Castle of the Moors

8th-century Moorish castle ruin above Sintra, part of the UNESCO World Heritage site, with sweeping views across the region to the Atlantic Ocean.

The Castelo dos Mouros crowns a rocky ridge above the fairy-tale town of Sintra. Built by the Moors, probably in the 8th century, it served for centuries as a strategic lookout point before falling to the Portuguese during the Reconquista in the 10th century. King Fernando II had it romantically restored in the 19th century. The ruins are now part of the UNESCO-listed Cultural Landscape of Sintra and offer one of the most spectacular panoramas in the region — across Sintra, to the Atlantic, and on clear days all the way to Lisbon.