What's up guys, we're here in Sintra and in
this video we're going to show you how to do a day trip here all the way from Lisbon.
So we'll show you how to get here as well as the best things to see once you are here
in Sintra. So we hope you enjoy this video! We are Zac and Ine, full-time digital
nomads from the United States and Belgium. We met while studying abroad in 2018 and have
been traveling the world together ever since. We're here to inspire your next adventure,
whether it's hiking in the Canadian Rockies, a road trip through the US, or backpacking
across Africa. On our channel, you'll find unfiltered videos of hiking guides and the best
things to do in destinations around the world. The picturesque town of Sintra is located 30
kilometers to the west of Lisbon in the center of Portugal. Home to ancient castles, extravagant
palaces, and beautiful natural scenery, Sintra is an absolute must-visit. In this
video, we'll show you how to visit Sintra as a day trip from Lisbon. Including how to get
there and the highlights that you can't miss. The cheapest way to get to Sintra is by train.
The train leaves from the Rossio train station in downtown Lisbon once or twice per hour.
It takes about 45 minutes to get to Sintra. We took the train at 9:00 AM, which allowed us
enough time to visit the three main highlights. It's best to leave as early as possible, however,
the castles only open their doors at 10 AM. And once you arrive at the train station, you'll
have many options to move around the town. You can either take a bus,
a taxi, tuk-tuk, or walk. Now, let's get into the first
stop on your day trip to Sintra. Sitting at the outskirts of Sintra's historic
center, the Quinta da Regaleira is easily walkable from the train station. It takes about 30 minutes
to walk there and you have nice views of the town center, flowers, and the Sintra National Palace on
the way. Quinta da Regaleira was mainly designed by the Italian architect Luigi Manini in the
late 1800s, and is a shockingly beautiful estate. You can walk around a romantic palace, a chapel,
and a lush park that features the famous Initiatic Well as well as grottos and towers. We found the
gardens especially peaceful. We recommend visiting this spot first because it's less touristic and
you'll find fewer crowds here during the morning. So this is the first stop of our day here at
the Quinta da Regaleira and it's amazing. Like, it's really big actually because there's a
whole garden, a lot of greenery, flowers, birds everywhere, and there's as well
as the palace of course or the mansion. And yeah, so it definitely took
a few hours to explore this area. Located on a high rocky mountain above the
town, the Moorish castle is a spectacular site. To get here, we walked back to the
train station and then caught the 434 bus. With this bus ticket you can hop on
and off as you please for the day. Alternatively, you can also take a tuk-tuk or a
taxi from the center, which will save you more time at the ruins. The fortification itself was
built in the 10th century during the time the Moors occupied the area. Its strategic position
helped defend both the surrounding territory and the maritime access routes to the city of
Lisbon. It's fun to walk on the castle walls and take in the unique views over the
town as well as the Atlantic Ocean. For your last main stop of the day, we recommend
the famous Pena Palace and Park. It's only a 15-minute walk from the Moorish Castle and is
less crowded at the end of the day. This is the most famous attraction in all of Sintra for a good
reason. The palace stands in a 200 hectare park, filled with colorful flowers, small ponds, and
beautiful viewpoints. Once you step inside the palace itself, you'll be amazed by the blend
of vibrant colors and beautiful architecture. And you can also explore the interior and
get an idea for the history of this palace, which once served as a holiday residence
for the Portuguese Royal Family. Skip the line and book your tickets in
advance via the link in the description below. We're exploring the Pena Palace and it
really looks like a fairytale castle, just out of the disney movie, it's really cool. You'll want to cap off the fantastic day
trip with some free time in Sintra town. There are many cute restaurants and bars in the
center, where you can sit down and just relax. The trains back to Lisbon run fairly late and
we were fine catching one at around 9PM. If the day trip sounds like too much planning, you also
have the option to book a guided tour. We put a link in the description below for that as well. We
also included a map with all the locations which you can download in our blog post. Check out our
description to find a link to the post. And that's it for our video on Sintra. We hope you enjoyed
it and we'll catch you on the next adventure.
