Best Day Trips from Lisbon: Sintra Cascais Natural Park

Photo: Castle of the Moors. Sintra, Portugal.

In Lisbon’s close surroundings you can find picturesque towns, UNESCO world heritage sites, some beautiful beaches, amazing viewpoints right on the Pacific Coast, hikes, surf spots, and much, much more!

A visit to Sintra is enjoying landscapes with a unique charm and know a little more about Lisbon surroundings. Besides, near Sintra you will encounter tourist sites that worth a visit. Such places can be the town of Cascais or the exciting Cabo da Roca from where you can see wonderful views over the Atlantic Ocean.

Photo: Sintra palace kitchen.

Beyond Lisbon there are several day trip options. Some of the best-known tourist destinations can be reached within an hour, either by car, bus, or train. Surrounding Lisbon there are ancient castles, sumptuous palaces, and many other historic monuments waiting to be discovered.

Photo: Old House in the Forest of Sintra.

The city of Sintra is placed in the middle of a forest and therefore boasts several colorful castles and parks. Every castle here has a lovely garden, so take your time to tediously admire each one.

You will love walking around the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, which is where the fortress is. The views from this hill are memorable. Besides, if you are a history buff or a nature lover, you will need more than a day to see each corner.

Because of its castles, Sintra inspires the imagination. Pena Palace, the Moorish Castle, Quinta da Regaleira, and others amazing places call to be explored.

Photo: The Palace of Pena. Sintra, Portugal.

Photo: Praia das Azenhas do Mar. Sintra.

If you’ve ever seen any of the brightly colored, Disney-like images lately, it´s very possible that they were snapped in Sintra.

Located at the top of a mountain, this fantasy palace is mixing Gothic, Manueline, Moorish and Renaissance styles and creates one of the best examples of European Romanticism. It has some watchtowers of various shapes and one of the gateways is protected by the half-man half-fish Triton.

Photo: Pena Palace. Sintra, Portugal.

Photo: Quinta de Regaleira. Sintra, Portugal.

Pena Palace (or the Palace of Pena) is the bright yellow and red palace in the middle of the Sintra mountains and it is a delightful sight. Many tourists visit Sintra only for this castle.

It takes about 2 to 5 hours to explore all its beauty and hike the palace gardens or the park. If you want to fit everything in a day trip, consider cutting the hike or walk at the park. Instead, you can go for a short stroll.

Photo: Pena Palace. Sintra best-known castle.

Cascais is among the most luxurious seaside cities in the world. The Portuguese Royal family has chosen it over 100 years ago to chill by the beach, and soon after the rest of the aristocrats followed. This may be a very good reason why a day trip to Cascais from Lisbon is a must. This big city goes along several sandy beaches, so you may spend several hours walking about and discovering new places.

Don´t hesitate to enjoy a shopping evening in Cascais town center, and to eat some delicious seafood in the best restaurants in the region.

Photo: Cascais is the most famous resort city from Portugal.

Home to some natural treasures and UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Sintra Cascais Natural Park is a place that everyone should visit at least once in a lifetime.

Photo: Sintra Cascais Natural Park. Vlaimer. Adapted under license (CC BY-SA 3.0)

When visiting this unique attraction, you will have many choices of things to see and do. Here there are endless sites to discover, from protected UNESCO World Heritage Sites to some amazing natural wonders.

Photo: Rocks next to the ocean in Cascais Portugal.

This Quinta in Portugal is designed with its enigmatic buildings, which may hide symbols related to alchemy, to Masonry, the Knights Templar, and to the Rosicrucian’s. The architecture of this palace reminds of Roman, Gothic, Renaissance and the Manueline architectural styles.

Photo: Quinta de Regaleira. Sintra, Portugal.

The gardens in Quinta da Regaleira are incredibly ornate. Set on a hillside, they have many fountains, a chapel and an aquarium, statues and caves, and the ponds are connected both above ground and by a series of underground tunnels.

Cabo da Roca means “the edge of the world”. This is the westernmost place of continental Europe. So, it’s definitely one of those places that you can boast about: ‘I went to the westernmost point of Europe´.

This edge attracts tourists to its shores because the blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean touch the sky and make it so amazing to look at.

The area is very isolated, but it is the sound of the waves crashing against the huge cliff that attracts thousands of visitors year-round.

The views here are incredible, and there are very few places like this in the world.

Photo: Cabo da Roca. The edge of the world and the end of Europe. Ввласенко. Adapted under license (CC BY-SA 3.0)