17 Unusual & Fun Things To Do in Portugal with Kids (That They’ll Love!)
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Most people here in Europe associate Portugal with beaches, nice weather, and good food. But if you have been following our blog for a while, you probably know that we are not that much into sun-tanning on the beach… In fact, our favorite travel destinations for families usually involve nature and sightseeing.
So when I think about our recent trips to Portugal with kids, I have some very different family-friendly experiences in mind that I want to share with you.
This is a selection of all kinds of fun things to do in Portugal with kids that don’t involve swimming, playing on the beach, visiting zoos, aquariums, or other traditional family activities. Find out!
See also: Our 10-day Portugal trip itinerary
In no particular order, below is a list of some of the best things to do in Portugal with kids. This selection is based on our experiences that the kids enjoyed the most. You know, the kind that they keep on talking about long after the trip…
Best experiences to have in Portugal with kids:
1. Ride a tuk-tuk
If you ask our kids what they liked the most in Portugal, they will unanimously vote for the tuk-tuk ride. It was the very first time they ever rode a tuk-tuk, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen all three of them so excited! Ever.
So if you are traveling to Portugal with kids, make sure you take them for a tuk-tuk ride. You will find them in Lisbon, Porto, and Sintra.
TIP: negotiate your trip and the rate in advance.
2. Walk the city walls of Obidos
Obidos is a small medieval town just an hour north of Lisbon. It’s also one of the best towns to visit in Portugal, so definitely worth a visit!
Walking the old city walls in Obidos was one of the most unforgettable experiences in Portugal for kids. Just be careful, especially with kids, as the walls have no rails on one side.
3. Explore the gardens of Quinta da Regaleira in Sintra
Sintra has so many castles and palaces that it might be difficult to choose which ones to visit. There is one castle, however, that you really shouldn’t miss if visiting Sintra with kids, and that is Quinta da Regaleira.
Actually, it’s not that much the castle that kids will love the most. The garden of Quinta da Regaleira is a real paradise for little explorers!
Your kids will love walking in dark secret tunnels, exploring hidden passageways, jumping over stones over water at a hidden waterfall, or climbing the spiral staircase of a 27m deep well…
LEARN MORE: Best Places to See in Sintra & Sintra Itinerary + Tips for Your Visit
4. Ride Lisbon tram nr. 28, Nazaré funicular, Porto gondola, and take the kids for a boat ride
If there is one thing we learned from our trips with kids, is that children love all kinds of transportation. The more varied the better. I already mentioned the tuk-tuk rides. But there are many more fun experiences involving different means of transport that you shouldn’t miss if traveling in Portugal with kids.
Here are some of our family’s favorite transport-related activities in Portugal:
- Ride a historic tram in Lisbon or in Porto.
- Take a funicular to the O’Sitio district in Nazaré. Read more about it here: Visiting Nazaré fishing village in Central Portugal.
- Ride a gondola in Porto.
- Take the kids on a sailing cruise in Lisbon (you can book this highly-rated sunset cruise here) or find the full selection of Lisbon boat tours here. You can read more about our experience here: How to spend a perfect day in Lisbon with kids.
5. Visit the caves Grutas de Mira de Aire
Grutas de Mira de Aire is a must-see place to visit if traveling in Central Portugal with kids.
Descend 110m below the ground and explore more than 600m of incredible underground chambers. This is something the whole family will love for sure!
Oh, and don’t worry about having to climb back up – there is an elevator to take you back to the surface.
6. Taste traditional Portuguese custard cakes Pasteis de Nata
Traveling is also about getting to know the local food! And if there is one food that should be on every Portugal bucket list, it’s the most popular dessert in the country – Pastel de Nata (plural: Pasteis de Nata).
Our kids are becoming more and more difficult when it comes to new culinary experiences, but they all really enjoyed the Portuguese custard cakes, pasteis de nata.
7. Discover some of the most amazing viewpoints of Portugal
This will probably come as no surprise: our kids love climbing staircases and visiting old towers. The higher, the better.
Here are some of our favorite towers to climb and viewpoints not to miss in Portugal with kids:
- Elevador de Santa Justa in Lisbon.
