Sintra has become a popular day trip destination from Lisbon and is now well-known for its beautiful palaces. While Pena Palace and Castle of the Moors are generally the first stop on people’s lists (hello, crowds!), Quinta da Regaleira is just as stunning and a little less crowded.
Here are my tips for visiting Quinta da Regaleira!
About Quinta da Regaleira
Quinta da Regaleira is a gothic style 20th century estate commissioned by a wealthy Portuguese businessman and designed by Italian architect, Luigi Manini, in 1907.
The estate features a grand house with stunning architecture made up of five floors surrounded by lush gardens. And while the house is beautiful and definitely worth exploring, the gardens are, in my opinion, the real draw for visiting Quinta da Regaleira!
Spend the morning wandering these enchanting gardens and discover the secret passageways, hidden tunnels and princess-like towers.
One of my favorite features of the gardens is the Initiation Well that features a spiral staircase leading to the very bottom of the well. And the best part? The secret passageway that takes you below a waterfall!
How To Get There
There are several ways to reach Quinta da Regaleira from the town of Sintra: on foot, by car or tuk tuk.
The estate is easily reached on foot from the town of Sintra — its a quick uphill walk, just follow signs for ‘Quinta da Regaleira’ and the main entrance will be on Rua Barbosa do Bocage.
And if you have a car, you can drive right to the estate that has some parking available. We were able to easily find a spot when we arrived around opening but parking may be more limited during peak hours!
Tuk tuks have become popular in Sintra and are an easy way to get around to all the main sights. Flag one down for an easy ride to Quinta da Regaleira!
Know Before You Go
- Quinta da Regaleira is open between 10am – 8pm during the summer season and 10am – 5:30pm during the winter season.
- The entrance fee is €6 per person and includes admission to both the house and gardens.
- Plan to spend about 1.5 hours at Quinta da Regaleira so that you have time to explore all the garden’s secrets!
- Sintra has its own microclimate and can quickly turn from warm to foggy and cold — make sure to bring layers.
- Pro tip: We arrived at opening hours to avoid the crowd. Once we got our tickets, we headed straight for the Initiation Well so that we could snap some photos before it got too busy!
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