Sintra

Sintra is a town in Greater Lisbon, Estremadura, Portugal. Its spectacular setting, 28 km from Lisbon, houses a Royal Palace, used by generations of Portuguese royalty prior to the 1910 revolution. The surrounding hills are surmounted by the remains of the Moorish Castle and by the 19th century Pena Palace.

Near Estoril, the majestic Sintra Mountains cast a veil of mystery over the town nestling on its northern slopes. The hills and the surrounding area have been classified as for their cultural significance and for their outstanding natural beauty.

Understand


The name Sintra (SEEN-truh, /ˈsĩ.tɾɐ/) is derived from the same root as the English word "sun". It is located in a mountain range some north-west of Lisbon, and approximately  from the Atlantic coast in the west. There is evidence of human activity in the area at least since the Paleolithic stone age. The site is famous for the Sintra Collar, a golden neck ring from around the 9th century BC kept at the British Museum in London. During the 8th century it became part of Al-Andalus, Muslim Iberia. The new rulers fortified one of the mountain tops, creating what is today called The Castle of the Moors. The castle remained in Moorish hands until 1147 when it surrendered to crusader troops, one month after the fall of Lisbon. In addition to the mountain top castle the Moors constructed a residential palace further down-hill. This palace, simply known as Sintra Palace, was eventually assumed as the summer residence of the rulers of Portugal. It has been expanded and rebuilt several times, and the oldest sections still standing today is a palace chapel constructed by King Dinis I during the early 14th century, as a gift to his wife Saint Elizabeth of Aragon. Other parts of the building where constructed during the reign of King John I, and King Manuel I, after whom the neo-gothic "Manueline" architectural style is named. King Afonso VI was imprisoned in the palace from 1676 until his death in 1683, after being deposed by his brother Pedro II. The palace was damaged in the great earthquake of Lisbon in 1755, but was later fully restored.

By the end of the 18th century Sintra's exotic and mysterious ruins and nature became renowned and awed by several romantic poets. Lord Byron called it the "Glorioso Eden" while Richard Strauss claimed it to be "a true garden of Klingsor, and there in the heights, a castle of the Holy Grail". It became a routine part of the Grand Tour, which many young nobles made around Europe at the time. As a consequence of its fame it became popular for Portuguese upper class to construct villas in the area, making Sintra something of a village of Chateaus.

The most notable of these residences is Pena Palace; a romanticist castle on a mountain top, constructed by the King-Consort Ferdinand II of Portugal 1838-1854, out of a former Hieronymite monastery. After the death of Queen Maria II, Ferdinand remarried the Countess of Edla. He caused national outrage when he donated the palace to his new wife, but the matter was eventually settled as palace was sold to King Luís in 1890. It was then used as a residence for the royal family until the 1910 republican revolution. After the revolution the palaces were nationalized and opened to the public, and to an ever-growing stream of tourists.

Although it's a freguesia (civil parish) of Sintra municipality, Queluz has its own separate article.

By train
The town proper is a 10-minute walk from the train station. However, city buses to the center can be caught from the small bus stop directly on the right as one exits said station. These are the same buses that take circular routes to all the tourist sites, and offer tickets good for all day, so odds are one would be buying one of their tickets anyway.


 * Queues for the ticket machines may be shorter, but may be equally slow as many machines take coins only, and many tourists may not understand how to operate them. Tell the machine that you want a ticket for two trips; you will need one for the outward and one for the return journey. Remember to validate your ticket by touching it to the checkpoint before boarding the return train. Keep the used ticket, as you can re-charge it for other trips in and around Lisbon.
 * Queues for the ticket machines may be shorter, but may be equally slow as many machines take coins only, and many tourists may not understand how to operate them. Tell the machine that you want a ticket for two trips; you will need one for the outward and one for the return journey. Remember to validate your ticket by touching it to the checkpoint before boarding the return train. Keep the used ticket, as you can re-charge it for other trips in and around Lisbon.

By bicycle
Cycling in Sintra can be an interesting day out for those who are fit and have some experience.

If staying in Sintra and around a local company is a good option for you.

In case you are visiting Sintra then your best bet is to book a tour or rent a bike e.g. in Lisbon, take the commuters train from Rossio station to explore Sintra and/or the Nature Reserve finishing in Cascais, a beautiful day trip on a bicycle, in the end take a train back to Cais do Sodre station in Lisbon where you may drop back your bicycle. Adult return ticket is around 3 or €4 and bicycles travel for free every day of the week.

Companies operating from Lisbon include:

By bus
It's probably best for most visitors to take one or more of the public bus routes. The routes are one-way and circular, with a stop in front of each of the major tourist sights, so keep this in mind when planning the order in which you see each sight. One ticket is good for all day on that particular bus route. Think a relatively cheap hop-on/hop-off bus route, and you have the idea. All the buses stop directly at the train station as well (just to the right upon exiting), so they can be caught immediately upon arrival via train.

