Westernmost Point of Europe: Cabo da Roca, Portugal

Cabo da Roca in Portugal is the westernmost point of mainland Europe, at 38° 47′ north and 9° 30′ west. The cape ends the Serra de Sintra, sits inside the Parque Natural de Sintra-Cascais, and stands 42 km (26.1 mi) west of Lisbon. Count the islands as well and the answer moves a long way out into the Atlantic, to Monchique Islet off Flores in the Portuguese Azores at 31° 16′ west. Both statements are true, they answer different questions, and the section below sets them side by side.

We reached Cabo da Roca by accident. We had arrived in Sintra in the late afternoon, and because it was still hot we drove straight to the coast for a swim. Praia Grande (“Big Beach”) looked packed, so we took Praia Pequena (“Small Beach”) instead, and it was only on the way back to the hostel that we passed a road sign pointing to the westernmost point of the continent.

Westernmost point of Europe mainland: Cabo da Roca

Cabo da Roca is the westernmost point of mainland Europe because no part of the continental landmass reaches further west than its cliffs at 9° 29′ 56″ west. Cabo da Roca is also the westernmost point of mainland Portugal, of the Sintra mountain range and of the whole Eurasian landmass, which is why the monument on the clifftop is worded so carefully. The Romans knew the headland as Promontorium Magnum, and sailors in the age of sail called it the Rock of Lisbon.

We followed the signs, drove for about half an hour and arrived with the sun already going down. The wind made it cold for a summer evening, and the view was worth the jumper: open ocean on three sides, the Serra de Sintra behind us, and the lighthouse above the cliff edge. Nobody was in a hurry, and the noise was all wind and water.

The cliffs here rise about 140 m (460 ft) out of the Atlantic, cut into folded granite and limestone. The plants tell you how hard the wind blows, because almost everything growing on the plateau hugs the ground. The one that has taken over is not Portuguese at all: the ice plant or sour fig, a South African succulent that residents planted as ground cover decades ago and that now smothers much of the arable land on the cape.

Which place counts as Europe’s westernmost point

Europe’s westernmost point depends on one decision: whether islands count, and which islands. Europe has no single agreed western edge because the continent’s boundary is a convention rather than a coastline, so six places hold a defensible claim. They are listed below, from the continent outwards.

The Ireland-or-Portugal argument is the one people run into most, and it has a clean answer. Ireland does reach further west than Cabo da Roca, so guides in Kerry are not wrong when they call Dunmore Head and the Blaskets among the westernmost points in Europe. Cabo da Roca keeps its title because Ireland is an island and Cabo da Roca is on the continent itself. Wikipedia’s own list of extreme points of Europe carries that Irish caveat as a footnote to the Cabo da Roca entry.

The Azores complicate it further. Monchique Islet is the westernmost land in Portugal and, if the Azores count as Europe, in Europe as a whole. It also sits on the North American Plate, which is why the same list offers the Capelinhos volcano on Faial as the westernmost European-plate land above water. Iceland’s Bjargtangar is the usual answer for anyone who counts Iceland but treats the mid-Atlantic Azores as a separate case.

The lighthouse and the monument at Cabo da Roca

The lighthouse at Cabo da Roca started operating in 1772 and is now open to visitors for the first time. It was one of six lighthouses ordered by the Marquis of Pombal in a charter of 1 February 1758, and Parques de Sintra, which co-manages the site, describes it as the second-oldest still working on the Portuguese coast. Its beacon stands 165 m (541 ft) above the Atlantic and carries about 48 km (29.8 mi), a range of 26 nautical miles.

For decades the lighthouse was closed to the public. That changed on 23 July 2026, when the Cabo da Roca Lighthouse Interpretation Centre opened after a restoration of the whole complex. The self-guided Essential Visit covers the interpretation centre, the temporary exhibition area and the courtyard, and costs €5 (about $6, £4). The Panoramic Visit adds an accompanied climb to the lighthouse balcony and costs €10 (about $12, £9) for adults, with reduced rates for over-65s and for 6 to 17-year-olds. Parques de Sintra lists the courtyard and interpretation area as open 09:30 to 17:30, so check its site for the current times before you plan around them.

The stone monument with the cross on top is the free landmark most people come for. It marks the point where the mainland meets the Atlantic and carries a line from Luís Vaz de Camões and his epic Os Lusíadas: “Aqui, onde a terra termina e o mar começa”, or “Here, where the land ends and the sea begins”. A fort once stood on the headland as part of a coastal defensive line, and only a few stone traces are left of it.

