Discover the timeless charm of Sintra, a UNESCO-listed village nestled among lush green hills, once chosen by the Portuguese royal family as their summer retreat. Step into the enchanting Pena Park, a romantic forest filled with hidden paths, exotic plants, and breathtaking viewpoints. At its heart stands the iconic Pena Palace — a truly unique monument that blends a variety of architectural styles, vibrant colors, and symbolic details into one unforgettable experience. Enjoy a thoughtfully planned visit through the palace’s most remarkable areas, including its elegant terraces with panoramic views over the surrounding landscape. Take in the natural beauty of Pena Park as you explore this fairytale setting at a relaxed and comfortable pace. Special Notes: Pena Palace tickets are subject to availability, especially in summer. We will always inform you in advance. If unavailable, the visit includes Pena Park, terraces and chapel, still offering a great experience.
After visiting Pena Palace, you will have free time to discover the historic center of Sintra. Explore the narrow streets and don't forget to try the famous queijadas and pillows. Special notes (Summer 2025): Due to the new traffic rules in Sintra and the high season in Pena Palace, our main goal will be providing quality on this half day tour. For this reason, we will visit Pena Palace (3h) and after that, we recommend the visit to Regaleira Gardens (1h) OR the historic center (1h). If the client wants to do the 3 stops , our guide should give you less minutes in each place, which in our perspective is not good for our clients. In case that you would like to tailor made or customize your tour for more attractions, other highlights or more time.
Our trip to Pena Palace was wonderful! Our driver, Jaoa, was friendly and knowledgeable. At the palace, our private tour guide was very nice and able to tell us the history while walking through and describing all the major rooms. Our fast track tickets got us past the long waiting lines on a hot summer day. Highly recommend!
Great excursion. John, our guide was excellent! Top ratings.
Excellent tour. Comfortable car, very knowledgeable guide. Glad we were able to bypass lines. Lots of stairs, but doable.
What an exceptional tour !! Our tour guide was informative and professional . I would highly recommend
This was our most favorite excursion on the 15 day cruise!! Louis was our guide and he was amazing - took great care of us and provided wonderful history of the area. In addition to that, he provided great insight into Lisbon and Portugal in general. This was our first time to the area. You can't go wrong with this trip. HIGHLY recommend.
Flexible travel experience that exceeded our expectations! Lewis was perfect, so much knowledge to share, personable and he made to tour spectacular!
Our private tour to Sintra and Pena Palace was excellent! Our driver/guide was so knowledgeable and made the best possible use of our time. Timed tickets were included allowing us to bypass several lines of folks waiting to purchase tickets or to enter the palace. I do recommend you make use of the shuttle up and down the hill to the palace. It’s quite a climb!
This was a fascinating tour, our guide was so knowledgeable, kind and engaging. The company owner, who I booked with, was also flexible, responsive and understanding. I learnt so much during this tour. We purchased the fast track tickets and so glad we did as the queues can be quite long. All in all I would highly recommend this company and this tour.
Luis was excellent, knowlegeable, friendly, with a great sense of humor. We had fascinating conversations with him re Lisbon and Portugal to and from Sintra. He guided us expertly thru the beauties of Sintra. Highly recommend.
Filipa was a wonderful guide who gave us a lot of helpful information during the drive to and from Sintra, and of course during the tour. We all shared some funny stories and really made a connection. It was like traveling with a friend and we’ve promised to stay in touch. She spoke English very well and made us feel very comfortable. Highly recommended!!
Louis was an excellent tour guide. He gave us lots of insight into the Pena Palace and Portugal in general, while accommodating our young family. Many thanks!
The trip was terrific! Filipe was an awesome tour guide. His knowledge of the area was excellent and even helped us with dinner reservations that night. He was courteous, professional and very thoughtful. 5 star guide!
Filipe was fantastic. Friendly, responsive and very knowledgable. I highly recommend him for anyone looking for a tour in Lisboa!
So convenient. We were picked up from our hotel and dropped back there. Luis was very knowledgeable and helpful. It was such a relaxing and rewarding experience.
We went on a tuk-tuk tour in Lisbon and had a great experience! Our driver and guide was fantastic — friendly, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic. He stopped at many historical and cultural spots and gave clear and interesting explanations about Lisbon's rich history and the landmarks we visited. One of the highlights was visiting the old town, which was full of charm and character. After exploring the area, we enjoyed a lovely walk downhill through its picturesque streets. Overall, it was a fun and informative way to see the city — definitely a memorable part of our visit to Lisbon!
