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Earlier this year we had a wonderful break in Lisbon with Children aged 6, 5 and 5.  We spent 4 days in the city and at a beach hotel just outside the city and loved the whole trip so much we are seriously considering a trip back there at October half term too.

So what was it about Lisbon that we loved so much, and what might you want to think about.

Ease of Travel

The ease at which you can get to Lisbon from the UK. Flights of less than 3 hours from all over the UK at decent times and for incredibly decent prices.  It would have cost £1000 to get to the Algarve at February Half Term for the 5 of us, but instead we paid £250 for all of us to fly to Lisbon from Manchester airport.

Weather

It can be tricky to find short haul destinations to visit from the UK in February and October if you are wanting a bit of sun.  However we have been to Portugal twice now at February Half Term and had sunshine meaning we could wear shorts and t-shirts and throw on light jumpers or coats if the weather got a little breezy. In my experience children prefer a little sun rather than a lot, particularly if there is no swimming pool to jump into.

Food

The food was quite simply marvellous. Hubby and I would like to return for a gastro weekend in the near future. However the restaurants all welcomed children and there were so many options of where to eat. One of our favourites for variety was the wonderful Time Out Food All in Chiado.

Where to Stay

Lisbon is full of hotels and apartments to suit all budgets. We stayed at Martinhal Lisbon Chiado Family Suites serviced apartments in the centre of Lisbon, specialising in luxury family stays, and also Martinhal Lisbon Cascais Hotel.

Martinhal really do know how to do family friendly, and the apartments in Chiado have to be some of my favourite ever as it was incredible to have a kids club and kids facilities in a hotel in the city meaning we could go out for dinner and drinks happy in the knowledge the kids were chilling out and having a LOT of fun.

Getting Around

As we were negotiating the steep roads, steps, trams and cobbles in Lisbon I remarked to my husband that I was glad we had waited until the kids were old enough to walk around themselves and I wasn’t pushing a pram. For mine it was all about discovery, although towards the end of a day they did get tired and ask to go back to the hotel.  If I had been pushing a pram I may not have been as enamoured with the city. Baby carriers or slings would have worked well for babies but definitely something to consider if you are thinking of visiting with toddlers.

Things to Do

We didn’t have as much time as we would have liked to explore Lisbon but that only means we need to go back. We spent a day exploring the Fairytale Palaces of Sintra and you can take a look at my full post on that here, but there are also attractions such as the Oceanario Aquarium and the Cable Car that runs down by the river; or spend time on the trams, you’ll see some of the best sites in the City and it is only $2.90 a person.

If I haven’t persuaded you to visit Lisbon then why not take a look at some recommendations for European Cities from some other family travel bloggers: