Place to see: Quinta da Regaleira, Sintra, Portugal

About this place:

Like something out of a fairy tale. When all of the daytrippers flock to the Castelo dos Mouros or the Palacio da Pena, keep wandering down the town's main road, taking in the the views along the way, until you reach the Quinta. The crazy brainchild of millionaire António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro and Italian architect Luigi Manini, the Quinta was built in the early 1900s but covers a huge span of architectural styles...there's a well reminiscent of the Knights Templar, there are typically Portugese Manueline aspects, there are caves with mythological statues, and Cavalho Monteiro kept a very Frankenstine secret experiment room in the palace's tower. The whole estate is something else.

Admission is 6 euros, 4 with a student card and well worth it. There are (more expensive) guided tours throughout the day, but part of the fun is wandering, exploring small paths, and trying to follow the alphabetically-ordered sites of interest (A-X!) Bring a flashlight if you want to discover some of the (dark) grottoes. Plan on taking lots of photos and wearing comfortable shoes...the climb is uphill but no more breathtaking (literally) than Lisbon.