Cape Roca
Windswept granite headland with sheer sea cliffs and an old lighthouse at Europe's western edge.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to Cabo da Roca near Sintra is about the lighthouse on the westernmost tip of mainland Europe, and a pair of measurements that refuse to match. It reaches back to a seventeen fifty-eight charter under the Marquis of Pombal and the long wait before the first lamp was lit. It also follows the light inside as it was rebuilt again and again, from oil lamps to a flashing glass lens. Best heard at the cliff-top railing, with the white tower in view.
This audio guide was created using AI.
Similar places
Farol Museu de Santa Marta
Blue-and-white tiled lighthouse on an old fort, with keepers' quarters turned into a museum of lights.
Ursa Beach
Wild cove of towering sea stacks beneath sheer cliffs, reached only by a steep, rugged footpath.
Boca do Inferno - Devil’s Mouth
Collapsed sea cave and rock arch where Atlantic waves surge into a cliffside chasm.
Praia da Adraga
Cliff-framed Atlantic cove of golden sand, sea caves and a sheer rock once descended on a dare.
High Cross
Summit stone cross on granite boulders at the hills' highest point, with views to the Atlantic.
Sanctuary of Peninha
Hilltop baroque chapel and unfinished Romantic mansion with sweeping Atlantic coastline views.