Sintra: make the most of it

This city of 27000 inhabitants half an hour drive from Lisbon is one of the most popular locations for tourists visiting Portugal, and my educated guess, after more than a dozen tours led there, is that most people end up making very little of their visit in a wasting chase of the topical.
You see, the thing is that the Palacio da Pena (Palace of the Rock), the most known attraction of Sintra, draws nearly all public coming to the city through a poorly managed visiting system, taking most of the time you allotted to the place and often resulting in you leaving Sintra after having visited only one of its monuments (which in my opinion is not even the nicest one) and sometimes not even that. So there go some suggestions and considerations that hopefully will enhance your visit a little.
Palacio da Pena: If you go to Sintra, you have probably read about it. It is declared Patrimony of Humanity by the UNESCO. One of the most important residences of the Portuguese royal family, the palace was built over the ruins of an old monastery of the order of St Hyeronimus, and, in an exaltation of the romantic spirit of the time, it recovers all architectural and artistic topics of what popular imagination considered exotic. Thus it alternates nineteenth century imitations of different styles that range from Gothic to Arabic and Colonial to Renaissance, producing a kitsch fairy tale mixture which, if definitely impressive, boasts a remarkable lack of taste and style. Obviously this is a personal opinion, though, so please do not refrain from experimenting it yourself just because of me. Just keep in mind a few things:
Check opening hours and arrive in Sintra a minimum 30-45 min. before the Palace opens! You will have to queue for the bus up to the Palace (it is located long way up a steep road on top of the hill overlooking Sintra), then queue for your numbered ticket, queue again to enter the building, visit for 2 or 3 hours, then queue for the buses back down. You can also take a cab (more or less 4 times the fare of the bus, so perfect if you are 4 people), paying return in advance and making sure you agree with driver your returning time (be there sharp or you will lose both taxi and money).
Paço Real (National Palace): Discreet in spite of its important size, this former summer royal residence, still host to receptions and meetings with heads of state, is probably the least spectacular monument of the old town, but still historically important. Doesn’t take long visiting and is the most accessible attraction, right in the main square, so if you have some spare time you can have a go and walk within its white plain walls of Arabic influence.
Quinta da Regaleira: This is my favourite place in town, and also Patrimony of Humanity by UNESCO. If you don’t have much time (say, less than 3 hours) to dedicate to Sintra, please by all means choose the Quinta over Palacio da Pena, If you have more time but want to see Da Pena it would be good to follow all advice above and try to come back down with at least a 2 or 3 hours for this. This mansion, along with the surrounding gardens and constructions within them, was built by a local man who migrated to America, made fortune and came back, in the interim of this submerging himself into the teachings of the freemasonry, the Temple, Rosacruz and alchemic traditions. The artistic style is also imitation (early 20th century), but with a consistency (mostly Gothic, some Renaissance and a little Manuelin) that comes from strong beliefs and influences to back up his project (instead of a popular fancy trend, as in Palacio da Pena) and I believe this plays an important role in the magic this place conjures. The trails that zigzag through the gardens of the Quinta invite you to get lost and surprise yourself with the mystical secrets sprayed along them, and the magical teaching hints inscribed in the walls of the Iniciatic Well, the House of Alchemy, the Trinity Chapel…ahh I’m revealing too much, go and see for yourself!
Eating, drinking, shopping: If you are a lucky, wealthy b*****d go ahead and indulge, no more hints (well, one: I have heard, though I haven’t eaten there myself, that the restaurant by the corner of the main square is pretty good). If you are not too big on spending, I would suggest taking a little walk back and away from the little nucleus of the old village. Eating, drinking and buying souvenirs there can prove pretty expensive.


more info at http://www.portugalvirtual.pt/_tourism/costadelisboa/sintra/index.html