Today I fulfilled a travel wish I’ve had since I was in High School. I went to the Royal Palace of Pena in Sintra, Portugal.
When I was Younger…
Did you ever buy those castle calendars? The ones where each month had a different picture of a castle? Back in high school, this used to be one of my favorite rituals. Go to Waldenbooks or Barnes and Nobles in December to checkout which castles had made to next year’s calendar. As soon as I bought it, I would rip open the plastic film and flip through the entire year, checking out the palaces and castles to see if there was one I hadn’t seen before or perhaps they had taken a picture of a castle I knew but from a different, new angle.
Neuschwanstein in Germany made it every year. In fact, it was usually featured on the cover. Pena Palace was not featured every year, but when it did, it would make me smile. Although officially a palace, it resembles more of a castle built in the Romanticist style complete with towers and bastion, perched royally atop a forest hill.
The bright colors of its façade (red, yellow, blue) were a stark contrast to other royal residences which were usually only one color palette. And of course, my favorite thing about this castle, was its name: Pena. I was sharing a last name with a famous castle and it made me fantasize that it was mine.
Planning my Trip to Palace Pena
As soon as I booked my trip to Portugal, I began researching how to reach Pena Palace. I first had to take a train to Sintra, a village about 40 mins from Lisbon. Then I would take a bus to the Pena Palace Gardens. And then walk up (or take another bus) to the top of the hill where the entrance to the castle awaited. Simple enough!
My friend Natalie suggested that I skip the train and take an Uber instead. I’m glad she made that suggestion because while in Portugal, train workers went on strike disrupting the train schedules. The Uber drive was fast and not very expensive. About 25 euros and the advantage is that it drops you off right at the gates of the Pena Palace Garden.
My driver dropped me off and since I already had tickets and a time slot, I waited almost no time in line. There was a slight wait for the bus, so I’m happy that I arrived early for my time slot.
Travel Tip: Buy tickets ahead of time! And arrive early because the climb up the castle can take 20 – 30 mins. Or you can take the bus, but the line might be long.
When the bus dropped us off at the castle entrance, I could not believe my eyes… there it was in all its red, yellow, and blue splendor. I took my time taking it all in. Each tower, each feature, its clock tower. Clearly, many architecture influences working together.
A Brief History
The castle started as a monastery back in the Middle Ages. It was said that the Virgin Mary had appeared in this spot and a monastery was built to commemorate Our Lady of Pena. A terrible earthquake hit Lisbon in 1755 and the monastery was not spared. Most of the building collapsed and was abandoned. It wasn’t until 1830s that Prince Ferdinand, the King consort became enamored with it and obtained all of the surrounding lands and built the castle we see today. He had many influences including Medieval and Moorish. My favorite parts were the large amounts of tile or azulejos used all around the castle both outside and in its interior. You don’t really see those in the pictures.
Living Out My Dream
I explored as much as I could. My tour finally came and I was happy to discover the beautiful interiors. After the tour, I walked the outside one more time. As I walked away, I would turn back to give it another look, until it hid behind the tall trees of the park out of view.
Back in Sintra, I ordered a glass of wine at a tapas bar overlooking the town square. I kept peeking through the hills, but Pena was hiding. I grabbed my phone and looked at the hundreds of pictures I had taken. Reds, yellows, whites, blues, azulejos… on my screen. Just like in my old calendar pictures. With one difference. I was also there, smiling in the picture.