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Grounds/Park Only Tix to Sintra Pena Palace

Posted by (USA) on

https://www.parquesdesintra.pt/en/parks-monuments/park-and-national-palace-of-pena/

Keep scrolling down to find these untimed tickets that allows visit to all those beautiful colorful terraces (all except one) and even cafeteria

You do not have to stand in any lines.

You are not slave to any time slot.

Never heard them getting sold out (but in theory possible)

Some opinionated advice:
(Few may wish to differ)

  1. You can wait until previous evening or sunrise that same day to decide after checking for wind/rain at Sintra (which could have very different weather than Lisbon)

  2. Ignore all travel guides and blogs, I think oft repeated advice on this forum is golden. Just take Bolt from your hotel to the main gate of Pena
    It's actually cheaper for family of four and worth the convenience for party of two

  3. Worth spending 3 euro to take green bus to avoid climbing the steep hill from the main gate to the castle (depending on your fitness level and time availability). Tip: if there is line to get into this small bus, volunteer to stand and get in right away. It's a 5 minute ride.

  4. It is easier to get Bolt from the Pena main gate than it is to get from Moorish Castle main gate because of the one way nature of the road.

  5. Many folks prefer Regaleria over overcrowded Pena Palace. Some like Monserrate Palace too.

6 Some prefer to Bolt over to Cascais and have evening meal there before catching train (or Bolt) back to Lisbon.

Reposting above summary due to many PM requests on the same topic on this forum as well as others.

Posted by
6676 posts

Just a few comments:

I just wanted to point out for those that would like to see the interior of Pena, with some advance planning, there are relatively painless ways to do it. Lets not leave people with the feeling that the interior of Pena is impossible to visit. It is not. It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but some may wish to visit.

In regards to Regaleria, the grounds are remarkable, the interior of the palace, itself, in our experience, was more crowded and harder to view than Pena.

If from just an environmental standpoint, my husband and I found it incredibly easy to take the train from the airport (with one transfer) to Sintra. It's cheaper too. It also could be done from Lisbon center, as well. It is much more environmentally friendly to use public transportation than a bunch of individual cars.

Sintra is a lovely, enjoyable town. It is worth the time and effort to visit more than a palace or two for the day.

Lets not make this a debate. Just that there is not only one way to have an enjoyable visit to Sintra. There are other palaces/castles in Europe that people may feel may not be worth the time. For myself, I could name a few. But, lets make sure, for those that do like interiors that we provide information so they can do so.

Posted by
11 posts

I scrolled down the link but it didn't say untimed tickets allow visits to "all those beautiful colorful terraces (all except one) and even cafeteria." The website said tickets for only the Park of Pena include Chalet & Garden of the Countess of Edla; Valley of Lakes & Little Bird Fountain; and Temple of Columns, The Warrior's Statue and The Queen's Table. It didn't mention the palace terrace areas. So I'm really confused as to whether something has changed recently? Can anyone please give feedback on recent experiences? How do you skip the line for interior access and go straight up to the upper terrace areas?

Posted by
6676 posts

I would email the palace. They are very responsive.

When I went a couple years ago, grounds pass users could not go on the terraces. Then I think it was November 2023, they changed it and allowed pass holders access to all the terraces except one. Maybe they changed it back again.

Maybe email them now, and then email them again about a week before your visit, and print out the response.

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