Exciting One-Week Lisbon Itinerary for Families

We met for one week in Portugal for a family reunion, a large group of 17 people spanning three generations aged three to 68 from three countries (US, Germany, Sweden).

I am so glad I reached out to a professional travel agency to organize this trip. Communication with Zicasso’s tour operator was easy, always prompt, and helpful, including on weekends. They recommended and booked exceptional and child-friendly accommodations in Lisbon and Nazaré which were perfect for our group and which I wouldn't have found on my own. All transfers from and to the airports, from Lisbon to Nazaré and back to Lisbon, were prompt and the drivers flexible, friendly, and very professional.

For a private tour to Sintra, a bilingual guide accompanied us to explain everything in English and German. We requested a couple of short-notice changes to the itinerary and our main contact went out of her way to accommodate these requests.

A pair of sunglasses forgotten in one of the apartments was reunited with its forgetful yet happy owner at the final stop of our tour, only because of the initiative of our contact and her colleagues who retrieved them for us.

In short, our tour company delivered on every level (including reasonable pricing) and I highly recommend their wonderful staff and services.

The travel agent from Zicasso's tour company planned for my family of four the most spectacular and luxurious two-week trip around Portugal. We traveled to and enjoyed the highlights of Lisbon, the romantic architecture in Sintra, the incredible history of Évora, the beautiful coastline of the Algarve, the laid-back atmosphere and gorgeous scenery of Madeira, the beautiful, historical, bustling city of Porto, and the stunning scenery of the Douro Valley. 

The travel agent's suggestions and bookings were all perfectly aligned with what we envisioned and the accommodations booked were all beautifully appointed and family-oriented – five-star hotels that catered to the entire family, with indoor pools and kids greeted with backpacks and toys at the door, and nightly treats on pillows.

The tour guides booked were all very knowledgeable and kind. They were patient with my two- and four-year-olds, and taught us all so many new, amazing things.

Every day was a highlight, but I would say my girls really enjoyed the tile painting as well as the pastel de nata-making workshops.

My husband and I really enjoyed Évora and Sintra, and truly seeing the beauty and history of it all.

We absolutely fell in love with Portugal, the culture, and the food. My only regret is not having more time so we could’ve seen the Azores as well and stayed even longer. 

We so look forward to this travel agent planning us another perfect vacation in the near future!

This travel agent is superlative, would give her 6 stars if possible here. We were in Portugal, (Porto, Douro valley, Lisbon), Western Spain, Madeira and Azores Islands for a three week family trip with two teenagers. She works by giving a detailed, passionate overview of her country's regions on the phone, and several rough first drafts of an itinerary based on your feedback. She encourages a bespoke model-- when I last minute wanted to include Salamanca and Caceres in western Spain, she fully encouraged us to go ahead with that and made it work in the itinerary by swapping out other places.Her choice of hotel bookings were super, and presented in two tiers for budget reasons. She went an extra step fulfilling my request to secure restaurant reservations for dinner each night of the trip. The guides were also very good - courteous, on time and knowledgeable. Best one was from Lisbon, who had my children enthralled about 800 years of Portuguese history.The most unusual thing about this agent is her willingness to go the extra mile- literally. She travelled three hours from her home to meet us at the airport to deliver not only our docs, a cell phone and the fully programmed sat nav, but a camera battery charger for my Nikon that I'd left at home and had asked her to locate a store so I could buy it- and there it was, she astoundingly had stopped by a camera store on her way so that I did not have to! She is readily 'available' for the duration of the trip for any advice or problem solving. This was my first use of a travel agent, and Zicasso- I am a trip planner and have done many detailed itineraries for six other long summer trips, and decided to get some help this time and am thrilled I did.

Zicasso's travel partner helped us plan a 10-day family trip to Portugal, traveling to Lisbon, the Douro Valley, Porto, and the Algarve.

All details were arranged in advance, so the vacation was completely stress-free and flowed smoothly. Our agent checked in periodically and was always immediately available for anything, although everything was so organized we had no problems whatsoever.

The planned activities included a fado dinner, Portuguese cooking class, wine tasting/tours, and several boat trips, among many others. We were always pleasantly surprised that each of our activities was in small groups, with no large, touristy boats or tastings. We had individual attention everywhere. All the drivers did so much more than drive. They were tour guides as well, teaching us Portuguese history and culture along the way.

Each hotel was centrally located and our rooms were perfect – more boutique-style hotels, as we had requested.

I would recommend Zicasso and their travel agency to any group, of any size or age, planning a Portugal trip.