How to visit Biester Palace in Sintra, Portugal
Biester Palace is one of the impressive historical mansions that was conceived during Sintra’s golden age as the center of European Romantic architecture. It is best known for its architectural style, refined interiors, and botanical park.
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The building of the palace began in the late-1800s by Ernesto Biester, a wealthy 19th-century merchant and playwright. However, before construction had even started, Ernesto passed away and left the property to his brother, Frederico and his wife Amélia Freitas Guimarães Chamiço. Sadly, they also passed away before construction was completed. Amélia’s aunt, Claudina Ermelinda Chamiço, ultimately funded the final stages of the project.
For nearly 140 years, the estate was private. It recently underwent a careful restoration and was opened to the public in 2022. Because it is a relatively new spot on the tourist map, Biester Palace isn’t overwhelmed by crowds. While we were there in the late afternoon, we had the entire place to ourselves.
Because Biester Palace does not receive the same level of attention as its popular neighbor, Quinta de Regaleira, it is an ideal stop for those who wish to enjoy a more peaceful walk-about. Biester fits in well between visits to the National Palace of Sintra and Quinta de Regaleira due to its location between the two attractions.
Getting to Biester Palace
Biester Palace is located approximately 0.7 miles from the Sintra train station. It is entirely possible to walk this distance. It will take about 20 – 30 minutes depending on how fast you walk.
Alternatively, the Sintra tourist bus #435 runs continuously throughout the day. You can catch it right outside the train station and hop-off at the 4th stop for Regaleira. You will need to backtrack on foot for a few minutes to reach the entrance driveway for Biester. A full day hop-on-hop-off bus ticket can be purchased in advance here.
If you plan on walking through Sintra town and stopping to visit the National Palace of Sintra, then walking or flagging down a tuk-tuk will probably be easiest. If you plan on visiting Palace of Monserrate after Biester, then you might want to have a bus ticket in your pocket for your forward journey and return transportation back to town.
The only thing you don’t want to do is try to drive your own vehicle. There is no visitor parking available. For more information about parking in Sintra, click here.
Planning your visit
Opening times: Biester is open daily from 10:00 am until 8:00 pm, noting the last entry time slot is at 7:00 pm during the high season (April – September). During the off season (October – March), opening hours are from 10:00 am until 6:30 pm, with the last entry at 5:30 pm.
Visit duration: I would allow between 1 – 1.5 hours to visit the palace and botanical park, but you can easily spend more time here. We found that 1-hour was sufficient to explore the house and gardens at a comfortable, unhurried pace. There is a picnic area in the park that is a great space to have lunch.
Above photos: Entrance gate and picnic area
Tickets: Tickets for adults start at € 14,00. Children under 5 years old can enter for free, and tickets for seniors (= or > 65) and young persons (between 6 – 17 years old) are € 9,00. Guided visits are offered for an additional fee. Tickets can be purchased here.
Finding your way around: Once you arrive on property, you can purchase a map of the house and botanical garden for a small fee. Otherwise, you can simply follow the signage and walking paths as you explore the grounds.
Photo gallery
Above photos: Front Facade and Loggia of Biester Palace
As soon as you walk through the front doors of Biester Palace and step into the entry hall, the first thing you notice is the use of wood and frescoes. These artistic design features continue throughout the entire palace and will keep your camera lens tilted up for most of your visit. At this point, we were asked to slip on a pair of shoe covers to protect the floors.
The library is one of the more interesting spaces in the palace. The space was used to house books, of course. But, it was also used as a reading room and office. The ceiling is painted with mythical creatures, angels, and neoclassic symbolism.
Above photos: Library and Reading Room
The music room is arguably the prettiest room in the palace. It was used by Amélia to entertain her friends because it was relatively quiet compared to the front of the house. It was also used for performances when the Biesters’ entertained society with their soirées. There is a beautiful American-made Melodian organ here remaining from the original furnishings.
Above photos: Music room
The drawing room is a marvel, covered in wood paneling and an ornately carved fireplace mantle with tiles by Raphael Bordallo Pinheiro. The ceiling was painted by Paul Baudry, famous for his work in the Paris Opera.
Above photos: Drawing Room
The ballroom falls in similar fashion to the drawing room, with more wood, frescos, and artworks by Luigi Manini, an Italian architect and set designer who also worked on Quinta de Regaleira. There is another large fireplace in this space, also decorated with Bordalo Pinheiro tiles. Don’t miss the incredible views of Sintra from terrace off the ballroom.
Above photos: Ball Room
The neo-gothic main stairway off of the ballroom is extraordinary in its own right. On the walls are frescos by Manini, in the art nouveau style. As you reach the top of the stairs, there is a space called the Chambers Lobby that is a central hub to the adjoining bedrooms. The fresco here was my favorite.
Above photos: Main Stairway
Above photos: Chambers Lobby
Private chapels are always so interesting to see. They truly make sense for these homes that were removed from any congregation, but clearly also indicative of wealth. The chapel at Biester is decorated in a romantic, neo-gothic style with symbolism and motifs from the Knights of Templar, who had ties with Sintra from the Reconquista. The colorful ceiling is another work by Baudry. Records show that the stained glass supplied by “Hubert of Paris”.
Above photos: Chapel
The master bedroom has a couple really outstanding features. First, the ceiling (another Baudry) has an angel with the “Mona Lisa effect,” with the eyes seeming to follow you as you move around the room. Also, there is an en suite bathroom, which was very rare for the times.
On the same level as the master, there are several other bedrooms that are full of antique furnishings, muted pastel colors, and picture-perfect bedding ensembles.
Above photos: Master Bedroom and one of the bathrooms
Above photos: Bedrooms
On the basement level, there is a rather large kitchen, fully tiled floor-to-ceiling and staged as it would have been back in the day. Adjacent to the kitchen is a staff dining area, far less extravagant than the family’s dining room but cozy enough.
Above photos: Kitchen
While ending the palace tour and exiting through the basement level, there is an “Initiation Room,” which seems really mysterious. The Biesters’ ties to the Knights of Templar and Freemasons suggest this stone chamber may have been used for sacred practices in order to become part of an Order or secret society.
Alas, we were out in the botanical park, following the map to the cave, greenhouse tea room, and water features. There are a lot of steep slopes, but the paths are well maintained. The plantings were very reminiscent of Pena Park.
Above photos: Botanical Garden
After a day of visiting some of the more crowded attractions in Sintra, we were so pleasantly surprised to find this hidden gem and be able to enjoy it at our leisure. I’m sure it won’t take long for it to catch up in popularity. The palace and gardens are too pretty to remain a secret for long.
Organized tours
Private Guided Tours in Sintra
Below are a few tour options below that meet in Sintra after you have arrived on your own. These tour options are especially convenient if you are arriving by train and don’t have your own transportation to get around to some of the sites off the tourist bus route. They are also ideal for anyone who also wants a tailored experience and ability to see places like Biester Palace.
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