Sunday 13th May 2018

After spending Saturday night in watching Eurovision 2018 on Portuguese TV we fancied something a little quieter today.

We had read that Sintra was a popular day trip from Lisbon and worth a visit. Sintra known as Moon Hill,  is famed for its whimsical and colourful Romanticism style of architecture, much of which is located on the hills high above the town in the forests of the national park of Sintra-Cascais. We had also read that it was difficult to find parking in the town and it becomes extremely busy during the summer months.

A car isn’t necessary as there is a train link direct to Sintra from Lisbon or Benfica and a tourist bus service within Sintra which connects the station to the historic centre and then climbs into the hills to reach the Moors Castle and Pena Palace.

There are several very steep walks to reach many of the attractions.

Despite our apprehension about driving and locating a car park we found a number of car parks on Google maps and decided we would give it a go.

I think we were quite lucky as we arrived in Sintra mid morning, before the main rush and managed to find a parking spot along a road heading towards the historic centre, close to the town hall. It was a pay and display but that suited us fine.

Sintra has a one way system manned by the local police and it appeared on the day we visited if you reached the town early enough it was possible to find free car parking along the one way road Volta Duche and Liberty Park  and in some places on the road leading up to the main attractions. Although it may be in the peak months parking may not be possible in these areas due to the large numbers of tourist buses and visitors.

As we headed towards the centre of town we spotted a local guided tour in an electric car which offered different options to experience the best of Sintra. We opted for the short one hour tour up the steep mountain to glimpse from the outside, some of the most interesting sights with commentary from our driver.

We certainly didn’t have enough time to explore all that Sintra had to offer including the historic centre and the many tourist spots scattered across the hills of the Serra de Sintra!

Our local guide gave us plenty of background information about the history of the town and the buildings and we were able to stop for photo opportunities whenever we wanted.

We ended our quick tour back in the historic centre of the town, which allowed us time for lunch, some window shopping and a visit to the Palácio Nacional de Sintra.

 

We also sampled a couple of local delicacies – pastries from Casa Piriquita. First  queijada de Sintra. These delicious little pies have a crusty exterior and a soft inner batter made with cheese, sugar, eggs, flour and a little cinnamon. They are not too sweet and have a hint of a fresh cheese taste. Delectable! Secondly, travesseiros of Sintra (travesseiro means pillow in Portuguese). Sweet puff pastry with a filling of almond cream. We also purchased a bottle of local Ginja or Ginjinha a liqueur speciality made by infusing ginja berries (sour cherries) in alcohol with other secret ingredients. Delicious when added to a cherry in a miniature chocolate cup!

By now the town was heaving!! All the restaurants were full to bursting and the narrow cobbled streets were packed with tourists.

This was our cue to make an exit from this picturesque town and despite our whistle stop tour we felt we had managed to get a feel for this extraordinary and interesting spot in Portugal and should we revisit, it will be in the quieter months.