Sintra, Portugal

March 11, 2025 Lisa Comments 0 Comment

After leaving Aveiro, I stopped at Nazaré on the way to Sintra. I had checked one website and supposedly there were “giant waves” forecast. I got there though and the waves were just average (about 30 feet). Talking to another person while walking down to the fort, they told me about the site, Surfline, that they use and said was always accurate.

I did get to see inside the small Chapel of the Miracle, or Ermida da Memória da Nazaré, which was closed last time I visited.

I continued to Queluz. I had booked the nice Pousada Palacio de Queluz; it is centrally located between Lisbon and Sintra. It’s close to a train station, just a 15 minute walk, and has plenty of parking.

I arrived early afternoon. I planned 4 nights, thinking I would spend two days in Sintra and two in Lisbon. But I spent the first afternoon just in Queluz, the next two days in Sintra, then my final day in Lisbon, unfortunately, in the pouring rain.

There is a lot to see in both Sintra and Lisbon. I should have planned for more time but can easily go back.

Lisbon is bigger and perhaps has more to see, but I like Sintra so much because it is smaller and easier to get around. Sintra is Europe’s first UNESCO “Cultural Landscape”, which includes Pena Palace, Sintra Palace, the Moorish Castle and more.

Recommendations

Directly across from the Pousada is the huge Queluz National Palace Palácio. I bought tickets online. Tickets run €10-€13 on their website, I bought mine on GetYourGuide for only $6.50. The ticket included online maps and a guide.

I spent several hours here my first afternoon. This was started in 1654 by João IV who established the Casa do Infantado, which included the Queluz Country House. Prince Pedro expanded the “Old Palace” in 1747 and there was a larger expansion in 1760, when he married the heir to the throne, Princess Maria.

The huge and beautiful National Palace of Queluz was home to many Portuguese kings and queens. There are gorgeous floors, ceilings, Murano glass chandeliers, and stunning tiles. There is a canal around the property covered in beautiful tiles where they floated around the estate in a gondola, a hand ball court, green houses, fountains, huge formal gardens, even an artificial waterfall feature.

I visited the Palácio Nacional da Pena 20 years ago, when my daughter and I were in Lisbon for a week. There was some Interpol (perhaps NATO?) security conference in the palace and no entry was allowed. We both enjoyed the beautiful exterior and gardens, however.
This visit I had my timed entry tickets in advance. I enjoyed the grounds and outside facades and courtyards before queuing up for my time slot for the palace. I was very glad to see the beautiful rooms. Unfortunately, the weather was really overcast with some rain off and on so I mostly have disappointing photos.

I bought a 3-day ticket from the train station, about €14 and took the train to the Sintra (Central) station from Queluz. There is a bus right outside the train station, the 434, but it can take quite long to get to the palace as there are quite a number of stops. I called a Bolt for just €6. It would have been about the same for the bus. I was dropped off right outside the main entrance, there is about a 30 minute walk through the gardens up to the castle.

I walked from the palace and down the hill to the great Castelo dos Mouros, the ruins of the 10th c castle from when the Moors occupied the Iberian peninsula. There is another long walk uphill once entering the front gates. I had a tour guide try to sell me a tour of Pena Palace at the train station. I told him I already had tickets for that and the castle. He replied, oh, too bad, I would have told you the castle not worth visiting. I strongly disagree. My daughter and I were also here in 2004 and I knew I wanted to return.
The walls provide fantastic views of the countryside, Pena Palace, Sintra, and, on a clear day, all the way to the Atlantic coast. It was built to defend maritime access to Lisbon.

It was occupied until 1147 after the conquest of Lisbon and then ceded to the first king of Portugal, Afonso Henriques. The Knights Templar master, Gualdim Pais, that I had learned about in Tomar last year, controlled the security of Sintra. King Ferdinand II did restoration work on the castle. During the renovation they found some bones. They couldn’t determine if they were Christian or Moorish, so the new tomb that was built, has the inscription: “What man brought together, only God may separate”.

I took the Vila Sassetti trail down from the Moorish castle to lower town, the “Historic Centre”. It allowed me the opportunity to enjoy the Loureiros Forest before passing the Vila Sassetti house and gardens. I also had great views of the Sintra Palace and lower town from the trail.

Palácio Nacional de Sintra is the oldest palace in Portugal. Back in the historic center of Sintra after visiting Pena Palace and Castelo dos Mouros, I visited the Palace after stopping for lunch at Villa Craft Beer.

The palace is actually a group of buildings that were built and renovated over centuries. The actual date of the original building is unknown but estimated to be 10-11th c. when Sintra was under Moorish rule. Sintra was a favorite destination of the Portuguese monarchy for the cooler summer weather and the good hunting.

The rooms and furnishings are beautiful, the ceilings and floors are very ornate. There is a “magpie” room, with magpies painted on the ceiling and and a “swan” room. The Coats-of-Arms Room (or Sala dos Brasões) has an incredible wooden domed ceiling with 72 coats-of-arms of the King and the Portuguese noble families. I took about a dozen photos here but it’s impossible to truly show the room.

I almost decided to skip Quinta da Regaleira. I didn’t have time for it on my first day in Sintra but after reading a bit more about it, thought I really want to see it. Antonio Monteiro was a wealthy Brazilian immigrant; his fortune was in coffee and precious stones businesses. The huge gardens and his palace have many monuments that show his interest in the Knights Templar and the Masons.

I took the train back to Sintra and walked over to the house. It is amazing. There are multiple beautiful buildings, fountains, gardens. I visited the Initiation Well, the Unfinished Well, the Fountain of Abundance, Passage of the Gods, Chapel and the main house.

English Audio Guide Link with access code: xmaspt

Tip: I booked through GetYourGuide and paid $22. If I had gone directly to the site, I could have gotten the senior ticket for $10! If you type in Quinta da Regaleira tickets, Headout comes up, but the official site is: https://www.regaleira.pt/en/

I had a really excellent lunch at the highly rated Tascantiga in Sintra, then stopped by Casa Piriquita to try a couple local confections, the queijada and the travesseiro. A queijada is a Sintra speciality made with cheese or requeijão, eggs, milk, and powdered sugar. The travessiro, invented at Piriquita in the 1940s, is made with puff pastry, cream, almonds and egg yolks. The word “travesseiro” is Portuguese for pillow or cushion. I took them to go and headed back to Queluz. Both are recommended.

My final day I took the train into Lisbon. I had purchased a combo ticket to Jeronimos Monastery and Belem Tower. I walked from Rossio Station to see Pink Street. It makes for an attractive photo but there isn’t much to see or do except for restaurants that weren’t open yet.

I took a Bolt to Jerónimos Monastery. When I got out in front, there was a policeman telling me to get off the sidewalk and behind the barricade in the park. The monastery was closed because there was a NATO meeting and President Macron was visiting.

I walked through the beautiful Jardim da Praça do Império or Empire Square Garden then continued down to Belem Tower. I had asked the policeman if that was open. Oh, certainly. But after walking through the rain, there was a “closed” sign, due to a strike. Sigh. Fortunately, Headout, where I purchased my ticket, was great about refunding a “non-refundable/non-cancelable” ticket when they verified both sites were closed.

I caught another Bolt to the train station and then then back to Queluz. It rained the rest of the day unfortunately.

Parque Urbano Felício Loureiro is a beautiful city park in Queluz, just a block from the pousada. I spent about 90 minutes here on a walk late one afternoon after returning from Sintra.