- O Sitio district in Nazaré
- Dom Luís I Bridge in Porto (the bridge has two levels, the views from the top are priceless).
- The Cathedral tower of Evora.
- Pretty much anywhere along the Algarve coast, especially Ponta da Piedade and the Seven Hanging Valleys Trail.
8. Explore an old convent
Museums, churches, and other kinds of religious buildings are not always a big success when traveling with kids.
However, Portugal has some amazing places, especially monasteries, that any kid will love to explore.
Our favorites were the monasteries of Alcobaça and Batalha. Not a chance your kids will get bored here!
9. Get lost in the most beautiful forest of Portugal – Mata Nacional do Buçaco
If you like off-the-beaten-path destinations, nature, and history, make sure you take the kids to the Bussaco forest in Luso, Central Portugal.
They’ll love this ancient forest with something different and exciting to explore behind every corner.
Take a picnic and make this one of the most memorable family day trips in Portugal!
10. Admire Portuguese azulejos
It would be unthinkable to visit Portugal without falling in love with the traditional Portuguese tiles – azulejos.
Children will love looking for new patterns or discovering some ancient stories on the walls of residential buildings, churches, train stations, and old castles…
Take the time to really explore this unique kind of art with your kids.
11. Visit Costa Nova – the most colorful town of Portugal
Take your kids to Praia da Costa Nova. This little coastal town with colorful striped houses was a favorite with our boys.
Walking between these striped houses is like walking inside a fairytale book. It’s like no other place in Portugal (or anywhere else for that matter).
In summer, this is a popular seaside resort with a nice beach that families will love. Don’t miss this little picturesque town!
12. Visit a local market
Our kids love visiting markets. There is so much to see, to touch, to taste…
We visited a couple of markets in Portugal with kids and all of them were great. But there was one that left them speechless – a local seafood market in Costa Nova (Central Portugal).
The boys didn’t know where to look first – there was a huge variety of fish, but also octopus, shrimp, crab… And then there were eels, hundreds of eels, alive and crawling, waiting for a buyer to take them home for dinner. The kids couldn’t believe their eyes!
On subsequent trips, we also visited local markets in Funchal (Madeira) and in Lagos (Algarve), and it didn’t disappoint. Our kids just love traditional markets in Portugal!
13. Explore Porto by night
One of the best parts of any vacation for our kids is being able to stay up late. They love exploring new places at night!
Our favorite place to explore late in the evening in Portugal was the Cais da Ribeira waterfront area in Porto.
Not only does it have some incredible views, but you will also find a really great atmosphere here. There are nice and family-friendly restaurants and lots of street performers. The whole family loved it!
14. Buy a Portuguese hat
We try not to buy many souvenirs when we travel, but it’s something our kids look forward to on every trip. I guess all kids do…
If you buy one souvenir in Portugal for your kids, make it a hat. It’s the best 5 Euros you can spend! Not only will it protect them from the harsh sun, but it will also make all the vacation pictures so much more stylish. 😉
As I’m updating this guide, I have to say that the Portuguese hats we bought have proven to be a great investment. The hats we bought on our first trip to Portugal lasted several years. But then some of them became too small and others got dirty. So now every time we go back to Portugal with kids, we buy some new hats.
15. Visit a real-life Disney castle – Pena Palace
Portugal is home to many castles, but there is one that kids will definitely remember long after the trip. The Palace of Pena in Sintra is probably the most colorful castle in the world. It’s like walking into a real-life Disney castle!
TIP: Try to visit early in the morning, or a few hours before the closing time. Pena Palace is one of the most popular day trip destinations near Lisbon and it’s always crazy busy here.
In addition to Pena Palace, there are a few other stunning castles in Sintra that are great for families. Exploring the enchanting gardens of Quinta de Regaleira, walking on the centuries-old walls of the Moorish Castle, and the fairytale-like atmosphere at Monserrate Palace will make your visit unforgettable!
LEARN MORE: Best Things to Do in Sintra
16. Look for street art
City trips can be tiring for children. Looking for street art is a great way to keep the kids busy and involved when exploring some of the biggest Portuguese towns like Lisbon or Porto.
