I've Bean Travelling

After spending a whirlwind few days in scenic Azores, we departed for mainland Portugal for the last half of our trip. We landed in Lisbon in early afternoon and were picked up by our driver to bring us to our hotel.

We stayed at Martinhal Chiado, a family hotel which offers serviced apartments. Our studio suite was absolutely awesome, fully furnished with a kitchen, laundry, and even baby supplies including a high chair and pack and play. Breakfast was included, which we were able to have served in our room each morning. There is also a kids club and babysitting services available, although we didn’t use them. I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone travelling with kids in Lisbon as it is really designed for families.

We didn’t make any big plans for our first day in Lisbon, instead just picking up some supplies and having a quick dinner at Time Out Market around the corner from the hotel.

The next day, we had a leisurely morning enjoying our breakfast and then headed out to a food tour with Eating Europe, which took us through the neighbourhoods of Baixa, Chiado, and Bairro Alto.

It was just the three of us in the group so we got a private tour with our guide, tasting several delicious Lisboa specialties. Teddy did very well on the walking tour riding along on me in his carrier. For anyone planning a visit to Lisbon with a baby, I suggest foregoing the stroller and baby-wearing instead, as the sidewalks are hilly and narrow, with cobblestones that are not conducive to transport on wheels.

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Everyone knows about the egg tarts, pasteis de nata, but the surprising highlight for me in Lisbon was all the canned seafood. Apparently, tinned fish has been a staple in the Portuguese diet since the mid 19th century and the canning industry in Portugal produces over 59,000 tons of fish per year. You can find large selections of canned fish at various shops around the city, including some high end gourmet brands.

We returned to the hotel after our tour and relaxed for the rest of the evening. The next day was Teddy’s 1st birthday and we would be celebrating with a day trip to Sintra!