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Pena Palace Sintra · Portugal
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The Romantic garden · 85 hectares

Pena Park: what to see in the 85 hectares around the palace

Half the visitors see the palace and leave without realising that the park is the other half of the work — and that every viewpoint producing the classic photograph is inside it.

  • Park-only ticket €12
  • Hours 09:00 – 19:00
  • Area ≈85 hectares
  • Timed entry Not required
See the Pena Park ticket See ticket Compare with the full ticket
A lake in Pena Park with a small stone tower reflected in the water

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Live prices and availability. Booking is completed on the Tiqets website.

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Quick summary

Price
€12 adult · €10 youth and senior · €40 family Park-only ticket, no access to the palace interior.
Hours
09:00 – 19:00 Last entry at 18:00.
Timed booking
Not needed Unlike the palace interior, the park can be entered at any time.
Includes
Chalet of the Countess of Edla, Valley of the Lakes, Cruz Alta, fern garden
Minimum time
1h30 to 2h For the essentials without rushing. A whole day fits here comfortably.
Footwear
Closed shoes with grip Sloping Portuguese cobble, slippery in rain.

Official hours and prices as published by parquesdesintra.pt.

Pena Park is a Romantic garden of roughly 85 hectares that Ferdinand II had planted at the same time as he was raising the palace. It is not decorative planting around a building: it is a deliberate landscape composition, with species brought from across the world, winding paths that hide and then reveal views, and scattered structures that work as destinations.

It was planted on ground that was bare rock and scrub. Everything that is now dense forest — sequoias, tree ferns from Australia and New Zealand, camellias, Japanese cryptomeria — was brought in and planted from the 1840s onwards. It is one of Europe's first great acclimatisation parks.

The six places worth the climb

In order of interest, not proximity. The park is large and poorly signed in places — carry the map.

  • Viewpoint

    Cruz Alta

    The highest point of the hills inside the park, at 528 metres. This is where you see the whole palace on its crag with the sea behind. Walk it: 20 to 30 minutes from the palace on a stony path.

  • Included in the ticket

    Chalet of the Countess of Edla

    The alpine house Ferdinand II built with Elise Hensler, his second wife, an opera singer. It is covered by the park ticket and closes at 17:30.

  • Water garden

    Valley of the Lakes

    A chain of artificial lakes with ducks, a small tower and dense planting. The coolest part of the park in summer and the most photogenic in fog.

  • Botany

    Fern garden and greenhouse

    The tree-fern and shade-plant area next to the Chalet. Much less visited, and one of the loveliest corners of the park.

  • Palace exterior

    Palace terrace and ramparts

    Reachable on a park ticket: you can walk right around the building, see the façade close up and reach the arcaded courtyard.

  • Alternative entrance

    Lakes Gate

    The park’s second entrance, far calmer than the main one. It comes out near the Valley of the Lakes and is the best option if you walk over from the Moorish Castle.

The Chalet of the Countess of Edla

In 1869, by then a widower, Ferdinand II married Elise Hensler, a Swiss-American opera singer who was given the title Countess of Edla. The couple built a country house at the western edge of the park in the style of an alpine chalet, a world away from the language of the palace.

The building burned in 1999 and lay ruined for more than a decade. It was restored and reopened in 2011, its cork exterior cladding reconstructed from period photographs and drawings.

It is included in the Pena Park ticket, but it closes at 17:30 — earlier than the park. If you arrive at 16:00, go to the Chalet first and leave the viewpoints for last.

A 2h30 route that makes sense

Entering by the main gate, without the shuttle, with a steady climb at the start.

  1. Main gate → palace (30 min)

    Take the main cobbled path. Do not detour yet: if you hold an interior slot, this is the leg you cannot get wrong.

  2. Palace interior, or a lap outside (45–60 min)

    With an interior ticket, do the circuit. On a park ticket, walk right around the building along the ramparts and into the arcaded courtyard.

  3. Cruz Alta (25 min climb)

    The turn-off starts south of the palace. It is stony and the last stretch has no shade. Carry water.

  4. Down to the Valley of the Lakes (25 min)

    A descending, shaded path with a complete change of atmosphere. This is where the park stops feeling like a garden and starts feeling like forest.

  5. Chalet of the Countess of Edla (30 min)

    West of the Valley of the Lakes. Remember the 17:30 closing.

  6. Out through the Lakes Gate

    Closer to the Chalet than the main gate, and it feeds onto the walking route down to the town.

Is the park-only ticket worth it?

It is, in three specific cases:

  • You have done the interior before. The rooms do not change; the park changes with the seasons.
  • You are travelling with small children. The interior is a single corridor with pressure to keep moving; the park has lakes, ducks and room to run.
  • You arrived late and the last palace ticket has gone. At 17:30 the park still has ninety minutes of summer light in it.

It is not worth it on a first visit with time to spare: the Manueline cloister and the Arab Room have no outdoor equivalent.

Tickets that include the park

Live prices and availability. Booking is completed on the Tiqets website.

Frequently asked questions

How much is the Pena Park-only ticket?

€12 for adults aged 18–64, €10 for young people aged 6–17 and for over-65s, and €40 for a family of two adults and two young people. Children aged 5 and under go free.

Does the park ticket include the Chalet of the Countess of Edla?

Yes. The Chalet and its garden are covered by the Pena Park ticket, but they close at 17:30, with last entry at 17:00.

Do you need a timed slot for the park?

No. Timed entry applies only to the palace interior circuit. The park can be entered at any point between 09:00 and 18:00, which is last admission.

How long do you need for Pena Park?

One and a half to two hours for the essentials: the palace from outside, the Valley of the Lakes and the Chalet. Add the climb to Cruz Alta and it becomes three hours.

What is Cruz Alta?

The highest point of the hills inside the park, at about 528 metres, looking over the palace, the hills and the sea. It is a 20 to 30 minute walk from the palace on a stony path.

Can you take a pushchair into the park?

On the main paths, yes, but the park has steep gradients and uneven cobble. For Cruz Alta and the side trails, a baby carrier works far better.

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