But also many smaller towns in Portugal have some really nice street art. You just have to make an effort to look for it.
You will be amazed at how much street art there is, and the kids are really good at finding it!
17. Enjoy the most spectacular coastal scenery
No list of the best things to do in Portugal with kids would be complete without mentioning its most family-friendly region, the Algarve.
There are some amazing water parks and amusement parks here and tons of other great things to do in Algarve for families. But without a doubt, the main reason to visit Algarve is its stunning coast!
The colorful steep cliffs, sea caves, and grottos will take your breath away. And yes, it’s something that any child will be impressed by as well!
There are many ways to enjoy the beautiful Algarve coast. You can just drive around and stop at a few viewpoints, visit some of the Algarve’s nicest towns, spend some time exploring the most beautiful beaches in Algarve, or take a boat tour to see the sea caves.
Our boys’ favorite was a speedboat tour to see the Benagil Cave and kayaking at Ponta da Piedade. They also loved surfing, paragliding, and so many other amazing water activities.
Whatever you choose, the whole family will absolutely love it!
So if you are looking for a more traditional family vacation in Portugal with beaches and lots of water fun, Algarve is a great choice as well. Via the links above and below, you can find more information about some of the nicest places in this area. And if you only have a few days and want to see all the top spots, check out our recommended Algarve itinerary.
LEARN MORE: Top Places to See in Algarve & Best Things to Do in Albufeira & Best Things to Do in Lagos
So, this is our selection of some of the best and somewhat unusual things to do in Portugal with kids.
Of course, you can also spend days and weeks at the beach with your family, spend countless hours in the pool, visit an aquarium or a zoo… Portugal has so many family-friendly activities.
I just wanted to show you that traveling with kids doesn’t always have to be about beaches and theme parks. Not even if visiting such a typical European beach vacation destination as Portugal.
I hope that you found some inspiration for your family trip to Portugal in this post!
More tips for your trip to Portugal:
- Top Things to Do in Lisbon
- Best Day Trips from Lisbon
- Portugal Trip Itinerary from Lisbon to Porto
- What to expect when visiting Portugal in April
- 1 Day in Lisbon
- Sintra Itinerary
- Nazaré Fishermen’s Village
- Benagil Cave
- Faro, Algarve
- Sagres, Algarve
- Algarve in April
- Algarve in December
- Where to Stay in Albufeira
- Best Things to Do in Funchal
- Best Places to See in Madeira
- Hiking in Madeira
- Hidden Gems of Madeira
- Best Things to Do in Sao Miguel, Azores
READ ALSO: Best European Destinations for Spring Break
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Hi, I came across your post as we will be travelling with children to Portugal this summer. I wanted to ask for your recommendation or the tuk tuk company you went with as we have a 6 year old and I read that most tuk tuk don’t allow age 7 and under.
Hi Lils, I just checked a few tours and indeed, some of them say no kids under 7. Maybe something changed in the legislation recently. On the other hand, I also found some tours that – at least at the moment – do allow kids.
Here are just a few examples:
* Lisbon private tour 1 hour (ages 2+).
* Private tour 1.5 hours – this one doesn’t mention any age limit but I read in one review that people ‘went with three small children and they loved it’.
* Porto tuk-tuk tour and Douro River Cruise – they allow kids and even have discounts for them.
Hope this helps.
Dear Jurga,
I first read this article several years ago when you first posted it. It made me fall in love with your site and the idea of Portugal for a family vacation. We finally made it to Portugal last summer, after 3 years of no traveling due to the pandemic and it felt like landing in paradise. Our children were teenagers by then but we still enjoyed many of your recommendations (tuk tuk, sailing in Lisbon, Quinta da Regaleira,…) I just wanted to say thank you for the inspiration, I wish to travel to many more of your favorite destinations in the future 🙂
Caroline from Montréal, Canada
Thank you so much for your kind feedback, Caroline! I am so glad to hear that you finally made it to Portugal and that the whole family enjoyed it so much. It’s a beautiful country! (where we’ll spend most of our kids’ vacations this year again ;).
Happy travels!
