6-Day Family Itinerary for Exploring Lisbon
Lisbon, Portugal’s capital, offers a perfect blend of history, culture, and fun for families. Here’s a detailed 6-day itinerary designed to help you and your family make the most of your visit.
Day Five: Doca dos Olivais, Parque das Nações
Day Six: Chiado, Alfama, Baixa
Why travel and exploration is part of creating your dream life.
Travel and exploring your local area help create a fulfilling life by pushing you out of your comfort zone.
These experiences introduce you to new ideas and perspectives, encouraging personal growth. Stepping into unfamiliar places sparks inspiration and boosts creativity.
Each journey offers unique opportunities to learn and discover, making life more vibrant and meaningful.
By embracing new environments, you cultivate a fresh outlook on life and build lasting memories.
In February 2024 my family off 4 we set off on a half term city break to Lisbon, Portugal.
We have 2 boys 11 and 13 years old who are now at the age when they don’t always enjoy our family days out as much as they did when they were younger.
Trying to find things to do as a family at this age can be tricky with some parts of the trip enjoyed by all and some just me 😐.
Travel arrangements
We have accrued points on our American Express credit card which means we got 4 tickets booked through British airways for less than £30! Total bargain! Otherwise easyjet flies out to Lisbon from London.
We flew out from London Gatwick which is south of London, past Croydon.
The flights went smoothly and were just under 3 hours.
You get a free light snack on the flight like pretzels with one small free drink. You can purchase any extra food like sandwiches or drinks onboard.
Accomodation
We booked through Booking.com and were looking for budget accommodation.
We paid around £500 for a 2 bedroom apartment, about a 5 minute bus ride from Museu Nacional do Azulejo known as the national tile museum in English or a 7 minute walk to Santa Apolonia Station.
We arrived at around midnight and we couldn’t open the door! The owners I think live in another country and wouldn’t answer the phone. We tried all the keys for over 20 minutes. Just as we were about to give up we managed to get in!
The door was quite an old metal door and you had to put the key and pull the door in a certain angle. We were all relieved to finally get in and get to sleep.
Day One: Chiado & Alfama
I had scoured the blogs for ideas and came up with a list. It was Sunday morning and seeing as there was an English speaking church a short Bolt ride away we headed there to share a free community breakfast before the service.
I enjoyed the modern worship and the thoughtful and inspiring message at Riverside international. The boys went into Kids and seemed to get friendly with a few kids who spoke English. Afterwards we chatted with a few folk in the foyer/lounge area. They kindly invited us to join their connect group lunch but we had some plans already set.
From there we walked up to the Chiado area of Portugal and found ourselves the oldest bookshop in the world, Livraria Bertrand – Chiado! It was built in 1732 by Pedro Faure. It has a small selection of English children and adult books which we browsed. I also thumbed through some beautiful photo books of Lisbon and the local Azulejo tiles.
Nearby I found a gorgeous shop Granado with branding that was right up my street. It was out of budget but I enjoyed window shopping. When I go back I’ll save up and make sure to buy something.
We wandered up towards where the shops were passing the Elevador de Santa Justa. The Santa Justa Lift is an elevator in Lisbon and is the fastest way to get from the Baixa neighbourhood to the Bairro Alto district. It saves you walking up a lot of hills and stairs. We didn’t ride it as there was quite a queue and we had more we wanted to see on our first evening.
We had super yummy gelato at Santini where you can watch them make the fresh waffle cones in store!
We headed to the Praça do Comércio, a public plaza with a beautiful arch and a central statue. You could see the river Tagus from here and the plaza was surrounded with restaurants. We sat and enjoyed the sunset and watched some young people playing instruments, singing and dancing in a more traditional folk style.
We sat by the river before walking up the hills and stairs to Alfama district to see the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora. We finished our evening with Pizza and Sangria at Pizzaria Maledetta.
Day Two: Cascais
We got on a train and headed to the outskirts of Lisbon to find the quaint seaside resort of Cascais. We walked to all the main sites but you could get a bolt taxi or bus around.
We walked from the station passing a beautiful hotel, The Pergola Boutique Hotel on the way. We found a square of restaurants and gift shops and had a lovely open air lunch.
We walked past the beach and through a new designer shop retail park, past some fort style ruin walls until we got to the main attraction (in my opinion!)
Within 10 minutes walking distance you had some historic and beautiful buildings:
- Santa Marta Lighthouse Museum 1868
- Palacio Seixa (Eclectic 20th century architecture)
- Fortaleza de Nossa Senhora da Luz
- Palácio Cidadela Cascais
Condes de Castro Guimarães Museum
My favourite was the Palacio Seixa which had a mini beach under it where we spent a few hours sunbathing and splashing.
We walked back to the main town and rode the ferris wheel. I have a fear of heights do I didn’t exactly love it but I want to put myself out there more. Afterwards we browsed the boutiques and gift shops then had dinner before catching the train back to Lisbon. I tried a simple, tasty and well priced local dish called Bitoque which is egg, steak, chips and a gravy sauce.
Day Three: Sintra
Sintra was the highlight of my trip! As you may know I love Moorish architecture in Southern Europe. This area Sintra which is about 30km from Lisbon is abundant with beautiful palaces and historic buildings in Moorish architecture, baroque, Gothic and Romanticist styles.
Doing my reasearch it was advised to head into Sintra as early as possible due to queues. We aren’t great at leaving super early so we got there later than we had planned.
If you buy the Lisboa card it includes free or discounted entry into a lot of sites in Lisbon and some in Sintra.