Visiting Cabo da Roca: cost, time and the certificate

Cabo da Roca costs nothing to visit and parking is free, so the only ticket on site is the optional one for the lighthouse. Cabo da Roca needs 30 minutes to an hour if you stay near the clifftop and the monument, and half a day if you walk. Marked trails run off towards Cascais, Colares and the Sintra hills, and the wind on the exposed sections is strong enough to change your mind about how far you were going.

The tourism office beside the car park sells a handwritten certificate of presence in French calligraphy, confirming that you stood at the westernmost point of the European continent. Sintra’s tourism department lists it at €11 (about $13, £10), with a Braille version at €4.50 (about $5, £4). We decided a few photographs made the same point. The office also lists longer summer hours, 9:00 to 19:30 from May to September against 9:00 to 18:30 the rest of the year, and closes on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Go at sunset if the timing works. It will be colder than you expect on the cliff, and watching the sun drop into the Atlantic from the edge of the continent is the reason to be there rather than at any other viewpoint near Sintra.

How to get to Cabo da Roca

The easiest way to get to Cabo da Roca is to drive, because the cape is 18 km (11.2 mi) from Sintra on the EN-247 and the car park is free. Driving also solves the sunset problem, since the buses stop running well before the light goes. If you are picking up a car for the Lisbon and Sintra leg of a trip, DiscoverCars compares the local suppliers in one search.

Two Carris Metropolitana bus lines serve the cape, and the route 403 that older guides still name has been renumbered. Line 1253 runs from Sintra train station to Cabo da Roca. Line 1624 runs between Cascais terminal and Portela de Sintra via Azóia and Almoçageme, and stops at the cape on the way. Journeys take roughly 35 to 45 minutes from either end, a single fare is a few euros and drops further on a rechargeable navegante card, and timetables are on carrismetropolitana.pt. A taxi works too if you agree the fare first and ask the driver to wait.

Guided day trips from Lisbon and Sintra usually pair Cabo da Roca with Pena Palace or Cascais, which suits anyone without a car who still wants the sunset.

Where to stay in Sintra

Stay in Sintra rather than Lisbon if Cabo da Roca and the palaces are the point of the trip, because the cape is a short drive away and the town empties once the day trippers leave. Sintra’s centre puts you within walking distance of the National Palace and the Pena bus, while Colares and Azóia sit closer to the coast and the cape itself. Hotel prices in Sintra climb steeply in July and August, so book early for a summer visit. Compare the town’s hotels and guesthouses on Booking.com, which has the filters to sort by the things that matter here, parking and distance from the station.

Apartments often work out better for families and longer stays, and Vrbo lists apartments and villas in and around Sintra. If this guide helped, booking your next stay through my Vrbo link earns a small commission at the same price to you, which is what keeps this site independent.

For more on the country, from the Algarve to the Douro, start with our Portugal guides.

WonderfulWanderings Pro Tips

The 5 tips below come from an unplanned evening at the cape and from re-checking the bus numbers, ticket prices and opening times that changed in 2026.

1. Drive if the sunset is the reason you are going. The buses stop running well before the light goes, which is the one thing a timetable will not tell you. We followed the road signs on the way back from Praia Pequena, drove for about half an hour and arrived with the sun already dropping into the ocean.
2. Ignore any guide that says the lighthouse cannot be visited. It opened to the public on 23 July 2026 after the whole complex was restored. The self-guided Essential Visit costs €5 and the Panoramic Visit, which adds an accompanied climb to the balcony, costs €10.
3. Look for bus lines 1253 and 1624 rather than the 403. The 403 was renumbered when Carris Metropolitana took the routes over, so the number most older guides print will get you nowhere. Line 1253 leaves from Sintra train station and line 1624 from Cascais terminal.
4. Take a jumper even on a hot afternoon. We arrived straight from a swim in full summer heat and were cold on the clifftop within minutes, because the wind comes off the Atlantic with nothing in front of it. That is worth planning for if you are staying until dark.
5. Decide about the certificate before you join the queue. The tourism office beside the car park writes it out by hand in French calligraphy for €11, with a Braille version at €4.50, and opens 9:00 to 19:30 from May to September and 9:00 to 18:30 the rest of the year. We took a few photographs instead and felt no worse off.

About the author. This guide is written and maintained by the Wonderful Wanderings editorial team. Wonderful Wanderings was founded in 2012 by Sofie Couwenbergh, and the first-hand notes in this post come from her trip to Sintra and Cabo da Roca. The team covers Portugal for independent travellers, including the hotels, day tours and car hire worth booking around Lisbon and the Sintra coast, and updates this page when prices, opening hours and bus routes change.