Your article was fantastic! As someone who loves traveling and did so much prior to kids, and continue to do so with kids, we are always looking for something unique, fun, interesting. AND we love natures (we are hikers at heart) and we hike 52 weeks of the year – locally and in our travels!
Thank you for sharing some fun places for us to visit in Portugal|!
Glad to hear you found some travel inspiration in this article. Portugal is amazing! And if you want to do some family-friendly hiking, I can highly recommend trying out some of the coastal paths in the Algarve region. If visiting the islands, Madeira is a hiker’s paradise too!
Enjoy your trip!
Oh WOW! I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this post. I know that my kiddos would enjoy every single one of these adventures. Even down to buying a hat! Such practical and applicable tips for traveling with kids! Thanks!
Glad to hear that you found this useful, Karen. Portugal is an amazing country for a family trip and you can find plenty of fun and interesting places and activities everywhere you go. We haven’t been to one single place in Portugal that we or the kids didn’t like. In fact, we are just back from the Azores islands (thus the delay in our answers to all the comments) and it was another great experience. Kids loved it too.
Happy travels!
Hi Jurga!
Really good article about Portugal! I’m portuguese and I think that you experienced some of the best things that the country has for families. Unfortunately, we are confined at this moment but I hope that soon, and responsibly, we will be able to enjoy these incredible experiences again!
Thank you, Carla. It’s always nice to hear from the locals. In my opinion – and this is based on lots of trips we did with our kids all over the world – Portugal is one of the best countries in Europe for families with kids. Variety of things to see and do, good weather, friendly people, great food, and last but not least very affordable prices, this makes it an excellent family destination. And since we are not beach-goers ourselves, I wanted to show other families that there’s so much more to Portugal than its famous beaches. 🙂
And yes, can’t wait to be traveling again!!!
I appreciate that you mentioned other things to do besides the beach. While we do go to the beach with our kids, we prefer to do more adventure items and save the beach/relaxing for the end.
You’ll find plenty of variation in Portugal, Liz. The beaches are amazing indeed, but there is so much more to see and do, also with kids. Enjoy your trip!
Don’t forget, Buddah Eden nice place for kids
Thanks for sharing this suggestion, Lez. I have never heard of it, looks like a very quirky place. Not something we would be looking for in Portugal, but it seems that it’s quite popular. So just in case anyone wonders, here are the Google reviews for it.
Costa Nova has a rival city for colour- Agueda! This town has overhead umbrellas lining every street. Some streets have streamers or balloons hanging above. We arrived by chance to a hotel that overlooked the city early one evening to the sound of drums in the air. When we looked out the window there was a festival happening- festival de leito (festival of the little pig, we were told). We didn’t speak Portugese but they said it was “food and drink”. It turned into a crazy evening of fun with a concert, tasting food and lots of local wines. The people were so friendly and it was a highlight of our 2 weeks in Portugal.
(from Canada)
PS nearby Aveiro has very colourful boats and good food, too!
Hi, Elle, thanks so much for sharing this with us and our readers. I just googled some pictures of Agueda and it looks like they indeed did their best to make the town colorful and fun to visit. Will have to put it on our list for when we return to Portugal!
As for Aveiro, we went there too, did the boat ride, walked around a bit, tried some local pastry Ovos Moles… We also stayed there for a night. While it was ok for 2-3 hours, we didn’t feel sorry to leave. It was also one of the busiest places we visited in Central Portugal; maybe that’s the reason why we didn’t really love it.
Anyway, thanks again! Just seeing the pictures and thinking back of that trip makes me want to return to Portugal when life gets back to normal here in Europe…
Thank you for this post!!
Glad you found it useful, Karin. Have a great time in Portugal!
What a great article! We’re going on our first trip since the family got bigger with a 2 year old and a 4 month old baby, and these tips will make it much more fun for all of us 🙂 thanks!
Enjoy your trip, Lana. Portugal is a great country to visit with kids!
Thank you for such a thoughtful, thorough post! We are planning to visit Porto and Lisbon and Sintra with a 4-year old and a tiny almost 2 year old. How difficult is it to find rental cars with car seats? Really would hate to drag one overseas…
Hi Tori, it’s not difficult at all. Car rental agencies always have seats for children, you just have to reserve them in advance. Your 2-year old will need a regular car seat and a 4-year old will probably be able to use a booster with a high back. But don’t worry – car rental places know local laws and which seats you’ll need.
