Sintra, Portugal, is a small town just an hour train ride from Lisbon, making it a very popular destination for day-trippers from the nearby capital city. The forested, hilly area surrounding Sintra has a much milder climate than the city, which has led to many of Portugal’s elite building their summer palaces in this area in order to escape the hot temperatures of Lisbon. These days, these palaces are open to the public and draw over 3 million visitors each year.
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We booked a room at the beautiful B&B Chalet Saudade to make a weekend trip out of it, but even with the extra time there was still so much to see and do that we weren’t sure how to fit it all in! There is a public bus that runs a couple of different loops to the popular sights, but if you’re wanting to combine the Pena Palace with, say, a trip to the beach, the buses don’t really offer that type of flexibility.
Luckily, we did some Googling found a company called Go2Cintra which rents hilariously small electric cars by the day or half-day. One look at a photo of the car and we were sold. This turned out to be the best decision and made our trip much more memorable! Not only were we able to park this thing literally anywhere, we also made lots of friends throughout the day as people stopped to admire and take pictures of our tiny car.
Us in our tiny rental car from Go2Cintra
The rental company suggests an easy-to-follow loop that hits up all of the major attractions (except the Sintra National Palace due to recent changes to car accessibility in the town), so with a quick debriefing we were on our way to stop #1: Quinta da Regaleira.
Stop 1: Quinta da Regaleira
The first stop on our tour around Sintra was Quinta da Regaleira, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the must-see attractions of the area. The property has had many owners over the years, but the palace and chapel that you can visit today was completed in 1910 and built by a wealthy (and somewhat eccentric) man named Carvalho Monteiro. The architecture is a combination of many styles, including Roman, Gothic, and Renaissance. There are also many symbols embedded in the design related to alchemy, the Knights Templar, and Freemasonry, due to the interests of its millionaire owner. It’s an interesting place to explore and full of surprises.
Entrance to the palace
The Eye of Providence, a symbol for Freemasonry, carved into the chapel’s ceiling
While the palace and its interior are impressive, it’s the sprawling 10-acre property surrounding the palace that really steal the show. Every part of the property is landscaped; a network of paths wind their way around the hillside, connecting one structure to the next and giving framed views of the palace and other vistas.
View of the Quinta da Regaleira palace
There is also an extensive network of tunnels, caves, and grottos, the culmination of which is at the famous Initiation Well. The “well” is nearly 90 feet deep and takes the form of an underground tower with a spiral staircase wrapping the central void. As the name suggests, the wells were never used as a water source but were used instead for ceremonial purposes and secretive initiation rites. In fact, the entire design of the Initiation Well is based on Tarot mysticism; the number of steps and spacing of the landings is thought to be based on Masonic principles.
There is another Initiation Well on the property, which is known as the “unfinished” well due to its more rustic appearance. A bright green pond with a small waterfall and stepping stones link the two wells.
Looking down the Initiation Well
Crossing the green pond in the caves of Quinta da Regaleira
Stop 2: Tivoli Palácio de Seteais
Before getting back in the car to head to the next stop, we walked the short distance to the Tivoli Palácio de Seteais to snap a photo of the arch and take in the view from the terrace. Both are accessible without entering the building or paying an entry fee. If you walk through the arch and take a photo from the inside, you can spot Pena Palace perched on top of the hillside in the distance.
View of Pena Palace through the arch at Tivoli Palácio de Seteais
Normally the Monserrate Palace is the next stop on the route, but the gardens were closed due to the high temperatures that day so we decided to skip this one to maximize our time elsewhere.
Stop 3: Azenhas do Mar
Next we headed for the coast and visited our first Portuguese beach of the trip: Azenhas do Mar. Lisbon was experiencing record-setting temperatures that day, so the beach was packed with people looking for some reprieve from the heat wave. The beach is small but picturesque, nestled between rocky cliffs with a natural swimming pool to one side.
Azenhas do Mar beach and natural swimming pool
There are a couple of beachside restaurants here, making it an ideal place to stop for lunch. We had a reservation at the Azenhas do Mar Restaurant, which is built into the cliff and has nice views of the beach and ocean below. After a delicious lunch of seafood and sangria, we spent some time sun bathing on the beach and even took a dip in the (freezing cold) Atlantic Ocean.
Stop 4: Praia das Maçãs
We headed south along the coast and stopped only briefly to take in the view at Praia das Maçãs. This beach is much larger than Azenhas do Mar but just as popular with the locals and was packed on the day we visited.
Praia das Maçãs
Stop 5: Cabo da Roca
Our last coastal stop of the day was Cabo da Roca, which is the westernmost point of continental Europe. There is a monument and lookout point that are teeming with tourists, but if you take one of the trails a little further north away from the crowds you’ll be rewarded with some fantastic views of the rocky coastline and Cabo da Roca lighthouse.
Cabo da Roca Lighthouse
View of the coastline at Cabo da Roca
Stop 6: Castle of the Moors
We decided to skip the Capuchos’ Convent, which would normally be the next stop on the route, and instead headed straight to our last stop for the day: the Castle of the Moors. The castle is one of the most popular attractions in Sintra, but the majority of the day-trippers were on their way back to Lisbon by the time we got there (around 2:00pm) so we nearly had the place to ourselves.
The Moorish Castle was built in the 8th and 9th centuries by (you guessed it) the Moors. The castle’s strategic location at the top of the Sintras Mountains makes for some spectacular views of the surrounding forests. Walking along the castle walls, you can see the town of Sintra below, including Sintra National Palace with its characteristic chimneys. A little further and you’ll see Pena Palace perched even higher on top of a neighboring mountain.
View of Pena Palace from the Moorish Castle
The grounds surrounding the castle are also beautiful. The temperatures are cooler here and the area receives more rainfall, making the gardens green and lush — giant ferns and hydrangea line the walkway up to the castle.
A walk around the castle and gardens made for a spectacular end to the day!
The Next Day: Pena Palace
We had to return the car by 8:00pm, so after the Moorish Castle we headed back to Sintra to drop off the car. This meant saving Sintra’s most popular attraction, the Park and National Palace of Pena, for the next day.
Visiting the Park and National Palace of Pena
As with the Moorish Castle, you’re best bet for avoiding the hordes of tourists coming from Lisbon is to either go first thing in the morning or late in the day. We decided to save Pena Palace for the next day so we could arrive right as they opened. Unfortunately the grounds were closed when we visited due to the heat and increased risk of forest fire, but we were still able to tour the area immediately surrounding the palace as well as the palace’s interior.
Click here to read more and see photos from our trip to Pena Palace.
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