Visit Pena Palace: The Hilltop Fairytale
Sintra Portugal was a favorite summer retreat of the Portuguese Royal family. Pena Palace was commissioned by Ferdinand August Franz Anton to become their summer residence. Ferdinand was from Austria and married into the Portuguese royal family becoming King Ferdinand II. He fell in love with the views and surrounding land of Pena Convent. The property had been damaged during the 1755 earthquake and was in disrepair. An amateur architect from Germany’s Rhine Valley was commissioned to design the castle. Ferdinand was artistic and wanted the castle to reflect an opera. He purchased the castle in 1838; construction began in 1842.
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The Queen died while giving birth to their 11th child and never lived in the palace. Ferdinand remarried. He passed away in 1885, the year the castle was completed. Pena Palace was willed to his second wife, the Countess of Edla. The palace was purchased by the Portuguese State in 1889. The royal family fled during the Republican Revolt of 1910 and the palace was abandoned. The state declared the palace a national monument and turned it into a museum.
Pena National Palace became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995. The staterooms have been restored to their 1910 décor. The surrounding 270-acre grounds consist of 500 species of foliage, paths, ponds, fountains, statues, grottos, and pergolas. Hike up to the High Cross for a postcard-perfect picture of Pena Palace. It would be easy to spend an entire day exploring Pena Palace, the Duck House, Valley of the Lakes, and surrounding forest trails.
Pena Palace: Tips For Your Visit
The lines at the palace are long, purchase your tickets online. You also need a ticket for the bus up to the palace entrance. It is a beautiful place but do not walk up the mountain. Save your energy to explore the forest grounds inside the palace. The bus runs every 15 minutes. Once at the entrance, get in line to enter the palace right away and take turns stepping out of line for photos. If you are short on time the interior of Pena Palace is nice, but it is not breathtaking and it would not be a catastrophe to miss it.
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