Hello Jurga,
Love your blog!
We were planning a trip to Portugal over the winter.
Do you think we would be able to enjoy or spring and summer are the best options?
We would go with our 6 year old son.
Thanks,
Talita
Hi Talita, it depends on what you are looking for. If it’s purely to see some of the historic sights and towns, then you can do it any time of the year. But keep in mind that it will be very quiet and many places (like hotels and restaurants in some smaller towns) might be closed.
On the other hand, winter will be much quieter and you can enjoy many places without the crowds. So everything has its benefits and disadvantages.
Summer is the opposite – good for the beach, but not ideal for sightseeing. It’s just so hot and so busy everywhere.
If you want the best of both worlds, then try shoulder season – somewhere around May or September – October is ideal.
Hi Jurga,
We are planning to go to Portugal this Summer in June my son is 5 yrs old. We are planning to say for five nights in Portugal. We just want to cover Lisbon and Algrave . Please suggest how many days we should give to each place. Also if we can squeeze in some other good destination which should also not be missed. How is the travel like in train in these places because my son really fancies train travel. Also suggest a good child friendly 5 star hotel. At stay in these cities because my husband and I would like to go out on some nights for the party nightlife in Portugal please suggest how we should go about it.
Loved your responses and this blog which made me decide to go to Portugal!
Thanks 🙂
Hi Gayatri, that’s a lot of questions, I’ll try to answer the ones that I can:
– For itinerary suggestions please check our detailed Portugal itinerary. I suggest at least 2 days in Lisbon, more if you also visit Sintra. For Porto 1 day is sufficient, but it really depends on your interests. If you have just 5 days, I would do 3 nights in Lisbon and maybe 2 in Porto if you really want to see it. Otherwise, just stay in Lisbon the whole time – spend 2-3 days exploring the city and take a day trip to Sintra and one to Obidos and the monasteries.
– If you don’t know where to start, I suggest a private day trip to Obidos, Nazare, and Alcobaca. For Sintra, you can just take a train from Lisbon and a taxi to the castles when you get there. If you rather have a guide and see a bit more, with a child I’d also go for a private tour, something like this.
– We didn’t travel in Portugal by train, just by car, so I can’t help you there.
– There is a hotel group that has some amazing family hotels in Portugal. I think they offer babysitting services, so you can go out in the evenings indeed. They have a nice family hotel in Lisbon and one in Cascais (near Lisbon), but none in Porto.
Once again, if you have just 5 days, I think that staying in Lisbon is the easiest.
Have a wonderful trip!
Hi Jurga,
I absolutely lived reading your blog on Portugal with kids. We are planning to travel to Portugal for 2 weeks with our 5 and a half year old daughter, Is that too much or too little time, considering Portugal is a small’ish county. Here’s what we have on our mind:
4-5 days: Lisbon with a day trip to Sintra and probably spend a day at the Cascais beach area, with ofcourse the zoo and playgrounds. Could you recommend some playgrounds that have fun things to do? She’s quite an active child so we need her to expend her energy well without getting too bored.
3 days: Porto
7 days: Algarve (water parks being the main attraction here). Is a week too long here? We are thinking of staying in Albufeira and travelling to other beaches from there. We prefer to stay put for a longer time in one location with a kid, rather than having it too hectic and having to move around a lot.
How does this sound? I have people constantly tell me that 2 weeks are too long for Portugal, and we should perhaps add on a Seville too. But we dont particularly like our vacations to be busy. We need a couple of unplanned days where we can just chill and live the place to our satisfaction. If you have any other suggestions, I’d love to hear them.
P. S. Please note that mu child can tend to bored a bit more easily than others if there’s nothing for her to do. She loves thrill/action/excitement so to speak. Hence, I’m wondering if we are on the right track with choosing Portugal as our destination in June.
Your reply will be much appreciated!
Thank you!
Shuchi
Hi Shuchi, I think you’ll absolutely love Portugal and two weeks will give you enough time to see some landmarks and also relax on the beach.
