How to get here<\/h2>\n\n\n\nWhat you shouldn\u2019t do<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Drive. Don\u2019t drive here. See that queue above. Imagine driving in this. And then imagine driving down tiny roads made for literally two people and you are supposed to fit your car down. I was in panic tears driving through this town.. From experience \u2013 just don\u2019t drive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What you should do<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Take the train from Lisbon for ONLY \u20ac2 and plan to stay the night in Sintra. There are so many sites in Sintra worth seeing that if we ever go back we will be staying for at least one night. Here are two great Air BnB options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Entire home in great location<\/a> \u2013 $115\/night<\/li>
- Room with terrace <\/a>\u2013 $37\/night<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Click here<\/a> for $35 off your first Air BnB booking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you can\u2019t stay in Sintra for a night take the first train to Sintra. Trust me, you\u2019ll want to beat the queues. We arrived in Sintra around 11:30 and stood in lines for more time than we did actually seeing the sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sites to see<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
There are so many sites to see here! We only saw the Castle of the Moors and Pena Palace. If (better yet when) we go back we will be sure to also visit the Quinta da Regaleira<\/a> (famous for the Initiation Well) and the Park and Palace of Moserrate<\/a> (we heard great things from locals). I don\u2019t think it would be possible to see all four in one day so I would suggest the Castle of the Moors and Pena Palace the first day and the Quinta da Regaleira and Moserrate the second day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Castle of the Moors<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
After waiting in line for about an hour combined with finding parking + taking a bus that nearly killed a biker (not kidding, the bus nearly slammed a motorcycle into a wall) we had FINALLY made it\u2026.to the ticket line. Le sigh. We waited another 30 minutes in a line for the automated machine and of course it wouldn\u2019t accept our American credit card. Fortunately, we had British friends with us who were able to pay. We went ahead and bought a dual ticket for both the castle and the palace which was cheaper than buying them separately (I think around \u20ac20\/person).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Sintra](\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20161023191825im_\/http:\/\/i2.wp.com\/bootsnotroots.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Castle-of-Moors-view-1.jpg?resize=697%2C962\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nNow for the fun part! The Castle of the Moors was established in the 9th century by the North African Moors to guard the town of Sintra. After the Christian conquest of Portugal it fell to ruins, but was restored in the 19th century. It is an absolutely gorgeous castle with PHENOMENAL views of Sintra and the surrounding areas. If you had to choose between the Castle of the Moors and Pena Palace, I would opt for the Castle. It was so fun to run around the walls and look over the sides at the amazing view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pena Palace<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
After exploring the Castle of the Moors for about an hour and a half we headed over to Pena Palace. You can walk over to it from the Castle of the Moors, but it\u2019s quite a trek up hill. You can pay a small fee to ride a bus up to the top. This had a queue too and at this point I wasn\u2019t having it so we trekked up. 20 minutes later and we were there! Despite all of my complaints about the queues, this palace was phenomenal. Right when you get up the hill this is what you are greeted with. Talk about jaw-dropping beauty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can buy tickets to just explore the gardens and if you do so you won\u2019t get to see much of the actual palace. If you made it all the way to Sintra I would suggest buying the whole package to truly enjoy all of the sights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had a blast exploring all of the various sections of this castle. We\u2019ve been to quite a few castles over the past year and I have yet to see one so intricately designed. I could have spent days as a budding (very amateur) photographer running around here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My very favorite part of this palace though was the views of the green forests below contrasting with the bright colors of this palace. I\u2019m a sucker for nature I guess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can tell I was on cloud 9 at this point despite all of the queues we had stood in line for at this point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By the time we were done exploring the palace we were exhausted so we didn\u2019t even go to the gardens. Again, proper planning would have done us well! We went down to the front gates and queued in another line for about 30 minutes to get down to the bottom of the hill to make the trek back to our car and then to our Air BnB on the coast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Verdict<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Despite my hatred for queues and crowds, I would have visited Sintra all over again if given the choice. However, I would have stayed in Sintra for a night and really spent some time getting to know the town after the crowds of tourists depart. If you do get to stay the night I would highly suggest dining at Romaria de Baco<\/a>. The hubs had his favorite steak during our time in Portugal and the wine here is to die for (and affordable!). I would literally go back to Portugal just for the wine though, so if you\u2019re not a wino I might be a biased opinion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have you ever been to Sintra? What did you think? Comment below! <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Happy Trekking!<\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\u2013 Boots not Roots<\/strong><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Whenever I was a kid I remember dreaming of going to Disney World. We all saw the commercials on TV and I couldn\u2019t wait to finally step foot in this magical place. I begged my parents for months and months and when I was seven my parents FINALLY (funny how long time feels when you\u2019re young) took … <\/p>\n
- Room with terrace <\/a>\u2013 $37\/night<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n