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Buildings

Pena Palace, Sintra

Portugal Lisbon Sintra

Pena Palace, Sintra
Photo: Singa Hitam, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A colourful romantic palace in red and yellow, built in the 19th century on a hilltop above Sintra, mixing Gothic, Moorish and Manueline styles. Its terraces look over the forests to the Atlantic. Sintra's hills, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are dotted with palaces and gardens.


Also see the ruined Moorish Castle, and the Quinta da Regaleira, with its mysterious Initiation Well spiralling down into the earth. Book timed tickets online. Sintra is 40 minutes by train from Lisbon; buses and tuk-tuks climb to the palaces. Go on a weekday.

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