Palácio da Pena - Pena Palace, Sintra

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This palace, painted with vivid colors, is one of Sintra’s main attractions. It’s located in the top of the hill and it has a dazzling sight over the coast, sea and the hill itself.

There you can visit the palace and its gardens which have lakes and an enormous diversity of plants and trees.

To get there you can take a bus from the village or walk if you find the transportation costs too high – it’s exhausting but the sights while climbing it’s worth it!

For more information visit the site below.

The most strange element in the complex mixture that is this palace, is the door with the Triton.

Willing to represent the world's creation, this door is the theme for the longest talking of the local guides about mythology... the four elements... the king...

An old convent atop Sintra mountain was destroyed by Lisbon's earthquake 1755 only surviving the chapel. It was around it that the palace was built, in a strange but beautiful mix of many styles.

The masterpiece in the chapel is a work in alabaster and marble from the french sculptor Nicolau de Chanterenne.

The most famous building in Sintra is Pena Palace. Built in the 1840s, it is one of Europe's most fantastic palaces, often compared to Neuschwanstein and the other mock-medieval castles of Ludwig of Bavaria in Germany, although it was actually built more than two decades before those. It includes a drawbridge, a conglomeration of turrets, ramparts, and domes, and a gargoyle above a Neo-Manueline arch, all washed in an array of pastel shades. The extravagant interior is decorated in late Victorian and Edwardian furnishings, rich ornaments, paintings, and priceless porcelain preserved just as the royal family left them. Other highlights include the spacious ballroom, the marvelous "Arab Room", and an impressive 16th-century chapel altarpiece (part of an original convent founded to celebrate the first sight of Vasco da Gama's returning fleet).

Surrounding the palace is the mystical Pena Park, filled with a variety of trees and exotic plants from the former colonies of the Portuguese empire, ponds, fountains, and black swans. There is also a charming lodge hidden among the trees that can be visited. At the highest point is a statue of King Ferdinand looking towards his palace, and a viewpoint called "Cruz Alta" overlooking Pena Palace and surroundings.

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The Palácio Nacional da Pena started as a chapel for Our Lady of Pena in the Middle Ages. In the 16th century a Monastery for the Order of Saint Jerome was added and Pena became a place for meditation for a maximum of eighteen monks.

In the 18th century the monastery was severely damaged by lightning. The following Great Earthquake of 1755 reduced it to ruins. Luckely the chapel escaped without significant damage.

In 1838 King Ferdinand II acquired the old monastery, the Castle of the Moors and all of the surrounding lands and gave the order to built a summer residence for the Portuguese Royal family. The construction took place between 1842 and 1854.

In 1910 the Palace became a national monument and was transformed into a museum.

Since 1955 the Palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Visiting hours:
Summer: 9.45AM - 7PM; Admission fee € 11.00
Winter: 10AM - 6PM; Admission fee € 8.00
Tickets on sale till 17.00h

Guided Visits: additional € 5.00

Visit of Castelo dos Mouros for a great look off onto Sintra: € 5.00 (Adult)

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Being almost a catalog of Portuguese art's main aspects, tiles couldn't miss in Pena's Palace.

One of the facades is totally covered by tiles. Beautiful? Well... it's a question of taste. It's not one of my favorite details.

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Built in the 19th century, this is a "German" castle, with a rather artificial look. But that (and its location) is what makes it so interesting, because its bayerisch structure is decorated with unexpected Portuguese and Arab elements.

In my other tips I show some more details of the Palace, with better pictures.

Entrance: (Park included) 9 € (6€ for the holders of Lisboa Card).

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One of the finest details in Pena's palace is the way they kept everything as in king's time. Advancing from room to room, we feel like the place keeps being in use, expecting to find the owners in the next room. The small dimensions of some rooms, the vision of the king's artistic weakness, everything is well displayed.

In my last visit pictures were not allowed anymore. It's a pity! In a prior visit there were no restrictions, except using flash in the chapel, and I know what damage could a photo cause to the palace. Maybe, by your visit, things will be back to normal.