I think that 4-5 days for the Lisbon area is nice. Make sure to visit Sintra and maybe also Cascais or make a day trip to Obidos or the monasteries. I don’t have any recommendations for the city apart from what’s already on the blog (how to see the best of Lisbon in one day). I know there is a nice aquarium that is fun for kids.
I think 3 days are too long for Porto, but you also need quite some time to get there, so I guess it’s ok. Just keep in mind that driving from Porto to Algarve is very long…
Algarve is great in June and so beautiful. You can easily fill a week there. There are waterparks and nice little towns, beaches, stunning coastline, etc. Lots to do, or you can just relax and do nothing…
Hope this helps. Enjoy your trip!
Hi Jurga,
I loved your blog and the details. Very helpful.
Hi Suchi,
I’m planning same itinerary as you. I have a 5 year old girl and 11 year old boy and planning a two week trip to Portugal in June. Can you please share you day to day trip details – accommodations, food, places you have visited, fun places for kids. Also please share your experience.
Hi Chad, these comments don’t work as internet forums and the chances that previous readers will see your comment are unfortunately very low. I’m the only one who gets notified when there is a new reply. If you are looking for itinerary, please check our Portugal itinerary that contains all the details and the trip we did.
Hope this helps and enjoy your trip!
Thank you so much!!
Hi Jurga,
Can you please advise on an itinerary with 5 year old girl and 11 yr old boy. We can do all the walking but at the same time don’t want kids to be bored. I’m planning on being there from May 23rd for two weeks. If you suggest a plan that can be fun for kids and us I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you so much!!
Hi Chad, I really have no time to create individual itineraries. We also visited Portugal with kids, 3 kids, and they were never bored. It’s a great country and there is so much to discover and explore.
Please take a look at our Portugal itinerary – it has all the details. At the bottom of that article, you’ll also find our suggestions for longer itineraries. It really has so much information, you just need to tweak it to suit your interests.
Good luck and have a great trip!
I appreciate all of your tips for travelling with kids, without going to typical kid attractions. The last time I traveled internationally my son was 9 months old. We are now considering Portugal with our son who will be 5 and our daughter 3. Our the sites you visited accessible for toddlers? I appreciate your insight.
Hi Christy, yes, I think you can visit all these places with young kids. Just one place to be extra careful is Obidos. If you walk on the city walls, there are no railings there, so hold on to your kids all the time.
Also, at the Moorish castle in Sintra you’ll have to do quite some stairs, but in principle, kids should be able to handle that. In the worst case, you might have to carry them a bit. It’s hard for me to tell because our kids are really good hikers and even at 3 they could already do a lot, but you know your kids better of course.
Enjoy your trip – Portugal is really amazing!
Hi I loved your post on the destinations and sounds like they are fun for kids. We would like to travel insummer with two kids and wonder though how you got from one place to another: train/bus. Is it easy and safe to get from one place to another. Also is it worth to go south when beaches are cold waters? Thanks
Hi Shai, we always travelled in Portugal by car – very easy to get anywhere you want to. There are trains between major towns as well, but then you are a bit stuck to those towns of course… So it depends on what you want to see.
Algarve is definitely worth it and very popular in summer. Beaches are crowded and it’s certainly warm enough to swim there in summer :).
You can find our Portugal itinerary here and here you can read more about Algarve’s best beaches.
This is an awesome post – thank you so much!! I’ve been coming back to it as well as others on your site over and over as we try to sort out our plans for an upcoming trip to Portugal.
One question – You have a picture of a seafood market in “Costa Nova” – When I try to map Costa Nova all sorts of different places come up. Is it possible to find out more specifically where you were?
Thank you!!
Hi Corey, thanks for your kind feedback and hope you have a wonderful trip.
The place of the fish market is the same where the striped houses are, it is also called Costa Nova Beach. It’s a small town just near Aveiro – see map.
You can also find all these places and more explanation in our Portugal trip itinerary.
