Park and Palace of Monserrate

Palace and Park in Sintra

William Beckford, who fell in love with the Serra de Sintra, created this magnificent Romantic park. Monserrate was originally a farm with fruit orchards and crop fields that was first imagined by Gerard DeVisme in the 18th century. Subsequently, William Beckford and Francis Cook also lived on the property. However, it was Francis Cook, the first Viscount of Monserrate, who created the contrasting scenarios found in the park with the help of landscape painter William Stockdale, botanist William Nevill, and master gardener James Burt. The park features narrow winding footpaths that interweave among ruins, nooks, crannies, waterfalls, and lakes in what appears to be an apparently disordered fashion.

The park boasts a vast collection of plant varieties from all over the world’s five continents, including arbutus-trees, holly trees, cork oak-trees, and many other species that combine with spontaneously growing plants from Portugal. With over 2500 species, visitors can enjoy a stroll through the world’s diverse plant varieties from countries like Australia, Mexico, and Japan.

The palace’s Music Room, Indian living-room, dining-room, and library on the ground floor are particularly worth a mention, along with the luxurious reception rooms. Visitors can also tour the first floor, where the private apartments were located.

The Park and Palace of Monserrate appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Sintra!

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