sintra, Scotturb, has 2 loops connecting the various monuments of Sintra to the Historic Centre (railway station). Uber also functions well here. However since several roads are one-way it can take a longtime to reach!!! If its close-by to walk, sometimes its quicker to walk. In either cases, be prepared to wait! Buses don't really come on time and Uber can cancel even if you're nearby, if reaching you needs a long one-way route!
HIKING IN SINTRA
On a totally different way, it is possible to hike to Pena Palace and Moorish Castle from the Historic city centre! It would take about 1hr with an average fitness level. Here are the maps for hiking in Sintra.
On a totally different way, it is possible to hike to Pena Palace and Moorish Castle from the Historic city centre! It would take about 1hr with an average fitness level. Here are the maps for hiking in Sintra.
Pena Park only tickets: €7.5
Pena Palace Tickets (Park incl.): €14
Pena Palace Tickets (Park incl.): €14
Pena Palace Hours: 9:00 AM to 6:30PM
Moorish Castle Tickets: €8
Moorish Castle Tickets: €8
Moorish Castle Hours: 9:00 AM to 6:30PM
Can be bought online on the official website of Parques de Sintra, which is automatically a skip-the-line ticket with its barcode, but still there will be a queue for ticket checking! 5-10% discount available if combined tickets are purchased for 2 or more monuments. But this can only be bought at the ticket counter.
Can be bought online on the official website of Parques de Sintra, which is automatically a skip-the-line ticket with its barcode, but still there will be a queue for ticket checking! 5-10% discount available if combined tickets are purchased for 2 or more monuments. But this can only be bought at the ticket counter.
P.S: I was invited by Parques de Sintra to experience the region and hosted by Sintra Marmoris Palace, for review purposes, however the opinions are my own and this post does not to advertise the product/service.
We are so sorry we missed Sintra when we visited Lisbon. Such a smart choice to stay in Sintra so you could explore for more than one day. Easy when the local bus goes to all the main monuments. I love that view you got of the palaces with the spooky fog swirling around. But sorry you did not get to see the park. Good thing the weather did get better on your second day. I can see why so many paintings were done of the Sintra area. Colour and detail too. Good tips about watching the children on narrow paths with no rails.
ReplyDeleteThank you for such a great post! Pena Castle has been on my bucket list for many years, but I haven't had a chance to get to Portugal yet. Your post is making me want to make Portugal a bigger priority and get there this year! I loved your photo of the castle with the fog in front of it. Absolutely stunning!
ReplyDeleteI must admit this post brought back memories and what a place to travel to with such colours and beautiful architecture. It can be reached so easily from Lisbon so even if you dont want to stay around the area you can easily do a day trip from Lisbon. There is something fairyland type when you first cast your eyes over Pena Palace.I was not aware that the site where Pena Palace is located was the chapel of Our Lady of Pena. Thanks for a great informative post which shouold help anyone looking to visit.
ReplyDeleteThis post and reading your experiences and seeing your photos brought back a lot of memories. I went to Sintra back in 2012 as a day trip from Lisboa and is one of the top places to visit for anyone visiting the Portugese capital. I loved walking up and down the road between the castle and palace. I remember it being very cloudy at the Moorish castle and gave it a spooky feel on the day. The palace was quite nice and I love the colours on the facade. Ahhh...memories, think its time for a return visit.
ReplyDeleteCastelos dos Mouros looks absolutely fantastic! That view over to the Atlantic is incredible! I'm sure it wouldn't look as nice when the wind and rain is kicking off but at least it should be sunny most of the time.
ReplyDeleteI have yet to visit Sintra although its been on my list for years! The Pena Palace is well-known and it looks definitely mystical through the fog. I did not know about the Moorish castle but it is now well on my list of to-sees. Kind of like the great wall of china!
ReplyDeleteThe fog around the castle made it look so mystical! I love scoping out real life castles in my travels. They are so neat as architectural wonders and to get immersed more in the history of a destination. Such a neat place you found!
ReplyDeletei am sooooo glad you spent the night there (i mean imagine if you ONLY had the crappy weather day there). So many tourists only come for a day trip from Lisbon but staying overnight is a MUST!
ReplyDeleteWhat a tough act to follow! Exploring a castle on my own is tiring already, what more if you have a child with you. Hats off! The views are amazing! I haven't been to this side of Europe and would love to add it to my list. It's picturesque! Funny that there's no view from the top, so it's really more about the journey than the destination, no? 🙂
ReplyDeleteAn enjoyable read! Brought back memories of visit to Sintra two years back.
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