The tour guide picked us up at our hotel and we visited Pena Palace and the village of Sintra! It was magnificent, beautiful and our tour guide was knowledgeable, polite, respectful and so incredibly nice to us! I highly recommend
Fantastic tour of Sintra with Filipe! He was so friendly and knowledgeable, and made sure we had the best experience. Highly recommend a Sintra tour with Filipe.
Luis was great, however, he was interrupted several times by his boss Filipe, calling him asking him the status and such. It took away from the tour. Luis was very personable with our group, thank you Luis!
Great half day tour with interesting information from the guide. We are so happy we had a private guide rather than dealing with huge lines of people and trying to figure things out ourselves.
We had an amazing half day tour to Sintra. Filipe was very knowledgeable about the history of Pena Palace and explained everything in a very clear and fun way for the entire family. Highly recommendable!
Luis was a wonderful guide. Easy to be with, very knowledgeable and owns a comfortable car. Highly recommended.
We only did the Pena Palace. We never went to Quinta da Regaleira which we paid for. Very disappointed since we use Viator often. We also paid extra for a private trip so this was NOT worth the money. Driver was very friendly and nice but little information about Portugal was shared. Would not recommend.
We have traveled the world and Filipe is, by far, the best tour guide we have ever had the pleasure of working with! His knowledge, passion and love of history was on display at every point in the tour! We feel so lucky to know him and his good nature 🥰
We had limited time but wanted to see as much as possible so Philippe was able to pivot and show us Pena Palace, the historic city and Regaleira in the limited time, provided we don't go inside. Wonderful recommendations and extremely knowledgeable, flexible, and helpful. Thank you so much, Philippe! I would highly recommend you to anyone visiting Portugal!
Philip was a knowledgeable & friendly tour guide. Blown away by all the history he knew & shared. He went above & beyond giving us more insight to Sintra & Caiscais
Getting there early was key. Fast teach tickets a must. Our guide gave us a synopsis of the history which was fascinating and helped us understand what we were seeing. Definitely a must see tour.
First- do yourself a favor and get the Skip the Line tickets for Peña Palace! We did and it saved us standing in a long line in the rain. Our guide, Phillip was very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable about the history of Portugal and Europe. We were very fortunate to have him and he was flexible in our tour plans. We had a wonderful time and highly recommend this guide and tour, but don’t forget to get the Skip the Line tickets!!
5 star but only because you can’t give more. Trip to Sintra and tour in Pena Palace was excellent. Our quide was very friendly and professional. Yes, we can truly recommend this.
Luis was great. Very kind and full of so much interesting information. Was early to pick me up from my hotel, and was a fabulous guide. Answered all of my questions, whether they pertained to the palace, Lisbon or Portugal in general. This tour was my favorite experience of my trip to Lisbon.
Luis was very knowledgeable and fun! Got us through the line at Sintra very fast. Lots of stairs and walking.
This was the best tour that we experienced during our trip to Portugal. We toured the Pena Palace which was stunning! Filipe was such a great guide, and his historical knowledge and kind demeanor really made the day special. Filipe was very organized was able to fit so much into our half-day tour. After touring the palace we enjoyed some free time in the historic center of Sintra. The shopping and food were fabulous. I highly recommend booking this adventure with One Direction Tours!
We had a wonderfull time in Sintra. Our guide Luis was very knowledgeable and provided us with a history overview of Portugal and Sintra. We were given a free time in the Pena Palace with plenty of time to see the pacale inside out and take pictures. We also added skip-the-line option for palace when booking the tour. After the palace we went to the historic centre of Sintra and were offered lovely traditional pastry and drink. Luis ensured we had amazing time during this half day tour and I would be happy to book with this tour operator again.
Philip is the man! He was very knowledgeable and extremely thoughtful. He took his time to show us the castle and we stopped along the way to see other sights as well as old sintra city center, where we got to try the famous pillow pastries. He was also kind enough to take is to Belem to eat the famous pastries even though it wasn't even on the itinerary, and then he dropped us off as we requested in alfama so that we could walk around there. He finished off the tour by giving us some dinner suggestions. Philip is a lovely person and I will definitely be directing my friends to him when they visit Lisbon.
Luis was a great tour guide! He was interesting to talk with and so very knowledgeable about his lovely city of Lisbon. We even had an impromptu Fado concert on the way back from Sintra. Thanks to Luis for such a wonderful time!
We had an amazing experience! Filipe was our tour guide and he gave us wonderful insights into the history of Pena Castle and Sintra. This was definitely one of the highlights of our trip!
This was a very memorable day. Although it was raining our guide Luis managed to make it so special. He is a very kind, knowledgeable and positive person and design our day based on our specific needs. Thanks to Mr Luis for the delicious Travesseiros and the amazing fado concert :)
Luis was an amazing tour guide for our half day trip to Sintra and the Palace. He was very knowledgeable about Portugal and the history. My family and I really enjoyed our time with Luis on the private tour. He really took care of my kids and they enjoyed his company. Totally recommend the tour if you’re in Lisboa.
