Lisbon Region
Castle of the Moors
How to visit Sintra's Castle of the Moors: the climb, the combined ticket with Pena, how long the ramparts take, and whether it's worth it next to the palaces.
Where
Sintra, Portugal
Opening hours
Daily 09:30–18:00, with last admission at 17:30 (hours often stretch later in high summer). Always confirm your date on parquesdesintra.pt.
Tickets
Adults €12 (about £10); youths 6–17 and over-65s €10; a 2-adult, 2-youth family ticket €33 (about £28); under-6s free. Buying it together with Pena Palace shaves a few euros off the total.
Time needed
About 1–1.5 hours walking the full circuit of ramparts; add the 10–15 minute uphill path from the ticket gate.
In short
Visiting Castle of the Moors
Walk this one rather than admire it from below: the whole point of the Castle of the Moors is pacing its zig-zag ramparts along the ridge for the wide view over Sintra, Pena Palace and the Atlantic. There are no rooms or treasures inside — it's a restored 10th-century hilltop wall you climb. Buy a combined Pena + Castle ticket so you only pay for parking and the 434 bus once, and do the castle either side of your timed Pena slot. Allow about an hour and a half on the walls.
How to visit without doubling up on fares
The Castle of the Moors is not a building you go inside — it’s a 10th-century hilltop fortress wall, restored in the 19th century, that you climb and walk. The whole experience is the zig-zag rampart running along the ridge: you go up the towers, pace the parapet, and look down on Sintra’s old town one way and Pena Palace the other. People who arrive expecting rooms, furniture or a treasury leave disappointed; people who arrive for a 90-minute walk with the best view in Sintra leave happy.
Buy a combined Pena Palace + Castle of the Moors ticket rather than two separate ones. Pena runs on a fixed timed-entry slot and the castle does not, so the sensible plan is to book your Pena time, then do the castle in the gap either side of it — the two sights are only a 10–15 minute walk apart along the same ridge, so you never need the bus between them. The combined buy also trims a few euros off the total and saves you queueing at the castle’s small ticket kiosk, which closes for lunch from 12:00 to 13:00.
The climb, the timing, and is it worth it?
Getting up there is half the logistics. Cars can’t drive the final stretch, so take the Scotturb 434 bus from outside Sintra station (€13.50 day pass, €4.10 single, roughly every 15 minutes); it stops at the castle just before Pena. From the ticket gate it’s a further 10–15 minute uphill path through the woods before you reach the walls, and the rampart steps themselves are uneven granite with steep drops — sturdy shoes, not flip-flops, and not ideal if stairs or heights are a problem. Allow about an hour to an hour and a half once you’re on the walls.
On its own the castle is a thin reason to ride all the way up the hill, but paired with Pena it’s the better half of the day — quieter, cheaper, and with a view that puts the gaudy palace in its proper setting. Go on a clear morning before the cloud rolls over the ridge, climb the highest tower, and you’ll see why people walk it rather than photograph it from the road.
Planning the rest of your trip? See the Sintra city guide.
More to see in Sintra
Book the essentials
Tours & tickets
Castle of the Moors FAQs
Do you need to book Castle of the Moors tickets in advance?
Is the Castle of the Moors worth it?
How do you get from Sintra station to the castle?
Should you do the castle or Pena Palace first?
Ready to book?
Check tickets & tours