Another day another castle. Actually this was our second castle of the trip and it was only our first full day. We are a little crazy. In the picture below you can see in the foreground the Castle of the Moors and in the background the crown of the Pena Palace we had just left.

We chose to split our 10 days adventure in Portugal between two, albeit close, locations. The first half of the trip as I have mentioned we stayed in Sintra, a small parish outside the Lisbon city center though close enough to still be considered part of the Lisbon area. We really wanted to invest some time out here and didn’t want to waste time on public transit each day we came out. So we rented a house and drove. Yikes. Not for the faint of heart.

The first day was stressful, all day flying, then driving, then getting our bearings, finding food, etc. But the second day, our real first day was magical. We started at the Pena Palace which I wrote about here.

Then we walked over to the Castle of the Moors and spent the rest of the day admiring the old ruins and the beautiful views.

Things of note that I could not find anywhere else, you can absolutely walk between the Pena Palace and the Castle of the Moors. I couldn’t find a lot of information on this fact when we were planning. Some sites hinted at it but didn’t outright say it was possible. And when I say they are walkable, I mean they are in the same park.

Now I say this as a healthy 30 something, it is steep and the pathway is uneven. However the all of perhaps half mile jaunt between the two is totally doo-able, and if you can’t do it, you can hire a Tuk Tuk. Plus if you are planning on touring the Castle of the Moors you need a pretty strong constitution to begin with. Look at all those stairs! I think this was the point my husband considered giving up as he was well and truly sick by midday.

And yes we hiked all those stairs from start to finish and then halfway back again to exit. It made the jaunt from Pena seem like child’s play. Once we were all tired from the climb and all that pesky fresh air and sunshine we walked back out toward the exit and down the road to our car. The GPS has a bit of trouble finding us in the trees, luckily there isn’t much guessing to get out of the park, just a long single road that takes you into Sintra. However it does take you back to the opposite end of town, so be aware you won’t be exiting in the same area you entered.
Address and Additional Information:2710 Sintra, Portugal

http://www.parquesdesintra.pt/parques-jardins-e-monumentos/castelo-dos-mouros/