One of the most popular and therefore the busiest attractions to visit in Sintra is
Pena Palace and Park, a vast estate covering over 500 acres of romantic forest pathways, hidden trails, gardens, a lake, a chalet, other viewpoints plus the palace itself. You can buy a ticket to just visit the park, or to access the park plus the inside of the palace. We opted for the latter, planning to visit the palace first since it would get really busy later on, and then leisurely explore the park grounds after.
To visit
Pena Palace, we used the same strategy as we did when visiting
Quinta da Regaleira the day before. We pre-purchased entry tickets for the earliest time slot which was 9:30am and planned to arrive by 9am to line up. We picked up a taxi at the train station around 8:30am, giving ourselves lots of time since we were warned about construction along the way. But the construction must not have started for the day yet since we ended up getting to Pena Palace by 8:45am. We still were not first in line! There were at least 2 tour groups lined up in front of us. Once the gates finally opened and we were inside, it was a race to the next lineup that would actually get us into the palace. It is a 20+ minute climb uphill to get to the palace by foot, or those less mobile could wait for a service bus provided by the park (for an extra fee). Since we were trying to get near the front of the line, we chose to walk briskly and by the time we got there, only one tour group with about 6 people were in line in front of us.
Like the day before, it was another grey, drizzly day in Sintra. Pena Place was covered with so much fog when we first approached that we could hardly see its iconic red towers. In 1838
King Ferdinand II, husband and consort to
Queen Maria II, acquired the site where a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Pena and then a monastery once resided. He commissioned German architect Wilhelm Ludwig von Eschwege to design the palace and landscape the grounds to be used for his summer residence. Incorporating a fusion of multiple architectural styles including Neo-Gothic, Neo-Manuline, Neo-Islamic and Neo-Renaissance, the palace reflects the Romanticism movement prevalent in the 19th Century. The palace is known for its bright yellow and red façades, onion domed towers and pointed arches, intricate tilework, ornate stone carvings and minaret-like towers typical of those found in Islamic mosques. Following the residency of
Queen Maria II and King Ferdinand II, several more generations of royals lived in Pena Palace including their son
King Luis I, grandson
King Carlos I with his wife
Queen Amélie, and finally great-grandson
King Manuel II, the last monarch of Portugal. As we toured the rooms of the palace, we often saw how various spaces were repurposed each time there were new occupants.
As we waited in the second line to enter Pena Palace, we looked up to see the
Coral Gate which has a marine and coral-inspired archway that is topped by an amazing limestone sculpture of
Triton, a half-man, half-fish monster who in Greek mythology is a demi-god of the sea and son of the sea god
Poseidon. The gate is also known as “The Tree of Waters” since a tree trunk and vines seem to grow out of the Triton’s back. While Rich stayed in line, I was able to climb up the stairs of a small tower to survey the grounds.
As we started our self-guided tour of the interior of the palace, we passed by a
statue of King Ferdinand II in the front hallway. Our first spectacular view was of the
Manueline Cloisters built in 1511 for a monastery for the Order of Saint Jerome. Colourful tiles cover the floor and walls of the cloister’s patio which can be viewed through arches from the lower or upper floors. The walls in particular are decorated with Hispano-Mudéjar tiles with geometric motifs. Gargoyles extend out from pillars and Manueline designs of twisted ropes and seashells can be found. We next came across the opulent
private Dining Room with a 16th-century Manueline vaulted, ribbed ceiling and a massive table that seats 24 with table settings including porcelain plates and crystal glasses bearing the royal crown. Attached to the dining room is a pantry where food was stored and prepared. For the first few rooms that we inspected, we were behind that first tour group that was in line in front of us. We soon realized that as the tour guide paused to explain things in one room, we could scoot ahead to the next one and if we put enough of a distance between us, we would have first access to each new room since everyone else was behind us.
Breaking with tradition,
King Carlos I had his
bedroom on the lower floor of the Manueline cloister while his wife
Queen Amélie’s rooms were on the upper floor. This was unusual since the lower floors were previously considered the servants’ quarters. Family photos are found on the walls and atop the table, and an Art Nouveau sculpture of a draped female sits on a pedestal. Adjoining King Carlos’ bedroom was his
office where he had painted multiple
floor-to-ceiling murals on fabric depicting nymphs and fawns. He was obviously a talented artist but unfortunately, some of the works may have been unfinished since King Carlos I and his oldest son Luis were assassinated in 1908.
Located adjacent to his bedroom and office, King Carlos I’
bathroom/dressing room was one of the first sanitation facilities specifically designed for personal hygiene. It was filled with luxurious furniture and a deep bathtub.
Queen Amélie’s bedroom on the upper floor was originally the bedroom of King Ferdinand II and his second wife, the Countess of Elba, after Maria II passed away. A four-post bed with canopy, fireplace, and seating area are found in this room. An adjoining bathroom is covered with decorative tiles on the floor walls and has a separate section for the water closet.
