Pena Palace and Moorish Castle Tour (Self Guided), Sintra

A charming little township on the outskirts of Lisbon, Sintra is a place where there's something for everyone. As if straight out of a fairy tale, this area is a home to several magnificent castles, palaces and gardens, the grandiosity of which fits for a king; and it has been a firm favorite of Portuguese royals since the late 15th century.

The diversity of styles found here is rich – Romanesque, Gothic, Neoclassical, Renaissance and (typical for Portugal) Manueline, with none of the buildings remotely the same; each is incredibly unique. A combination of architectural splendor and magnificent scenery of the hills never fails to impress visitors.

Arnaldo Bermudes, one of Portugal's greatest architects, designed for Sintra the extravagant Manueline-Gothic Câmara Municipal (Town Hall). One look at this extraordinary flamboyant building is enough to tempt anyone to say, "Disneyland, eat your heart out!"

An approximately 15-minute stroll through the historic center of Sintra brings you to Igreja de Santa Maria (the Church of Santa Maria), a lovely Mendicant Gothic temple.

From here it will take you a bit of a hike further up the hill towards the Palácio Nacional da Pena (Pena National Palace); en route to it you can check out another cute basilica – Igreja da Sao Pedro (St. Peter Church). The palace itself features a mix of Neo-Gothic, Neo-Manueline, Neo-Islamic and Neo-Renaissance styles, and is a prime example of 19th-century Romanticism.

Having marveled enough at its beauty, your logical next stop, right near the entrance to Pena Park (in which the palace is located), is the monumental Castelo dos Mouros (Moorish Castle or The Castle of The Moors). This former military fortress, built around the 10th century under the Moorish occupation of the Iberian Peninsula, is perched on top of the steep hillside, and is a staple on the local tourist trail. Its famous walls snake across the hills, providing stunning views over the town, the Palace of Pena and further afield towards the Atlantic Ocean.

To discover the most emblematic monuments of Sintra on foot, to absorb its history and admire the beauty of local architecture and surrounding nature, take this self-guided walking tour.