There is hardly a Lisbon travel guide that does not include a day trip to Sintra. For some travelers, Sintra is why they visit Lisbon, and having visited I get the hype; and glad to have dedicated part of my holiday travels to making the trip from Lisbon to Sintra. If you are thinking of visiting Sintra, here is some helpful information; if not, here are some pretty pictures.

Sintra is home to several historical sights; the Parques de Sintra website currently lists five permanent sites open to the public to visit. All the information you need to help you decide is on the Parques de Sintra website. My favorites are Pena Palace, Sintra Palace, and Moorish castle for my visit. However, having now visited, I would have added the other two sights if I had more time in the area.

Get your ticket online and print it out, especially if you intend to visit Pena Palace. I cannot stress this enough; having your ticket when you arrive at Pena means a short queue to validate your ticket to gain access. I heard the wait to buy tickets on-site could take up to two hours in peak travel period.

The ticket options start at a two-ticket combo and go up to a six ticket combo, which you can use within 30 days of purchase. If you are going to be in Lisbon for a few weeks, then a six combo ticket might be worth it. If you only have a day, then consider the two or three ticket combo. I chose the three ticket combo, which included the Pena Palace, Moorish castle, Sintra Palace.

The trains to Sintra run every half hours from a couple of stations in Lisbon. Most people, including myself, will take off from the Rossio train station located in Lisbon city center. A round trip train tickets cost less than five euro. When you arrive in Sintra, there are a few options to get to the main sites - bus, tuk-tuk, or on foot. I do not recommend walking; it is a long uphill trek.

I chose the bus, and after a half-hour waiting for the bus to arrive, I was starting to wish I took the tuk-tuk. If you are taking the bus, get your ticket before joining the queue. The convenience store across from the station sells the tickets and the line to get on the bus forms just outside the train station; you cannot miss it. I visited in the last week of the year and waited almost an hour for the bus; I am not sure if the wait was due to the holidays or if the buses usually are delayed.

Start your day at Pena Palace; if you are taking the bus, it is the last stop on the route. Pena Palace is the most popular of the five sites, and the one everyone wants to visit. I recommend making this your first stop because the crowds at Pena only grows as the day goes by. Pena Palace is atop a hill, so there is a trek from ticket checkpoint to the palace entrance. A shuttle runs from the bottom of the hill to the top if you don't want to walk. There is a queue to get onto the grounds and another queue to access the interior. I skipped the tour of the interior; I pulled up some pictures on my phone and decided I was ok to miss it. I could not bear the long queue. By the time I gave up on the queue, I had been in line for almost forty-five minutes. I had two other sights to visit and an early dinner reservation back in Lisbon.

From Pena Palace, it is a short trek to the Moorish castle, and if you have the patience to make the full loop of the Moorish castle, you will get some great views of Pena Palace atop a hill. From Pena or the Moorish castle, you have the option of walking or taking the bus back to the center for Sintra. I chose to do the downhill trek because the buses were full. The trek took me almost 45 minutes to complete. By the time I arrived, I could barely feel my legs - moral of the story; wear comfortable shoes and stay hydrated.

Moorish Castle is a medieval castle that offers the best view of Sintra and Pena Palace. I recommend making the full loop if you can; it is not as crowded as Pena Palace, and you can take your time here. Sintra Palace is in the city center; I chose to end my tour here, but you can make this your starting point as well; there are a few restaurants nearby; it took about an hour to make my way through the palace.

You can cover Sintra palace in a short time, but do not miss the courtyard, and there is a fantastic decor of Azulejo tiles in the courtyard.