This August, we spent a full week in Portugal — half of the time was spent in and around Lisbon and the other half was in the southern Algarve region. Lisbon was great and the beaches in the Algarve were beautiful, but the highlight of our trip was the couple of days we spent in Sintra, a small town just an hour west of Portugal’s capital city Lisbon.
Sintra is a magical place complete with castles, palaces, and monasteries surrounded by lush vegetation and dense forests. We decided to rent a tiny electric car to explore the many sights in the one full day we had there. We left a full day to explore Sintra’s main attraction: the magnificent and colorful Park and National Palace of Pena.
Recommended Reading:
Rick’s guides are always my go-to for any trip and provide a great way to jump-start your trip planning. His guides are informative, educational, and thoroughly enjoyable to read — plus they’re kept up-to-date with accurate opening times and ticket info for all his recommended attractions.
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Related Posts:
- Tour of Sintra by (Tiny) Electric Car
- Views of the Algarve: Scenic Drive at Praia do Bordeira
- Top 5 Most Memorable Airbnbs
- All other Portugal-related posts
About Pena Palace
The history of the Park and National Palace of Pena dates back to the 16th century, when a monastery was originally built on the site. After many years of use as a monastery, the Great Lisbon Earthquake of 1755 destroyed the building and left it in ruins.
The ruins remained until 1838, when prince Ferdinand II acquired the property and decided to turn the former monastery into a summer palace for the royal family. The resulting palace is considered one of the greatest examples of Romanticism of the 19th century and features an eclectic mix of styles, including Neo-Gothic, Neo-Islamic, and Neo-Renaissance.
Pena Palace is a nation monument and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
How to Visit
As with any place popular with tourists, the key to success is either going early or late. Most of the visitors to Sintra are day-trippers, so your goal should be to beat the hordes of tourists arriving by bus from Lisbon. This means arriving as early as possible but no later than a half hour after the opening time. Click here to see the opening times for your visit.
We arrived just before the gates opened at 10:00 and were able to walk right in. We had a blissful hour or so before the crowds flooded the palace and enjoyed touring the palace’s terrace and interior without a million tourists ruining our photos.
Visitors can take a train from Lisbon to Sintra. From the Sintra train station, you can either take a bus or hire a taxi to reach Pena Palace.
Admission
Ticket prices for the Palace grounds, terrace, and interior:
- €14.00 per adult
- €12.50 per child
- €12.50 per senior
- €49.00 per family
Ticket prices for the Palace grounds and terrace (excluding the Palace interior):
- €7.50 per adult
- €6.50 per child
- €6.50 per senior
- €26.00 per family
Tip: You can buy your ticket to the Pena Palace at the other attractions to save time standing in line at the palace entrance. We arrived early, but even at 10:00 there was already a long line for tickets. Luckily we bought ours at the Moorish Castle the day before, so we were able to stroll right in and saved ourselves at least a half hour of waiting in line.
Photo Gallery