An original
Niche from the 16th Century Monastery of Our Lady of Pena is still intact, with the walls of its vault encrusted with small stones, shells and porcelain. At one point, a clay sculpture of St. Jerome was kept there. Later, it was used as a storeroom. Today, it is blocked off but open for viewing. The upper floor of the palace took us through a long corridor where many rooms were situated one after another. We saw the quaint floral patterns on the couches of the
Tearoom that was once the antechamber for King Ferdinand and the Countess of Edla. Queen Amélia turned it into a space where she would receive her most intimate visitors.
Queen Amélie’s Office contains her writing desk and chair, several extremely ornate cabinets decorated with intricate carvings, and shelves containing Meissen porcelain figurines that date back to the time of the Countess of Edla, who originally occupied this room.
King Ferdinand II’s Sitting Room is also known as the
Arab Room because of the Islamic-inspired architecture including intricate Neo-Mudéjar styled carvings in the archways depicting foliage and a few bovine renderings. An elaborate
mural by Italian master Paolo Pizzi uses
trompe-l’oeil techniques to depict more elements of Islamic architecture including columns and more archways, giving the illusion of a larger space. The
Green Room acted as an antechamber to the Sitting Room and contains four busts depicting King Pedro V, the Queen of Belgium, the King of Sardinia, and an “Allegory of Winter”. The green wallpaper replicates flowers and branches as well as carved stones with faux azulejos tiles, providing another example of trompe-oeil. The chairs in this room have an Asian feel, with patterns depicting a phoenix surrounded by grapes and vines.
The
Great Hall is the largest compartment in Pena Palace, stretching the combined length of several of the previous rooms. Once also used as the
Billiards Room and a place for leisure, tufted maroon leather chairs and sofas with ornately carved frames made from a dark wood line both sides of the space, sometimes accompanied by a matching table to provide an area for conversation or game-playing. A pair of life-sized sculptures of torch-bearing "Turks" wearing turbans hold gold-plated brass candelabras that each consist of 25 candles. A large golden chandelier hangs from the ceiling in the centre of the room. A collection of Japanese and Chinese porcelain belonging to Ferdinand are on display on the shelves. Three windows are decorated with Central European stained glass from King Ferdinand II’s collection. In a separate room,
King Manuel II’s office has an impressive carved relief depicting a battle hanging behind his original desk which is made of pau-santo and rosewood.
One of the most interesting rooms in the palace was the “
Stag Room” which was originally a large Dining Room used for banquets and entertaining guests. Located in a circular room within one of the turrets, the space is named for the stag heads with genuine antlers that are mounted around the base of the domed ceiling which is supported by a central column. It is decorated in Neo-Manueline style with seven doors and windows, each with different door frames. The polychrome stucco surfaces between the doors and windows depict hunting weapons. A semi-circular table encircles the central column. This room was strategically located near the main
Kitchen which has three chimneys linking three wood-fired stoves (two survive). Copper utensils and cookware including Pots, pans, fish steamers and chocolate, pudding and pâté moulds are on display. Some of the items are marked with the symbol PP (Pena Palace) and the monogram of King Ferdinand II.
When we completed our tour of the interior of the palace following the dictated path, we ended up outside on one of the terraces and found out that it was now pouring rain. The precipitation was coming down so hard that our plans of leisurely touring the expansive grounds of Pena Palace were dashed. Even our afternoon visit the Moors’ Castle was in jeopardy considering that this involved climbing steep battlement ruins which would be precarious even without the rain. To find shelter for a bit, we squeezed into the palace
Chapel along with a bunch of other wet tourists. In honor of the original 12th Century chapel, the current Chapel of Our Lady of Pena was incorporated into the design when Ferdinand II had Pena Palace built. The chapel is a blend of Manueline and Islamic styles with a wide terrace and a clock tower. The alabaster and limestone retable found behind the altar was created by French sculptor Nicolau de Chanterenne. A beautiful stained-glass window features four panels that depict Our Lady of Pena, Saint Jorge, King Manuel I and Vasco da Gamma.
It was still pouring when we exited the chapel, so we decided to go to the
palace restaurant to have some brunch while killing time in hopes that the rain would subside. We ended up spending almost two hours in that cafeteria, first eating savoury, then sweet snacks and finally a bowl of soup to pass the time. Situated in the Room of Arches, the restaurant provides a more formal dining space than the takeout cafeteria upstairs that only had outdoor seating. Aptly named, the restaurant features several large swooping arches and windows provide views of the landscape (and allowing us to frequently check on the rain). At one end of the restaurant, a small opening led to a cramped space with extremely narrow windows that might have been used as arrow slits.
Finally, the rain stopped and we go outside without getting soaked. We walked around the various balconies and terraces, checking out turrets, battlements and different shaped guard houses and watch towers. Unfortunately, it was still quite foggy so we still could not get great views of the palace façade. This visit would have been a much different experience had it been a bright, sunny day, although had that been the case, then we would not have allocated enough time here. It would take a full day to fully explore the palace and grounds and we had only planned for half a day.
