Visiting Monserrate Palace in Sintra

Monserrate is Sintra’s best-kept secret: an exotic palace in a romantic botanical garden, a few kilometres from the busy town centre. It’s much quieter than Pena and Regaleira, and just as magical. Here’s how to visit.

Quick answer: Monserrate is about 4km west of Sintra’s old town. Get there by bus 435, tuk-tuk or taxi. Allow 1.5 to 2 hours for the palace and gardens. It’s ideal for an afternoon after a busy morning at Pena. See Monserrate tickets.

Why go

Pena and Regaleira get the crowds. Monserrate gets the people who want to slow down. You walk through a garden of plants from five continents, past waterfalls and a ruined chapel, to a palace that looks like it was carried here from India. It’s the calmest of Sintra’s big sights and one of the prettiest.

About Monserrate

The estate was famous long before the palace was built. In the 1790s the English merchant Gerard de Visme built a neo-Gothic house here, and the writer William Beckford later rented it and began the landscaped garden. By 1809, when Lord Byron visited, the house was a romantic ruin, and he wrote about it in his poetry.

In 1856 the wealthy English collector Francis Cook took over the estate, and the architect James Knowles rebuilt the house in the 1860s. The result blends Gothic, Moorish and Indian influences, with intricate stone lacework and a domed music room. Cook filled the gardens with species from around the world. The Portuguese state bought the estate in 1949, and today it is run by Parques de Sintra. In 2013 the park won the European Garden Award.

What to see

• The palace: carved arches, a long gallery, the central octagonal hall and the domed music room. Allow 30 to 45 minutes.
• The gardens: themed areas including a Mexican garden, a Japanese garden, a fern valley and a rose garden. Allow at least an hour.
• The romantic follies: a fake ruined chapel wrapped in a huge tree, waterfalls and lakes.
• The great lawn in front of the palace, the classic photo spot. Access to the lawn has been restricted at times in 2026, so you may have to take your photo from the paths.

Works in 2026

Parques de Sintra is restoring the palace roofs in phases until about the first quarter of 2027. The palace stays open, but expect scaffolding and a protective cover on parts of the building. Your photos may not look like the postcards.

Tickets and opening times

• Prices: about 12 euros for adults in 2026, with lower prices for young people and over-65s and a family ticket. Buy online from Parques de Sintra or at the ticket office at the entrance.
• Hours: the park usually opens at 9am and the palace at 9:30am. Last entry is in the late afternoon, and the ticket office closes for lunch, though there are ticket machines. Check the official site before you go.
• Combined tickets: Parques de Sintra sometimes sells combined tickets for several of its sites. Check what is on offer if you’re also visiting Pena or the National Palace.

Getting there

Bus 435 runs from Sintra station via the old town to Regaleira, Seteais and Monserrate. Carris Metropolitano bus 1253 also stops nearby. A tuk-tuk or taxi is quicker. Walking from the old town takes about an hour on a narrow road with little pavement, so the bus is the safer choice. Some full-day Sintra tours include Monserrate. For the train from Lisbon, see Lisbon to Sintra.

A half-day plan

Do Pena or Quinta da Regaleira first thing, when they are calmer. Have lunch in the old town and try Sintra’s pastries: travesseiros (puff pastry filled with almond cream) and queijadas (small cheese tarts). Then take the 435 bus out to Monserrate for the afternoon, when the light on the palace is softer.

Tips

• Quiet: even in summer, it’s far calmer than Pena.
• Walking: the gardens slope downhill to the palace, so you’ll walk back up. Wear good shoes.
• Best season: spring for flowers, autumn for colour. The garden is green all year.
• Lunch: there’s a café on site, though works nearby have affected it at times.
• Dogs: dogs are allowed in the park under conditions. Check before you go.

More: palaces in Portugal, Sintra in one day and where to stay in Sintra.

Some links in this guide are affiliate links (GetYourGuide, Booking.com, Discover Cars). If you book through them we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It helps keep our groups and this site free.