As we wrap up 2024, I realized that I neglected to finish my Portugal blog series from our trip back in August! I’m sure you’ve all been waiting with bated breath to read about how we spent our last couple days in Portugal. 😉
Exploring castles and alchemy in Sintra
After landing in Lisbon and spending a day exploring its culinary delights, we were ready for a day trip out of the city. We booked a private tour to Sintra via a local company called Fantastic Ride. I won’t link them here as I don’t think I would recommend this company. This was a half day tour which included a private driver/guide from Lisbon to various sites in Sintra. We didn’t suffer any major grievances on the tour and it was reasonably priced, but our guide was a bit of a weird guy who chatted our ears off about conspiracy theories the entire time, and the car was a mess. The only solace was that he didn’t accompany us into any of the ticketed attractions we visited, so we at least got a break from hearing about the Illuminati and such.
We were picked up from our hotel in the morning. It took us about 30 minutes to get to our first point of interest in Sintra, Pena Palace. This 19th century Romanticist castle is one of the country’s most iconic landmarks, built on the site of an old monastery which was destroyed in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. In 1838, King Ferdinand II of Portugal purchased the ruins and transformed the site into a grand palace, blending Gothic, Renaissance, and Moorish architectural styles.
Admission to Pena Palace requires timed entry and it gets quite crowded. We booked our tickets for 10:30 am entry and it was manageable, but the crowds were ramping up heavily by the time we left around noon. I should highlight that Portugal has a lovely law in place that allows families with children under 2 years to have priority access in lines, so we were able to jump ahead with Teddy.
There is a bus that takes you on a 2 minute ride up the hill to the palace, although I think it’s also possible to walk up if you want to get your steps in. We did a quick circuit through the castle interior until Teddy started getting cranky, and a staff member spotted us so led us out a shortcut to take him outside quickly. We went to the back of the castle to enjoy the windy view before taking the bus down the hill to head to our next stop.
For our lunch break, we stopped in Sintra’s Centro Historico. This well-preserved medieval town was a nice place for a walk. We weren’t very hungry so just went to Casa Piriquita to try their famous travesseiro, a puff pastry filled with almond cream and dusted with caster sugar (no photos because I ate it too quickly), and I looked around in some trinket shops for a souvenir. While waiting to be picked up by our guide, Teddy made friends with some ladies at the bus stop and said his first word, “Olá!“
Our last destination in Sintra was Quinta da Regaleira, a historic estate built in the late 19th century by wealthy Brazilian businessman and philosopher Carvalho Monteiro. The estate features a palace, a chapel, and an array of mystical structures thought to be inspired by a blend of Freemasonry, alchemy, and other esoteric traditions. Quinta da Regaleira has become a symbol of the period’s fascination with the occult. I guess this explains why our guide kept going on about his conspiracy theories and mysticism.
The most famous parts of Quinta da Regaleira are the Initiation Wells. The larger one, which visitors can enter, features a 27 metre spiral staircase and resembles an underground tower. The wells never served as water sources, and instead were purportedly used for ceremonial purposes by the Knights Templar.
Birthday chocolate and pasteis in Lisbon
We wrapped up our day in Sintra and returned to Lisbon in mid-afternoon. This was Teddy’s 1st birthday so we celebrated by giving him his first taste of chocolate at Landeau Chocolate, which is renowned for their legendary chocolate cake that has been touted the best in the world. The hotel also surprised us with a cake in our fridge, which Teddy enjoyed smashing up.
The next day was our final one in Portugal. We relaxed in the morning and then walked over to Pink Street for lunch at Sol e Pesca. This little bar restaurant has been featured on several travel food documentaries, including an episode of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations, and is known for serving an array of tinned seafood. This simple meal was my favourite of our time in Lisbon.
In the afternoon, we took the train to Belem, a district in west Lisbon known for its many notable monuments. These include Belem Tower, Jeronimos Monastery, Belem Palace, and the Monument of Discoveries.
We took a look around outside the monastery, but our primary goal in Belem was to visit Pasteis de Belem for their famous custard tarts!
Tchau, Portugal!
The following day, we departed Lisbon for our return to Toronto. After our hiccup with Ryanair, I was relieved to have a good experience on Tap Air and an uneventful flight home. Overall, Portugal was amazing and a perfect destination for Teddy’s first time in Europe.
We are still making plans for travel in 2025 but so far, we have booked a trip to Maui, Hawaii in the spring. Until then, I wish you all a joyous holiday season and Happy New Year!
I've Bean Travelling 
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