Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
adorned with frescos of 27 gold- collared swans. Suspicious? You will be in the Sala das
Pegas (Magpie Room), its ceiling emblazoned with magpies. Lore has it that the queen
caught João I kissing one of her ladies-in-waiting. The cheeky king claimed the kisses
were innocent and all '
por bem
' (for the good), then commissioned one magpie for every
lady-in-waiting.
Other standouts are the wooden Sala dos Brasões, bearing the shields of 72 leading
16th-century families, the shipshape Galleon Room and the Palatine chapel featuring an
Islamic mosaic floor. Finally, you reach the kitchen of twin-chimney fame, where the
flutes work their magic. You can almost hear the crackle of a hog roasting on a spit for the
king.
Castelo dos Mouros
(adult/child €7/6; 9.30am-8pm)
Soaring 412m above sea level, this mist-enshrouded ruined
castle looms high above the surrounding forest. The 9th-century Moorish castle's dizzying
ramparts stretch across the mountain ridges and past moss-clad boulders the size of small
buses. When the clouds peel away, the vistas over Sintra's palace-dotted hill and dale to
the glittering Atlantic are - like the climb - breathtaking.
The best walking route here from Sintra -Vila is not along the main road but the quick-
er, partly off-road route via Rua Marechal Saldanha. The steep trail is around 2km, but
quiet and rewarding.
CASTLE
Parque da Pena
GARDENS
( 219 237 300;
www.parquesdesintra.pt
;
adult/child €7/6, combined ticket with Palácio Nacional da Pena €13.50/
11; 9.30am-8pm)
Parque da Pena is 200m up the road from Castelo dos Mouros, and is
filled with tropical plants, huge redwoods and fern trees, camellias, rhododendrons and
lakes (note the castle-shaped duck houses for web-footed royalty!). It's cheaper to buy a
combined ticket if you want to visit Palácio Nacional da Pena too.
Buses
to the
park entrance
leave from Sintra train station and near the
turismo
(tourist of-
fice). A taxi costs around €8 one way. The steep, zigzagging walk through pine and euca-
lyptus woods from Sintra-Vila is around 3km.
Palácio Nacional da Pena
PALACE