Our trip to Sintra, guided by Luís, was nothing short of spectacular. His deep knowledge of Portugal's rich history and culture brought the streets and landmarks to life in a way we never expected. Luís' enthusiasm for his work is contagious, making every moment of our tour both enlightening and enjoyable. What really made our experience unique was Luís' genuine care for his clients. He has an exceptional talent for communication, making us feel completely at ease and engaged. His recommendations for places to visit in Lisbon were spot-on, leading us to some of the city's most charming and lesser-known spots. This personalized approach made our trip feel truly special. Looking back on our time in Lisbon, it's clear that Luís played a huge role in making our visit memorable. His guidance, knowledge, and warm personality are what we'll remember most. We're grateful to have had such a wonderful guide, and we can't wait to return to explore more of Portugal with Luís. Thank you for an unforgettable experience!
Fantastic tour of the beautiful Pena Palace and the historical centre of Sintra. Felipe was excellent with his explanations that provided the right context to appreciate the historical elements of this special place.
We were so lucky to have Filipe as our guide to Sintra. He provided us with wonderful insights and historical stories and got us in ahead of the crowds. We enjoyed every moment of this trip and highly recommend it to anyone traveling to Portugal. Not only is Sintra a must see, but Filipe was an amazing guide. Enjoy!
We had Luis. What a fabulous guide! He picked us up promptly at 8:15 and off we went. He made sure we were some of the first to get on the transfer bus to the palace. He let us wander the palace and by 11:15 we were done and headed back to him. It was just as well--too many people! He then took us in to Sintra and introduced us to this fabulous shop he knew about. It was full of all things made in Portugal. The owners of the store were so gracious and kind. They explained how many items were made and handcrafted. We stayed a bit too long! On our way back to our hotel, he broke out in the nation's Fado song and we were stunned by the clarity and tone of his voice. Just beautiful! To anyone who wants a totally different aspect of a tour, we highly recommend Luis!
Our tour guide, Mar, was wonderful. She was punctual and full of great information about Portugal and Lisbon, as she drove us to Sintra. Once there, she escorted us through through the Palace, speaking to us about the background and history. Sintra and the Palace are not-to-be missed spots in Lisbon, a very beautiful and charming spot.
Our tour guide Filipe was excellent. He was very informative and we enjoyed listening to all the facts regarding Sintra and Pena Palace . We had a wonderful tour and Filipe made the experience a memorable one .
All round excellent tour. My family of 8 adults and a baby took the half day trip of Sintra with our wonderful guide Marilia and lovely driver Nuno. Filipe who organised the tour for us was very accommodating and helpful. Marilia was an excellent guide, she is so knowledgeable and provided really interesting information about Cascais, Sintra, the Peña palace and the surrounding areas. She was also friendly and kind and accommodating when we needed to take stops with our young baby. Would highly recommend One Direction Tours and Marilia.
We lucked out and were able to book this tour last minute - and what a treat it was!! Filipe is an amazing tour guide. We learned so much about the history of Lisbon, Sintra, the royal families and politics of Portugal. He was friendly and hospitable, comfortable van as well! The weather did not work in our favor but he still made the afternoon so fun! We also loved the stop in the historical center. Definitely would recommend this tourn
Best tour we’ve ever been apart of!!! Super great guide; very knowledgeable and friendly, he spoke English well and gave us a lot of information as well as suggestions for the remainder of our stay! He also took great photos of us during our tour which was awesome! Highly recommend this tour!
We had a wonderful half day private tour in Sintra. Our guide, Marília was absolutely wonderful. She spent time explaining every aspect of the tour. Pena Castle was the highlight of the tour and Marília knew the history in detail and made this so much more meaningful to visit and understanding the origins. But additionally Marília knew details such as how and why certain trees were planted, where tunnels were and why they were there, details of architecture, furnishings, and art. We spent some free time in Sintra and had some recommended local pastries. We are so pleased with the tour thanks to our wonderful guide, Marília! Highly recommended tour! Thank you HK
Even though the weather was bad (wind & heavy rain), Phillipe was an amazing & icredibly knowledgeable guide who made our trip memorable
Thoroughly enjoyed Philip’s historical knowledge and passion for putting our Pena palace visit in perspective. Enjoyed the trip.
Sintra is a must see while in Lisbon and the perfect way to see it is with Filipe! Felipe has great passion for the history of Portugal and Pena Palace. While the Palace can be very busy, Felipe guided us through to make the tour seamless. We thoroughly enjoyed the tour and would highly recommend Felipe!!
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