Fairytale palaces, mossy gardens and misty forested hills just outside Lisbon, with wild Atlantic beaches over the ridge. Here's what Sintra is like, when to go and how long to stay.
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Temperatures are the average daytime high in °C.
April to June, September and October are best, mild and green, with fewer coaches than midsummer. July and August are busy, so arrive at opening time. Sintra sits in its own cooler, misty microclimate, so pack a layer even when Lisbon is hot. Winter is quiet and atmospheric but often damp.
The bright red and yellow hilltop palace. Book a timed ticket and go first thing.
Gardens full of grottoes, tunnels and the spiralling Initiation Well.
Walk the old walls along the ridge for views to the ocean.
A romantic palace in a garden of plants from all over the world, usually much quieter.
Cliffs at mainland Europe's most westerly point, 20 minutes away.
A wild beach between cliffs, with a good fish restaurant on the sand.
Sintra's puff-pastry 'pillows' filled with almond cream, best warm at Piriquita.
Lots of people visit as a day trip from Lisbon, but staying a night or two lets you see the palaces before and after the crowds and add the coast.
Fly into Lisbon, then take the train from Rossio station to Sintra, about 40 minutes. Driving up to the palaces is hard, so use the 434 bus, a tuk-tuk or walk.
Pena Palace is the most famous, but Quinta da Regaleira is many people's favourite, especially with children who love the tunnels.
Spring and early autumn, around 18 to 24°C. Go early on weekdays to avoid the busiest times.
Two or three nights covers the main palaces and a day on the coast.
Put Sintra on standby with everyone's other ideas. You each spread your points in secret, get one veto, and the draw picks where you go.