Hi Jurga – Thank you so much for this post!!! I have 3 young kids (3, 6, 9) and are thinking of travelling Portugal for 3 weeks – do you think a trip in March / April or June / July would be a better time to visit? Also – I read through your itinerary – what places would you add or linger in to fill 21 days? Your input would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Heather, I think you’ll love Portugal with kids. As for when to go, spring vs summer will be very different. Spring is definitely better for sightseeing (less people and much less warm). On the other hand, it’s too cold for the beach and for the swimming pools. So it really depends on what you’re looking for. June might be a good time because school holidays start in July in most European countries, so it’s less busy and not as hot as in July or August.
If you have 3 weeks, I’d definitely add some time in Algarve. You can easily spend a week there. The beaches are amazing (check this out: Best beaches of Algarve) and there are lots of things to do with kids there if you visit in summer (e.g. water parks, etc).
Another option would be to spend two weeks in mainland Portugal (check our 10-day itinerary and add 4 days in Algarve) and fly to Madeira for a week. There are regular flights from Lisbon to Funchal. We visited Madeira this year in spring and it was also great. Especially if you like nature. There are so many beautiful places where you can go hiking for example. I have a couple of articles about Madeira, check these out, it will give you an idea of what to expect: Best hikes in Madeira, Madeira’s hidden gems, and also this post I wrote for the Lonely Planet blog: Madeira with kids.
If you rather not fly, it’s also possible to visit a few places in Spain (driving from Portugal), e.g. Seville and the coastal areas there.
Happy trip-planning!
Hello Jurga,
Thank you for posting your amazing experiences and sharing them with us. I am planning to go to Spain and probably Portugal with my son (11) next month and Portugal definitively looks great. I am originally from Bogota, Colombia but my son was born here in the USA where we live. I have traveled quite a bit and want to show my son more about the world. Almost every year we go to Europe and he and I love it. I was going to ask if you guys rented or took public transportation but I found the answer in one of your posts. Any other suggestions you have to enjoy Lisbon and its neighborhood knowing that we may only have public transportation?
Thank you so much for this wonderful site and sharing your experiences. 🙂
Hi Santiago, you’ll definitely love Portugal – great choice! I don’t know how much time you have in Lisbon, but here you can find some suggestions for what to do in Lisbon. Our kids loved the evening sailing cruise on the Tagus river.
Make sure you also take at least a day trip (or better 2 days) to Sintra – it can be done by train from Lisbon (here you can find more information for Sintra itinerary).
If you have more time, Cascais is a really nice beach town nearby and you can easily get there by public transport as well.
There is also a good train connection to Porto, so depending on how much time you have it might be a nice town to add to your Portugal trip as well.
Enjoy your trip!
Thank you very much Jurga for your reply and great tips and comments. Right now I am open. We have 15 days and I was planning first going to Barcelona, then Madrid (and same day trips to Toledo, Segovia) and then to Portugal. It looks like I may dedicate around 5 days to Portugal. Will see how things evolve. One limitation to go to all those beautiful places you went is the transportation, but that will be part of the fun. Thanks a lot for your links above and for sharing your wonderful trips with your family… 🙂 I will definitively keep a permanent bookmark on your site. 🙂 Santiago
Hi Juega,
We are heading to Portugal in 2 weeks (August 3-18) My husband is a first born American of his Portuguese family and I am Puerto Rican. We love the history of both our countries however I did grow up in PR and very familiar with my island. He has been raised in New Jersey and altough he visited much summers as a child it has been wonderful to explore Portugal as adults with our own kids. His parents have a home there and we have visited about 5 times 3 of them with our girls . Now our daughters are 9 and 5 and we are looking forwards to enjoying this 14 day vacation there . We plan on following as much of your itineraries as possible.
I work for a major airline and I am looking forward to exploring Portugal again with your suggestions 😉
Jessica
Hi Jessica, glad to hear you found our blog useful. Enhanced your time in Portugal. There are so many amazing places to visit there!
This looks like an amazing trip to Portugal, and I know my kids would love all your suggestions (and so would I!) – thanks for sharing! x
I enjoyed reading your post. My family and I will be in Lisbon for a month this July. Can you recommend a kid-friendly neighbor? We are looking to rent an apartment that is centrally located to sights, but not too over run with tourists? We have 3 young children ages 7, 6, and 3
Thanks so much!!!
