The Sintra-Cascais Natural Park is a park on the

Portuguese Riviera The Portuguese Riviera (Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Riviera Portuguesa'') is a term used for the affluent coastal region to the west of Lisbon, Portugal, centered on the coastal municipalities of Cascais (including Estoril), Oeiras, Portug ...

, one of the 13 Natural Parks of Portugal. While only established in 1994 as a Natural Park by the Portuguese Government, it has been protected since 1981. Its area is approximately 145 km². The park includes the

Serra de Sintra The Sintra Mountains (), is a mountain range in western Portugal. Its highest point is at 529 meters (1,736 ft) near Sintra. The range covers about 16 kilometers (10 mi) from the resort town of Sintra to ''(Cape Roca)'' on the Atlant ...

Mountain Range but extends all the way to the coast and

Cabo da Roca Cabo da Roca () or Cape Roca is a cape which forms the westernmost point of the Sintra Mountain Range, of mainland Portugal, of continental Europe, and of the Eurasian landmass. It is situated in the municipality of Sintra, near Azóia, in t ...

, continental Europe's westernmost point. It contains the

Castle of the Moors The Castle of the Moors () is a hilltop medieval castle located in the central Portuguese civil parish of Santa Maria e São Miguel, in the municipality of Sintra, about northwest of Lisbon. Built by the Moors in the 8th and 9th centuries, it ...

. Located within 25 km of Lisbon, the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park is a popular tourism area, with many different individual historical and natural sites and attractions.

Sintra Sintra (, ), officially the Town of Sintra (), is a town and municipality in the Greater Lisbon region of Portugal, located on the Portuguese Riviera. The population of the municipality in 2021 was 385,654, in an area of . Sintra is one of the ...

and

Cascais Cascais () is a town and municipality in the Lisbon District of Portugal, located on the Portuguese Riviera, Estoril Coast. The municipality has a total of 214,158 inhabitants in an area of 97.40 km2. Cascais is an important tourism in Port ...

are towns and municipalities in the

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

Estoril Estoril () is a town in the civil parish of Cascais e Estoril of the Portuguese Municipality of Cascais, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a popular tourist destination, with hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numero ...

Coast.

Attractions within the Park

* Anta de Adrenunes *

Azenhas do Mar Azenhas do Mar () is a seaside town (residential neighborhood) in the municipality of Sintra, Portugal. It is part of Colares civil parish. Azenhas do Mar means ''Watermills of the Sea'' and the name derives from a once-powerful stream that moved ...

Biester Palace The Biester Palace (Palácio Biester), also known as Chalet Biester and Casa Biester, is a large, family building designed primarily to be a summer home, that overlooks Sintra in Portugal. It is known for its interior decorations, with considerab ...

Chalet and Garden of the Countess of Edla The Chalet and Garden of the Countess of Edla (), also known as the ''Casa do Regalo'', are in the Municipality of Sintra, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. They are situated on the western side of the park that surrounds the Pena Palace, and ar ...

* Convent of the Capuchos (Sintra) (Convent of the Friars Minor Capuchin) *

Cresmina Dune The Cresmina Dune extends over 66 hectares and is a part of the Guincho-Oitavos dune system, located on the edge of the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park near Cascais in Portugal. This dune system is considered fairly unique because, as a result of the ...

Palace of Sintra The Palace of Sintra (), also called Town Palace (''Palácio da Vila''), is located in the town of Sintra, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. It is a present-day historic house museum. It is the best-preserved medieval royal residence in Portu ...

Pena Palace The Pena Palace () is a Romanticism, Romanticist castle in São Pedro de Penaferrim, in the List of municipalities of Portugal, municipality of Sintra Municipality, Sintra, on the Portuguese Riviera. The castle stands on the top of a hill in th ...

Praia do Guincho Praia do Guincho (English language, English: Guincho Beach) is an Atlantic beach located on Portugal's Estoril coast, 5 km from the town of Cascais, and is located in the municipality of Cascais, more precisely in the parishes of Cascais e Es ...

(Guincho Beach) *

Monserrate Palace The Monserrate Palace () is a palatial villa located near Sintra, the traditional summer resort of the Portuguese court in the foothills overlooking the Atlantic Ocean north west of the capital, Lisbon. History According to legend, there was ...

Quinta da Regaleira ''Quinta da Regaleira'' is a Quinta (estate), ''quinta'' (manor house) located near the historic centre of Sintra, Portugal. It is classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO within the "Cultural Landscape of Sintra". Along with the other pala ...

* Quinta da Ribafria *

Ramalhão Palace The Palace of Ramalhão is a neoclassical Palace in Sintra, Portugal. The palace has its origins in a small farm that was enlarged into a palace by Luis Garcia de Bivar in 1470. It was at this palace where Queen Carlota Joaquina frequently staye ...

Sanctuary of Peninha The Sanctuary of Peninha () is situated in the Sintra Mountains in the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. It stands at an altitude of 448 metres on top of a rocky outcrop, which provides views over the coastline and in ...

Seteais Palace The Seteais Palace () is a Neoclassical architecture, neoclassical palace located in Sintra, on the Portuguese Riviera, operating as a luxury hotel known as the Tivoli Palácio de Seteais Hotel. The palace is a national landmark and is included in ...

Photo Gallery

Image:PNSC sign.JPG, A sign after entering the park, near Cascais. Image:Praia do Guincho.JPG, Guincho, a well known beach near Cascais, with Cabo da Roca seen at distance. File:Cabo da Roca, Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, Portugal (12 May 2007).jpg, Cabo da Roca, near Sintra. Image:Pena.JPG, The

, standing on a hill above Sintra.

References

External links

Official Site at the (Portuguese) Institute for Nature Conservation
(Portuguese language) Nature conservation in Portugal Nature parks in Portugal Protected areas established in 1981 Geography of Lisbon District Tourist attractions in Lisbon District Cascais Natura 2000 in Portugal {{Europe-protected-area-stub