There are several of these circular routes, but probably for most the 434 and 435 routes are of greatest interest.

434: Route: Sintra Train Station -> Sintra City Center -> Moorish Castle -> Pena Castle -> return

435: Route: Sintra Train Station -> Sintra City Center -> Regaleira Palace -> Seteais Palace -> Monserrate Palace -> return. The "Linha Monserrate" that picks up passengers in front of the Palácio Nacional de Sintra is only a "sight-seeing" bus, it does not deliver you to Monserrate.

As of May 2024, the charge is now €13.50 for a 24h ticket that allows you to use the 434 and 435, which should give you access to all of the main attractions.

The general frequency of the buses is around 20 minutes. You may purchase the tickets on the buses at any of the stops.

There are also, actual "hop on/hop off" buses (the big red buses one sees in so many cities), but with a significantly higher price, and unclear advantage over their cheaper public equivalents. To get to Cabo da Roca (Cape Roca), the westernmost point of mainland Europe, take the Scotturb 403 bus (Direction = Cascais). The journey takes about 40 minutes.

Check the price of a rideshare e.g. Uber if you have a family or group as it can work out cheaper than the bus.

By tuktuk
The 434 bus is usually completely full by the time it reaches the historic centre of Sintra. Tuktuks are freely available to go up the mountain to the fort, or Pena (ask to be dropped off at the high entrance if you are going to Pena). Then walk back down the hiking trail, which begins at the far end of Pena car park.

By car
Parking is abysmal, the roads narrow & windy, and on a holiday weekend Sintra can be absolutely packed with cars and people. If you must drive to Sintra, park in one of the several parking lots below the town center and walk up into town.

On foot
Why not just get extra exercise and walk it all? If you are fit and only wish to visit the Moorish Castle and Pena Castle, walking the 1.1 km nature trail with a 200-meter elevation gain is a much more pleasant alternative to the crowded buses that often get stuck in traffic. For everyone else, although the bus system is not particularly cheap at €13.50, it provides a convenient way to reach these sights. The walking trail through the woods to the Moorish castle starts above the Sintra city at. It is reasonably well signed, but best to get a map from the tourist office or ticket counter at Sintra National Palace. Once you have made the journey to the castle, it's only few more minutes walk up the hill on the main road to the Pena Palácio. The walk to Monserrate from the Sintra town center is still approximately one hour but is less strenuous.

By tram
The tram of Sintra (Elétrico de Sintra) runs from Largo Dr. António José de Almeida, a square north of the railway line between the Sintra and Portela de Sintra railway stations, to Praia das Maçãs on the coast. The service is operated by restored trams dating from the early 20th century. For the summer of 2016, the tram service ran 6 trips/day between 10:20am and 5pm from Wednesday to Sunday. The tram trip to Praia das Maçãs takes 45 minutes.

Since 2016, the Sintra tram has a station at Largo Dr. António José de Almeida selling tickets, newspapers, postcards, railfan books and even wines of the region. The station has washroom facilities.

The tram line has had a history of full and partial closures for maintenance; thus, one should consult the web site. However, the line has operated in 2015 and 2016.

For more information:

Parques de Sintra sites
Admission prices and opening times of the sites can be found on the Parques de Sintra website, where you can buy tickets. Buy online to avoid a long queue. You get a 15% discount for buying 3 days in advance, and small discounts for buying tickets for more than one site. Sintra can be extremely busy, particularly in summer, and especially at weekends. The main sights are best visited at the start of the day (most open at 09:30) or late afternoon (most are open until 19:00-20:00) to avoid the crowds and queues.

Do

 * Praia das Maçãs is a small, and surprisingly calm, seaside resort about 30 km to the west of Lisbon and about 13 km from[Sintra. Flanked by restaurants, it has a salt water pool, sports facilities and children's playground. Take the tram from Sintra (the stop is next to the Museum of Modern Art) and ride downhill 13 km. The ride takes 45 min and is delightful.


 * On the way to Praia das Maçãs, 8 km on the tram, you can stop at the Adega Regional de Colares, i.e. the Colares Winery for a taste of this very rare wine.

Buy
Souvenirs and Porto wine are all on sale in the Sintra historic district. There are a number of shops that sell standard tourist items (post cards, t-shirts, etc.) and shops that sell ceramics, pieces of art and hand crafts. If you are looking for gifts for friends and family, Sintra has a broad selection of items to choose from.

To get something truly unique and local, consider cork products that range from wallets to umbrellas. These original products wear like leather and are environmentally sound, as well as attractive.

Eat

 * Queijadas mainly the ones from "Casa do Preto"
 * Travesseiros da Periquita

Drink

 * If you have the chance, you should try the Hockey Club, just in the beginning of the street that goes up to the Piriquita (the most well known coffee shop in Sintra due to its marvelous egg sweets).

Go next

 * Lisbon — the capital of Portugal
 * Queluz — home of Queluz National Palace