Sintra · Estate and gardens · Initiation Well
Quinta da Regaleira: tickets, hours and how to get there
The estate of Carvalho Monteiro and the architect Luigi Manini, with its palace, grottoes and the Initiation Well. The official ticket office and Tiqets prices, side by side.
Today
Opening hours for every month are on the Opening hours page.
Checked against the official website on October 22, 2026 · Official source
In short
- The official ticket costs 20 € for an adult (15 € for youths 6–17 and seniors 65+, 60 € for a family, under 6 free). It is sold at regaleira.byblueticket.pt, which the Fundação Cultursintra calls the only official online ticket office. The audio guide is 5 € more and is sold only at the ticket office.
- Tiqets, a separate seller, offers a ticket with a digital audio guide at 28 €. The foundation states that it is not responsible for tickets bought on other sites, so compare both options before you book.
- Entry is by 30-minute slots. On the official ticket you may arrive up to one hour after your slot, with no refund, change or extension. Hours: 10:00–18:30 from October to March, 9:00–19:30 from April to September, last slot 17:00.
- The aquarium has been closed for restoration since 16 April 2026. Of the palace, only the main floor is visited.
- There is no car park. The estate is 13 minutes on foot from the National Palace of Sintra, about 32 minutes from the station, or take bus 435.
The palace and the chapel
The palace was designed by the Italian architect and stage designer Luigi Manini in an eclectic style that draws on Neo-Manueline, Renaissance, medieval and classical models, with towers and pinnacles. Of the palace, only the main floor is visited; the upper floors open only during temporary exhibitions.
Until 30 December 2026 there is an exhibition on the Camões collection of Carvalho Monteiro, open every day 10:00–19:00, which may open the upper floors. Palace, chapel and exhibition spaces close 30 minutes before the gardens.
The Initiation Well and the grottoes
The Initiation Well is about 27 metres deep, with a spiral staircase of nine landings and 23 niches, and a compass with a Templar cross at the bottom, according to Wikipedia: we could not confirm these figures on the official page. From the bottom, underground galleries lead to grottoes and to the Waterfall Lake. A second, unfinished well is described by Wikipedia.
Our advice for the tunnels: wear non-slip shoes, because the paths are steep and damp parts can be slippery (our advice, not an official warning). Arrive at opening to meet fewer people at the well.
Gardens, fountains and lakes
The gardens have a greenhouse, the Fountain of Abundance, lakes, grottoes and a labyrinth, and the estate is part of the Cultural Landscape of Sintra, which UNESCO listed in 1995. The visit is self-guided, with a downloadable map. Tickets and audio guides are on the tickets page.
Who built it
The official site says the estate was designed and built in the late 19th century by António Augusto de Carvalho Monteiro (1848–1920) with Luigi Manini (1848–1936). Wikipedia adds that the estate was bought in 1892, that the works ran from 1904 to 1910 and that the Sintra municipality bought it in 1997 and opened it in 1998: we could not confirm those dates on the official site.