Hi Tara, glad you liked this post. 🙂
I’m not sure if you saw our post about visiting Lisbon. In that post I share some recommendations for the best areas to stay. We stayed close to Rossio train station and loved the location. I just took a quick look and found these apartments in that area. It’s just one example of course. If you follow the link you will see that there is a map (left side), click on it and you’ll see accommodation suggestions in the same area. I have no idea though if I would like to stay there for a month, with kids, and in summer… The city is going to be hot…
A really nice area a bit outside the city is Cascais – it has a beach too and you can take a train to the city centre for just 2,2 EUR/adult. If you are staying for such a long time, maybe consider that instead of the city…
Hope this helps. Enjoy Lisbon!
Lovely post. Thank you! Can I check if it was easy to get around using public transport? In your opinion, is there a need to drive around? I have two young kids.
Thanks!
Hi Persis, I guess it all depends on where you want to go. Main cities and towns are connected by a good railway connection and I’m sure there are also local busses, etc. We personally rented a car to have complete flexibility and didn’t use much public transport. But I know people who travelled to Lisbon and Porto and took a train. So once again – depends on where you want to go and what you want to see.
Thank you!
I am delighted reading this website. I was looking for good recommendations for a one-day-only trip to Amsterdam and I was liking what I was reading. Then I decided to check if it was any good the best way I could: by checking if your pages on Portugal were any good. You see, Portugal is where I was born, I live and travel the most, so I should know. Well, these recommendations to Fun Things To Do in Portugal with Kids are marvelous and I couldn’t think of any improvement! (The “Buy a hat” tip is funny, unexpected and very thoughtful.) Now I’m going back to reading your Amsterdam in one day page, in complete trust that it will be as good as this one. Thank you!
Thank you so much for taking your time to leave this feedback, Miguel. Really appreciate it and glad that you found our content trustworthy. I always strive to give my readers the very best information that I can, and at the same time to inspire them to visit new places and make the most of their trips.
Enjoy Amsterdam and if you have the time, make sure to explore more of the Netherlands (there are lots of great day trips that you can make from Amsterdam) or maybe even come over to Belgium too – we have so many really nice places here!
Thank you so much for this post- it’s really wonderful. We are considering traveling to Portugal with our children this August and our one concern is crowds/tourism. Would you advise *not* to go to any of the above places during August? Also, where can we sneak in some beach/shore time without having to fight for some space on the sand with other tourists ? Any advice is appreciated as we are really just beginning to plan. Thank you!
Hi Lisa, there are so many beaches in Portugal, I think there should be no problem finding somewhat less busy places. We haven’t been on the beach much as we were traveling in April and didn’t really plan for such good weather. We really liked Nazare beach, no idea how busy it gets in summer though. Also Costa Nova with the colorful houses had nice sand dunes and a beach – also no idea how it looks like in summer, in April it was really nice and quiet there. If you are looking for beach vacation only, then Algarve is one of the ‘must’ regions in Portugal for that. You can see one of my previous comments to another reader with some family-friendly hotel suggestions. I think the best way to escape the crowds is to rent a car and drive just a bit further from the main tourist towns. As I said, there are so many beaches in Portugal, that you can always find something that suits you.
As for where to go and not to go. In August it’s going to be really hot in Portugal, so maybe try to limit your time in the cities with kids. The monasteries are great since it’s nice and cool inside and so are the castles in Sintra and the Bucaco forest.
Enjoy the trip!
What resort would you recommend with a 6 yr old thank you ?
Hi Jeannie, I asked fellow family travel bloggers for recommendations and everybody recommended Martinhal family resorts:
Hope this helps.
Those stripe houses and the colorful castle makes me wnawt to jump on a plane right now! Portugal looks so much fun. Seems like the whole family deeply enjoyed it
Absolutely! We loved loved loved Portugal.
Some great things to do in Portugal with or without the kids Jurga! Would want to do all of these things! Love the look of those custard cakes!
Haha! Thank you, Tracy. Custard cakes were absolutely delicious everywhere in Portugal. But the ones in Evora were just heavenly. So keep that in mind if you ever get there 😉