Sintra Cultural Landscape - UNESCO World Heritage

Experience an unforgettable trip to Sintra on this 8-hour private tour. With your driver/guide, travel via an air-conditioned van and discover this delightful Portuguese town, which offers a wonderful range of tourist attractions. From ancient castles to sumptuous palaces, there is something for everyone.

In the 19th century, Sintra became the first centre of European Romantic architecture. Ferdinand II turned a ruined monastery into a castle where this new sensitivity was displayed in the use of Gothic, Egyptian, Moorish and Renaissance elements and in the creation of a park blending local and exotic species of trees. Other fine dwellings are built along the same lines in the surrounding Serra, creating a unique combination of parks and gardens which influenced the development of landscape architecture throughout Europe.

Sintra is simply a must, if you are in the area of Lisbon! The old Moorish city, which was recaptured in 1147 by the Portuguese King Alfons 1, has been the summer residence of Portuguese Kings and the aristocracy for more than 600 years. Today Sintra is a popular tourist spot, not least because of its mild humid climate and its picturesque location at the foot of the small coastal mountains the Sierra de Sintra that rise sharply above the city. The main attraction, however, are its historical sites.

The most striking landmark of Sintra is the National Palace (Palacio Nacional), with its huge, conic, white twin chimneys which rise above the large palace kitchen, and are visible from quite a distance. It is one of the most important examples of regal architecture in Portugal and for that reason is classified as a National Monument. The palace was continuously inhabited as a royal summer residence from the 14th to the 20th centuries. It is a conglomerate of different architectural styles. Elaborate wood carved ceilings, which arch over the rooms and marvellous wall decorations with ceramic tiles from the 15th/16th centuries, the Azulejos, bear witness to this Arabic influence. The tiles were manufactured in Seville and it is the oldest and most extensive collection on the Iberian Peninsula.

Your day begins with your hotel pickup at 9am or at Sintra railway station where you will be met by your driver/guide. Travelling in an air-conditioned van you will head off to visit some of this town’s most famous monuments.

Stops along the way include:

Sintra Village
Mouros Castel
Pena Palace
Serra de Sintra
Ursa Beach
Cabo da Roca
Guincho
Hell mouth

After a day full of sightseeing, you will return back to your original departure point at approximately 7pm.