Sintra palace tickets: Pena timed entry, prices and what to book

Sintra's palaces are run by two different organisations, sell tickets on different websites and follow different rules. The rule that catches people out is at Pena: you buy a ticket for a set time to enter the palace, and if you arrive late, you don't get in. Here is what each ticket includes, what it costs in 2026 and what to book before you go.

Who runs what

Parques de Sintra, a state-owned company, runs Pena, the Moorish Castle, the National Palace of Sintra, Monserrate and the Convent of the Capuchos. They share one online ticket office, and one order can cover several of them. Quinta da Regaleira belongs to a separate foundation, Fundação Cultursintra, with its own website, its own tickets and its own rules.

Pena Palace: which ticket?

Pena has several tickets. Adult prices on 10 October 2026:

• Visit to the park, €12 (€10 for ages 6–17 and over 65): the whole park, including the Chalet of the Countess of Edla, plus the palace terraces, the kitchen and the chapel. It does not include the palace rooms.
• Essential visit, €20 (€18 for ages 6–17 and over 65; €65 for a family of two adults and two children): the New Palace on your own, through the state rooms and the royal family's bedrooms, studies and dining rooms, plus the terraces and the whole park.
• Complete visit, €45 (€20 for ages 6–17, €35 over 65; €115 for a family): the Essential route plus the royal family's private apartments. You go round at your own pace in a group of up to 20 with a Parques de Sintra assistant, at set times: 11:15, 14:15, 15:00, 15:45, 16:15 and 17:00.
• Guided visit of the palace, €75 (€20 for ages 6–17, €67.50 over 65).

Children under 6 go free. Parques de Sintra itself calls the Essential visit the ideal choice for a first visit. The Complete visit adds the private apartments, at more than twice the price.

How Pena's timed entry works

• The time is for the palace, not the park. When you buy a palace ticket, you choose a date and a time. That is when you must be at the entrance to the palace rooms.
• Late arrivals are not let in. If you arrive after your slot, you cannot go in, and the ticket is not refunded or changed.
• You can't go in early either. Arrive before your time and you wait, so see the park first.
• Allow 30 minutes from the gate. The palace sits at the top of the park. From the main park entrance to the palace door takes about 30 minutes, whether you walk or take the shuttle. We would be at the park gate at least 45 minutes before your slot.
• The shuttle: a small shuttle runs from the main entrance up to the palace. A return costs €4.50: add it when you buy your ticket, or pay on board by card (no cash).
• One entry: the ticket lets you into the park once.
• Changing your ticket: tickets bought online can be moved to another date and time up to 18:00 the day before, within 365 days. Tickets from the ticket office or the machines cannot be changed.
• When to go: Parques de Sintra says the palace is quieter in the afternoon at the moment. It suggests seeing the park in the morning and booking an afternoon slot for the palace.

Opening hours on 10 October 2026: the park from 9:00 to 19:00 (last entry 18:00), the palace from 9:30 to 18:30 (last ticket 17:30, last entry 18:00).

Quinta da Regaleira

Regaleira's gardens, grottoes and the spiral Initiation Well are a separate visit, with separate rules:

• Prices from January 2026: €20 for adults, €15 for ages 6–17 and over 65, €60 for a family of two adults and two children. Children up to 5 go free, but still need a ticket.
• Entry slots: every 30 minutes, and you can enter up to one hour after the time on your ticket.
• Hours: from October to March, 10:00 to 18:30, last entry 17:30. From April to September it opens at 9:00. The palace and the chapel close 30 minutes before the gardens.
• Where to buy: Regaleira's only official online ticket office is regaleira.byblueticket.pt. Regaleira warns that it is not responsible for tickets bought on other websites. You can change your booking there up to 24 hours before; there are no refunds.
• No big bags: suitcases, trolleys and large backpacks are not allowed in, and Regaleira has no car park.
• Inside: only the main floor of the palace is open. The upper floors open only for temporary exhibitions.

Travelling with luggage? Leave it in Lisbon: see luggage storage in Lisbon.

The Moorish Castle, the National Palace and Monserrate

• Moorish Castle: €12 for adults (€10 for ages 6–17 and over 65, €33 for a family), open 9:30 to 18:00, last entry 17:30. The 434 bus stops at the gate. On foot from the town centre, it takes about an hour on Parques de Sintra's Santa Maria trail.
• National Palace of Sintra: in the town centre, 10 to 15 minutes' walk from the station. The Essential visit costs €13 for adults (€10 for ages 6–17 and over 65, €35 for a family); a Full visit costs €35. Open 9:30 to 18:30, last entry 17:30.
• Monserrate: €12 for adults. The park opens from 9:00 to 19:00 (last entry 18:00) and the palace from 9:30 to 18:00. It is about 3.5 km west of the town centre, on the 435 bus route.

Ways to pay less

• One order, several sites: buy tickets for two or more Parques de Sintra sites together and you get 5% off for two, 6% for three, 7% for four, 8% for five and 10% for six. Regaleira is not part of this.
• Family tickets: both Parques de Sintra and Regaleira sell tickets for two adults and two children, cheaper than four single tickets.
• Children under 6 go free at Parques de Sintra sites and at Regaleira.
• Free Sundays are for residents only: entry on Sundays and public holidays is free only for people who live in Portugal, with proof, at the ticket office.
• Visitors with a disability pay half price at most Parques de Sintra sites (70% off at the National Palace and the Capuchos), and a companion goes free. At Regaleira the ticket costs €12, for the companion too.

Closed days and closures

Parques de Sintra's sites are open every day except 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January. Some can close at short notice for state events, for fire risk in the hills or in extreme weather, so check the Parques de Sintra notices page on the morning of your visit. Regaleira closes on the same four days.

To fit Pena, the castle and Regaleira into one day by train and bus, see Sintra in a day from Lisbon.