Pena National Palace

In the 14th century, a small chapel was built on a peak in the Serra de Sintra mountain range after locals saw an apparition of the Virgin Mary. Its name was Nossa Senhora da Pena, or ‘Our Lady of Pena’, and the following century the chapel was expanded into a monastery. Pena is Portuguese for grief, sadness, or pity.

The palace was built by a German geologist, mining engineer, and amateur architect who was a member of the Portuguese court, Wilhelm Ludwig von Eschwege. Charged with building a palace on the ruins of the monastery, he decided to combine Neo-Renaissance, Neo-Manueline, Neo-Gothic, and Moorish elements of architecture to create the brightly colored building. The interior is largely intact as it was built, and visitors will be delighted by two further architectural schools which were used in the decoration: Neo-Baroque and Neo-Rococo. On the exterior of the palace, you can spot Azulejos, a Moorish-style tile which is commonly used throughout Sintra and Lisbon.

An official guided tour takes place every day at 2.30 pm, and you don’t need to reserve a spot to take part! It takes between one hour and 90 minutes to complete and is offered in Portuguese, Spanish, and English.

Although there is no specific program for children in the palace, the fairytale castle usually delights children of all ages. Parents of young children should note that strollers must be left at the entrance, and there are steep drops near the battlements protected only by low walls. Therefore, the use of baby carriers is recommended for the visit.

If you’re planning to visit the palace interior and the park then you should allow at least two to two and a half hours for your trip, if not longer. The most important areas of the palace can be seen in about an hour if you want to visit very quickly on your way to another attraction, or you can plan in more time and linger over the parts you find most interesting. If you’re visiting on a day trip from Lisbon, remember to plan at least 45 minutes of travel time each way by car or coach, or an hour by bus.

The park has been accessible to wheelchair users since 2014, and the shuttle bus to the palace entrance also offers a space for a wheelchair user. However, the palace itself only offers limited access to wheelchair users. Visitors with mobility problems can access the terraces, the shop, and the cafeteria, but the palace tour contains a large number of stairs to climb and has not yet been adapted to be accessible for visitors who use wheelchairs.