Back on the ground level, we wandered through different passageways and admired the walls which were covered with beautiful azulejos tiles depicting Medieval knights in armor and in battle, as well as floral patterns. The archways provided shelter whenever the rain started up again.
We had wasted so much time in the cafeteria waiting out the deluge that there was not enough time to walk the grounds of Pena Palace and still get to our next planned destination, so we had to make a call. We decided to forego Pena Park and head on to the Moorish Castle since this was our last day in Sintra and we would not get another chance to see it. As we headed out towards the exit, we admired all the decorative stonework on the arches and spotted some intricate stone carvings on columns. One looked like an Italian Commedia dell’arte clown character and another of a stylized lion with a quizzical, almost shocked look on his face. As we were leaving, we took note of the huge lineup waiting to get into the palace and felt vindicated in our choice to start so early.
With one last look back at Pena Palace, we started our trek towards the
Moorish Castle. It was a 20-minute walk downhill on twisty cobblestone roads to get to there. This was a relief after all the uphill routes that we had been climbing thus far in Sintra, although some sections were rocky and uneven and a bit slippery since the path was still damp.
The
Moorish Castle (Castelo dos Mouros) is a military fortress constructed by the Moors between the 8th and 9th centuries, providing an excellent example of Islamic architecture, culture and heritage. It was built strategically on a hilltop to protect the surrounding areas from invasion and guard against maritime access to Lisbon. As a result, on clear days, the site provides stunning views of Sintra and its surrounding areas. Too bad this wasn’t a clear day! The Moors lost control of the fortress in 1147 when it was handed over to Afonso Henriques, the first King of Portugal, leading to a Christian settlement residing here for some period of time. It is about a 15-minute walk from the front gates to the ruins of the fort. Along the way, you pass the remains of external walls and an
old church of São Pedro de Canaferrim, which was the first parish church of Sintra built in the 12th Century. There were some
grain silos carved out of stone to store cereals and foods as per Arabic customs, an archaeological site, and an interpretation centre.
The historical
Interpretation Centre houses artifacts found during archaeological excavations around the castle, shedding light on the lives of the population of the area now named the Islamic Quarter. Items on display include some game pieces, flints and blades and pieces of pottery. A model of the site shows the castle ruins that we would explore next. There is a
tomb containing human remains that were discovered during 19th century restoration work that disturbed old burial grounds. Since it was unclear whether the body was Christian or Moorish, a plaque was installed that read “What man brought together, only God may separate”. We also came across a
large cistern that served as the fortress’ main water source.
When we finally got to the ruins of the
Moorish Castle/Fortress, it was an impressive sight to behold. The castle covers 12,000 square metres consisting of a double ring of fortified walls with crenulated battlements. From the outer or curtain wall, there are different stages of construction and repair dating from the 12th century at the bottom through to the 19th century at the top. At the centre of the castle are areas that once housed medieval Islamic quarters, which were converted to stables during Christian times. At one point, five towers reinforced the inner wall. Only two towers remain intact enough to climb up into, including the
King’s Tower (Torre Real), the tallest tower and last stronghold in the castle in case of attack.
It took some precarious navigation along the narrow parapets and scaling up some steep stone stairs to get to the top of the King’s Tower where on a clear day, you are supposed to be able to see the Sintra Hills and even all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. Unfortunately, this was not even close to being a clear day. Sometimes the fog rolling pass was so thick that all I could see was a white expanse. Luckily, every once in a while, the fog rolled past and at one point, I glimpsed the iconic twin conical smokestacks of the
National Palace’s kitchen, which we toured on our first day in Sintra. Rich decided not to make the climb to the top with me. He claimed he was tired which was probably partially true but I also think he didn’t like the height. The stone steps were narrow and uneven and I could see how treacherous it could be when wet. The stones had mostly dried when I attempted my ascent and careful descent.
The walk from Moorish Castle back to the Historic Town was 2.5km away over steep steps and cobblestoned paths. It took us almost an hour for this last trek of the day. This final journey was a slog after a tiring day (our 8th tiring day of the trip so far!) and felt extra long when we lost cell service for a bit and were not entirely sure that we were headed in the right direction. But we did find our way back to down and back to our rental apartment.
The next morning, we had an early breakfast at the nearby
Café Saudade before heading to Lisbon for the last leg of our vacation. Café Saudade is a pretty coffee house with an ornate ceiling located just around the corner from the train station. We were able to score a private nook by a large window to enjoy ham and cheese croissants and some coffee/tea before leaving Sintra and taking the 30-minute suburban train ride to Lisbon Rossio station. We had a nice time in this Palace-filled little town where the Portuguese royalty used to spend their summers. It is too bad we didn’t have better weather.
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