Trip to Lisbon Perfect for Three Generations!
Portugal
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Feb 18 - Feb 23, 2024
This was my first time working with a travel agent and I'm now a convert. My sons (9 and 11 years old), mother and I had a wonderful time in Lisbon, Sintra and Tomar! Rita was very responsive when planning our trip (she even made multiple versions of the trip for us when we weren't sure if my mother and/or father might be joining us) and very helpful when during the trip there a problem with one of the reservations (not Rita's fault). It was nice to have someone on the ground to deal with the problem, make changes to our plans and process refunds for us (so I didn't have to spend my vacation making phone calls and adjustments). The accommodations (My Suite Lisbon) that Rita recommended were perfect for us. Having more space (two bathrooms, a bedroom, a living room with bunkbeds, a kitchenette and a small outdoor patio) made the trip relaxing, gave my sons some space to stretch out and allowed us to have a leisurely in-room breakfast every morning and a take out dinner one night. The location was in a wonderful, cobble-stoned neighborhood (Barrio Alto) within easy walking distance of sites, bars and restaurants while being away from the noise of the bars (and so making it easy for my sons to fall asleep). The activities and day trips Rita arranged for us were wonderful. The day trip to Sintra with Little Lisbon was a particular stand out. The trip was tailored for families with children and our guide really made the trip interesting and interactive for all three generations. In Lisbon, Rita provided some suggestions of places we wouldn't have found on our own (including a family-friendly bar with rooms decorated with old toys). Our day trip to Almoural Castle (including approaching it via boat and getting to explore inside) and Tomar and the Convent of Christ (former Knights Templar strong hold) was a wonderful way to end to our trip. Working with Rita and KimKim was well worth it!
Hotel Review
This small hotel on a cobble-stoned side street with a wonderful location close to sites, restaurants and bars is perfect for families. It is very close to many sites while being quiet at night (so your kids can sleep). The kitchenette and living room in our suite gave us extra space to spread out a little and the daily breakfast in our room allowed us to have a leisurely morning.
Activity Reviews
Our Tuk Tuk driver was an amazing guide and made sure to take us to her favorite pastel de nata cart on the tour.
The tour guide was amazing! She made the trip interactive and interesting for all three generations of our family. She even got us the local pastries to try during lunch.
The cooking school mishandled our reservation and did not change it (as they had confirmed via email) which led to us having to reschedule the class itself and cancel a different activity. That being said the class itself was a lot of fun and both my sons (9 and 11) enjoyed being part of making the 9 (delicious) dishes we then ate for lunch. Since the class does take a full three hours, I would recommend doing it at night so that you can spend a full day seeing the sights before cooking.
Our guide for this trip was more of a private driver than a guide. She didn't offer information or historical context on the places we were seeing and didn't seem to know much about the history and interesting stories of the areas we visited but was otherwise nice. She is definitely much more of an adult-only guide. She didn't really talk to or engage with my sons (9 and 11). Perhaps I was spoiled by the previous guide from Little Lisbon (who took us to Sintra) as she proactively offered the history of the area and interesting stories about the inhabitants of the people we were seeing. The trip to Almoural castle via boat and exploring inside it were a great start to the trip. We all really enjoyed the view from the water and then exploring the castle on our own. My mother was not able to access some parts of the castle due to steep treacherous stairs but she enjoyed the parts she could see. Our driver recommended a delicious small restaurant for lunch and then (when I mentioned my older son wanted to try as many Portuguese pastries as possible) took us to a pastry shop specializing in three pastries only made locally for dessert. Our driver did not come into the Convent of Christ with us (She said the signs inside were self-explanatory and offered only a very general overview of how the site was named) but we loved the convent itself and my sons enjoyed finding "secret" small passageways, stairs and rooms through out it.
Hi Brook, thank you so much for your kind review! It was a pleasure to help you organize your trip with your family and be your contact while in-country to accompany you along the way while you were discovering Lisbon. We will pass on this feedback to our local team of guides and hotels to continue improving our itineraries. Hopefully, we can get in touch in the future for more adventures! 🥰 Warm regards from the Espíritu Travel family, Rita