Sintra-Cascais Natural Park (Parque Natural De Sintra-Cascais)
The Sintra-Cascais Natural Park contains miles and miles of beautiful landscape, stretching from the serra on which Sintra sits all the way down to the coast, including Cabo da Roca, Europe’s westernmost point. It has been a protected area for 30 years and contains many trails, though some are accessible only by car. One of the best hikes begins at the tourist office in Cabo da Roca and heads inland up into the hills before coming back along the dramatic beach (about 10km total). There are many shorter hikes just around Sintra, which are by no means walks in the park. The 4.5km |Percurso da Pena, which runs from the Palácio Nacional da Sintra up to the Palácio da Pena, will leave you a sweaty mess, but it goes up past the Igreja de Santa Maria, the Casa do Adro where Hans Christian Andersen once lived, the Convento da Santíssima Trinidade, and the Castelo dos Mouros.