Beautiful fairytale-like palace. Purchased palace entry tickets for first thing in the morning. Due…read moreto delays in travel, we got to the the entrance gate at the bottom of the hill just 15 minutes before our entry time. While the recommended time to walk up the hill is 30 minutes, we were able to jog and get there in less than 15, out of breath. The palace itself is quite beautiful and views from the terrace are gorgeous and picture worthy. The outside of the palace is what we most admired though. Because of the palace popularity, the self guided entry tour is one big line through the palace rooms. It felt somewhat like a cattle line moving through the palace. After touring the palace, we spent time exploring the many trails in the gardens. Lessons learned from taking the train and ride share from Lisbon: Although we left plenty of time to get here from Lisbon by train abd ride-share, we were delayed at the train station trying to get an Uber. There were no Ubers accepting our request and the 2 that did cancelled after we waited 15 mins for them to arrive. We eventually got a Bolt, and lesson learned that despite the map showing pickup on the street right outside the station, we had to go over one street to meet the Bolt after it arrived.

Darn big palace that's badly painted with real vast grounds. Been here a few times and it's ok but…read morehonestly I'm not terribly enthusiastic and hope not to return. I find it ugly, Triton, in particular. His sculpted mythological figure is above the archway. He is often interpreted in Manueline architecture as a hybrid of Triton and a Sea Monster or Titan. In the architecture of Pena Palace, he sits on a large giant shell supporting the bay window above, symbolizing the creation of the world out of the four elements specifically representing the water element and the realm of the oceans, echoing Portugal's Age of Discovery. It's also overrun by tourists like us. If you are interested in how the super rich of yesteryear lived well this place has opulence in spades. The gardens too are spectacular. One certainly if you are visiting is that you must be fit and have a high degree of stamina because it's a very, very steep climb. It's now owned by the Portuguese government ergo expect to be fleeced - pay to enter and pay to take an electric bus for five minutes to the estate once you paid to get in through the entry gate.

Interesting Cram Course In Lisbon's Jewish History…read more... With 3 full days to explore Lisbon, we started with a 3 1/2 hour tour on the first afternoon focusing on the Jewish history of the city. Here are the pros and cons: Pros: - We met our guide, Daniel, in the Principe Real section of Lisbon and walked a couple miles toward the Baixa and Chiado neighborhoods. He was more knowledgeable than an encyclopedia...as personable as an entertainer and tied lots of historical loose ends together. - Daniel included many of his own personal views which, depending on your outlook, could add or subtract from the experience. For us, it cut both ways. - All in all, a comprehensive and, at times, intense yet enjoyable 3 1/2 hour walking tour with insight into the Jewish past of Lisbon and Europe at large. - Price seemed reasonable.....100 Euros per person. Cons: - As noted above, Daniel included many of his own personal views which, depending on your outlook, could add or subtract from the experience. For us, it cut both ways. - There was quite a bit of walking up and down hills on cobblestone streets, but it's Lisbon, of course...so that's something to keep in mind. We'd recommend this tour, but first see if the primary guide, Paulo, is available.

We went on the Jewish Lisbon Walking Tour with Paolo. It was a 5-star tour in all respects. Paolo…read moreis extraordinarily knowledgeable and passionate about the Portuguese-Jewish experience. After spending the better part of the day with him, we had a dramatically better understanding of the Jewish people's contributions to Portuguese (and Spanish) society over the past 700 years, as well as what life has been like for Jews living on the Iberian Peninsula from the 15th Century through the present. Paolo went above and beyond what we expected, and was also delightful to spend time with. We ended our time with him feeling as though we had spent the day with a great teacher and a friend.