Singular Sintra

We visited Sintra after spending a few days in Lisbon and on our way to Óbidos. The picturesque town is in southwest Portugal in the foothills of the Sintra mountains.

We only spent a day in Sintra and it feels like we just barely scratched the surface. For a relatively small town, there is a remarkable amount to see.

Despite its size, expect to do a lot of walking in Sintra or to spend some money on the Portuguese version of a tuktuk or join the hordes on a bus (which did not feel COVID appropriate). We arrived in Sintra via car but the sites are not super car friendly so we paid to park in a lot just outside of the center and explored on foot.

The Sintra National Palace is right on the outskirts of the village and is worth popping in. The detailed interior artwork is quite stunning. However, the other two sites that we saw blew the National Palace out of the water so I’d definitely recommend visiting it first.

We made our way up to the Pena National Palace, a palace from the 19th century that sits atop a hill. We got a bit lost walking up there which I think is partly because of signage and partly because some of the entrances were closed due to either COVID and/or it being off-season. Either way, it was a beautiful forested walk up to this slightly eccentric historic royal residence.

While the interiors of the buildings were interesting, the bright yellow color of the exteriors and the striking views of the surrounding areas really stood out.

We opted for the tuktuk option to make our way down the hill back to the center of Sintra. The walk up took about 45 minutes and we zoomed down in the rickety vehicle in about 4 and a half minutes.

We had reserved our afternoon for visiting the Quinta da Regaleira but first wanted to rest and grab a bite to eat. I had, of course, done some research ahead of time and selected Tascantiga for lunch. It was a super fun tapas restaurant and you place your order by filling out a menu card, similar to some sushi restaurants. Everything was superb and the candied pork cheeks with mushrooms was the standout.

The highlight of our time in Sintra was our time at the Quinta da Regaleira, a world heritage UNESCO site. This massive property was originally owned by a wealthy family. It was then sold to Carvalho Monteiro who built the majority of the peculiar and wacky structures. Monteiro was a avid believer in spirituality and the ability to converse with the other side. He created many places on the estate that was designed to amplify these abilities and foster those connections.

If you are visiting Lisbon or anywhere else in southern Portugal, I’d definitely recommend adding Sintra to your itinerary. Be prepared for lots of tourists, spending a fair amount on entrance fees and higher priced meals, and a lot of time on your feet. Despite all of that, it is absolutely worth the trip.

Tips for visiting Sintra:

• Try to visit in the off-season or at least avoid the weekends.
• Research the schedule for the sites you want to visit in advance as some of them close earlier than you might expect.
• If you are visiting outside of the summer months, be prepared for rain.
• Sintra is accessible via train. Renting a car will cost more but provide a little more flexibility.