Sintra was perhaps the highlight of my time in Portugal and that is saying a lot as I loved it there, and I didn't even get to see the highlight of the Pena Palace as it was closed. Sintra is very easy to get to from the centre of Lisbon there is a direct train from Rossio station and it takes about 35 minutes on a brand spanking new train! The centre of the town is next to the station and is reasonably nice but most of the sights are up on the surrounding hills. The Pena Palace is a ridiculously over the top royal palace and I was sad I did not get the chance to see it. Instead I spent a lot o time just climbing the hills and running around the Castelo dos Mouros. The castle is in ruins but still the walls seem to just merge with the rocky hill. And once in one of the bastions you are afforded a magnificent view over the surrounding Sintra National Park all the way to the Atlantic or back into Lisbon in the other direction. Truly a magnificent place and I am hoping to go back just to see the Palace.