We got the train from Lisbon to Sintra but got off at Rossio station which is nearer to the bus station and taxis. When you arrive be prepared to have a lot of Tuktuk drivers and tourist guides approach you. There is a bus but it does get full. We got a private taxi to head upt he winding hilly roads. It is advised NOT to walk as it’s very hilly and hot. I also recommend having some food with you. There wasn’t much at the cafe by the station.
The National Palace of Pena
The National Palace of Pena was our first stop and in my mind the most impressive. These were the colourful and romantic palaces of King Ferdinand II. While is it actually a relatively new palace built between 1842 and 1854 they used Moorish and older architectural styles making them seem older than they are.
We did have to queue about 20/30 minutes to get in. I think this isn’t that long compared to what I read online if you visit in the summer. Because of time we used the bus to head up to the palace gates. The palace grounds are huge and you could spend the whole day there. Unfortunately as we arrived later than planned we only visited the palace buildings.
We took a taxi from Pena to the palace and passed the Moorish Castle on the way. I had planned for us to go and walk around but we were running out of time and as I’ve seen a lot of Moorish buildings in Spain we gave it a miss.
Quinta da Regaleira
Quinta da Regaleira is a captivating estate that enchants visitors with its blend of Gothic, Renaissance, and Manueline architectural styles. Built in the early 20th century, this UNESCO World Heritage site is renowned for its intricate gardens, mystical initiation wells, hidden grottoes, and ornate palace.
When I heard about the spooky, possibly illuminati initiation well I had to visit!
The grounds include gardens, smaller buildings, archways, the main palace and the initian well. We headed for the well and it was as creepy as I imagined.
The house and grounds were transformed by the eccentric freemason Carvalho Monteiro and symbolism is found everywhere. Italian architect Luigi Manini designed the mystical and classical buildings giving it very much a fairytale castle feel.
The Initiation Well at Quinta da Regaleira
The Initiation Well at Quinta da Regaleira was built not for water collection, but for ceremonial and mystical purposes. Designed by the estate’s original owner, António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro, and architect Luigi Manini, the well is steeped in symbolism and reflects Monteiro’s fascination with mysticism, alchemy, and secret societies such as the Freemasons and the Rosicrucians.
The well consists of a spiral staircase that descends 6 levels into the depths of the earth, with landings that are believed to represent the levels of Dante’s “Divine Comedy,”
After looking inside some of the buildings we walked around the garden and enjoyed some ice cream from the cafe.
I was excited to go to Belem as I’d heard that’s where the Pastel De Nata had originated and originally had been called “Pastéis de Belém”. The weird thing is in my mind I hated ‘ ‘Eggy tarts’ ‘ as we call them here but I had a feeling that was likely down to eating a terrible and cheap rendish made in British style with Bird eye custard in a poor hard pastry shell.
And I was right!
I really enjoyed the ones I tried in Portgual, nothing like the thing I’d eaten as a child.
Pastel De Nata is flaky layered pastry with a carmalised egg custard filling. Our first try of the delicacy was from the world renown “Pasteis de Belem” pastry shop.
They have been making them since 1837 and the recipe is the same today! Want more facts about this yummy pastry? Read this blog.
Mosteiro dos Jerónimos
Near the Pastry shop is Jerónimos Monastery which is a Gothic Manueline style former monastery of the order of Saint Jerome. It is an UNESCO World Heritage site along with The Tower of Belém whcih we visited after.
There was a queue of about 20/30 minutes to get into the monastery. My kids got some fresh orange juice while we waited from a nearby kiosk. We headed into the Monastery first then the chapel building next door. The Monastery had a central courtayrd and ‘balconies’ looking into the centre.
The refectory was beautifully decorated with blue, yellow and green Azulejo tile panels depicting Biblical scenes like Joseph in Egypt and the miracle of the bread and fish.
TOWER OF BELéM
We walked along the coast at Belém and stopped for hotdogs for the kids and ice cream. Eventually we got to the tower which also had a queue of about 20 minutes.
The towers official name is the Tower of Saint Vincent. It was a 16th century fort that served as a point for Portugese explorers to embark and disembark.
Day Five: Tile Museum, Doca dos Olivais, Parque das Nações
Museo Nacional del Azulejo
Centro Vasco da Gama & Oceanário de Lisboa
Anywhere I travel I always want to visit their shopping centre or ‘mall’. I had about an hour alone in the “Centro Vasco da Gama” shopping centre.
They had a C&A store which used to be in the U.K but shut down in the 90s. If I’m in Europe I always pop into one. I bought some pastel coloured socks :).
It was coming up time to meet my family at the Aquarium as we had bought tickets online with a time entry. We got the cheaper tickets for 4pm + entry. It was enough time for us to go around before closing time.
They had a lovely shop with plushies, toys and clothing.
Day Six: Baixa, Alfama, Chiado
This was our final day with our flight being in the evening. We put our luggage in a luggage store near our apartment so we could travel freely.
We went to ride the historic and iconic Cable car trams. We were really tired at this point and the queue for the trams was really long.
The kids did get grouchy. I didn’t want to leave Lisbon without riding the tram plus it’s annoying to leave a queue after you’ve already waited over half an hour!
Finally our turn came, we were split up as the trams are crowded and I didn’t get a seat. I was in a lot of pain at this point due to my usual arthritis. If I do this again it would be the first activity of the day when we are all fresh.
We wandered around the town, had lunch and ice cream before heading to the airport. I think 6 days was a good amount of time to visit, 8 would have meant going at a slower pace which would have been good on the last few days.
The taxis were cheap especially for a family of 4 versus buying 4 bus tickets and the Lisboa card was great value too.
I definitely recommend Lisbon as a place to visit as a family or single female traveller. It felt safe with a lot of folks around at all times of the day and evening.
It was really easy to access by public transport and you can see a lot in a day.
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