Sintra is a UNESCO Cultural Landscape of almost absurd romantic beauty — wooded peaks sprinkled with fairy-tale palaces, exotic gardens and 19th-century aristocratic fantasies in candy colours. The Pena Palace, Quinta da Regaleira and Moorish Castle crown the Serra de Sintra, reachable from Lisbon in just 40 minutes by train. Easy to do as a day trip but deserving of at least one night.
Highlights
Pena Palace — colourful hilltop folly
Quinta da Regaleira — gardens and initiation well
Moorish Castle ruins and panoramic views
Monserrate Palace gardens
Travesseiros and queijadas pastries
Cabo da Roca — westernmost point of mainland Europe
Sintra in photos
Photo: Jocelyn777 Love Europe · BY-SA 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Alotor · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Terry Kearney · CC0 1.0 · OpenversePhoto: Stefan Soeters Photography · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Fr Antunes · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Arian Zwegers · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Jocelyn777 Love Europe · BY-SA 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Fr Antunes · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Rui Ornelas · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Weekend Wayfarers · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: lele3100 · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Jocelyn777 Love Europe · BY-SA 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: p_v a l d i v i e s o · BY-SA 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Peter Curbishley · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Shoes on Wires · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Jocelyn777 Love Europe · BY-SA 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Chrismatos ♥90% OFF, sorry · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: mripp · BY 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: p_v a l d i v i e s o · BY-SA 2.0 · OpenversePhoto: Nelson Lourenço · BY 2.0 · Openverse
▸ Where you'll stay
Where you'll stay in Sintra
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▸ What you'll do
What's on
While you're there
17
JUL
MEO Marés Vivas 2026 — Porto, July 2026
Avenida Dos Aliados 89, 4000-067 Porto, Porto, Portugal · festival
