“Some beautiful paths can’t be discovered without getting lost.” – Erol Ozan

Over the years my travel choices have evolved a lot.  I now prefer to plan only a few activities when visiting a new place – to go slowly and leave time for unexpected discoveries – which was the case with the Monserrate Palace and Park.  During the long-awaited trip to Portugal, I knew that I wanted our road trip from Lisbon to the beaches of Algarve to include at least one night in Sintra.

The UNESCO World Heritage designated town is bursting with royal palaces, castles, and retreats in the Serra de Sintra mountain range in Western Portugal.  Sintra is an easy day trip from Lisbon, but I wanted more time to explore and initially planned only two stops.  The first stop was supposed to be the Moorish Castle followed by a half day at the sprawling Quinta da Regaleira estate.

Our drive from Lisbon to Sintra was quick and easy (especially as Lisbon was a ghost town on Monday morning following an intense night of partying for the summer’s biggest festival).  Once in Sintra, the drive along the mountain roads is beautiful but through narrow mountain road.  We had some trouble with our GPS and missed the entrance turnoff for the Moorish Castle, but luckily stumbled upon Montserrate.      

Public transport is also a good option for shorter day trip to Sintra. There is a 40 minute direct train from Lisbon’s Rossio train station (which is also on the city’s Metro green line).  A return ticket to Sintra costs less than 5 Euros.  At the Sintra station, you can catch the 434 bus which runs a loop to all of the main sights.   

Monserrate Park

We initially pulled into the parking area for Monserrate just to figure out directions again, but decided to stop once we saw the signs for the park and waterfall.  

The estate is spread over 350 acres, with several waterfalls, lily ponds, exotic tropical plants and traditional European flower gardens.  

The plants arrangements are based on their geographical origin.  Monserrate is considered one of the most diverse botanical gardens in Portugal.

There is a cafe with seating out in the gardens, which makes a picture-perfect stop to grab lunch or a snack.

Photography Exhibition

We also discovered that from May through August 31, the Park of Monserrate is hosting a special exhibition of winning photography from the International Garden Photographer of the Year competition. 

I couldn’t imagine a more beautiful natural setting for the exhibition featuring the stunning 39 winning photos from around the world.  

The winning shots are displayed in acacia wood frames made from trees that have fallen in the Sintra Hills, which the Park sourced specifically for the exhibition.

Monserrate Palace

The grounds were originally the residence and then a shrine to a medieval Mozarbic knight.  Later the shrine was replaced with a chapel to Our Lady of Monserrate.  In the early eighteenth century, the estate belonged to Caetano de Melo and Castro (Viceroy of the Indies).  At the end of the century, the family leased the estate to British trader (of French origin) Gerard de Visme who later sublet the estate to English aristocrat and writer William Bedford. 

Gerard de Visme and Bedford are credited with renovating the estate and gardens according to the prevailing Romantic period style.  Romantic poet Lord Byron stayed in Monserrate during his Grand Tour of Europe 1809.  It is reported that Monserrate served as inspiration for Byron’s classic Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage poem. 

In 1856, English textile baron Sir Francis Cook leased the estate during a stay in Sintra with his Portugese wife and eventually purchased the property.  Cook commissioned a complete redesign of the palace and revived the gardens as a summer  family retreat.   Portugal’s King Luís I named Cook Viscount of Monserrate in 1870.  The estate remained in the Cook family until 1946 when it was sold to the Portuguese government.

Cook renovated the estate in an eclectic mix of neo-Gothic style, Moorish design elements (seen throughout Portugal), and Indo-Persian marble fretwork.  A Renaissance marble fountain is at the center of the octagonal atrium and is flanked on all sides by Moorish columns.

The garden is also filled with Moorish geometrical design elements and antique Indian arches.

Although the palace isn’t as massive as the royal palaces in Sintra, the interior is ornate and awe-inspiring. The domes were influenced by both Renaissance Italian and Indo-Persian architecture.  

The marble fretwork reminded me of panels I saw in the Taj Mahal.  

The estate was recently renovated and is worth a stop to admire the eclectic architecture and gardens.  The pretty pastel-colored palace is also a popular location for evening wedding receptions.  

The palace is open daily from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm with the gardens open for an additional hour until 6:00 pm. The International Garden photo exhibition has been held annually in the summer for the past few years.