Kimkim Trip Reviews for Portugal

Despite the fantastic rooftop bar, the attentive staff, and the convenient location, we found the rooms to be a bit worn out, and it felt like the hotel caters primarily to large bus tours.

Wonderful history tour with Alexandra (guide) and João (driver) with a Jerónimos Monastery visit, Belem tower, Pastel de nata tasting and more

a tuktuk with Hugo! All over the city with a focus in old town and view points and stops to try more food and drinks

we were picked up by Vanessa (guide) and Samir (driver) and taken to the eclectic Pena Palace, where every texture and design and style and culture meet. Then a dive into the winding streets of Sintra for shopping and lunch where Vanessa also surprised us with a birthday treat for mom! Followed up with a trip to the beach. Then a private tour of the family owned Quinta De San Michel winery

Manuel picked us up and drove us to Porto with long stops at the medieval Óbidos and coastal Nazaré. Phenomenal Seafood lunch with wine in Nazaré.

we met back up with Manuel again and met Tania (our guide for the morning). We had a whirlwind drive to see the coast and city center of Porto before crossing the Douro river to Gaia for a visit at Ferreira Port Caves for a tour and tasting. Then up to Miradouro da Serra do Pilar for a view of Porto and the wall. Back over the river for some additional driving views around the city

What an amazing experience- getting to learn to make a delicious seafood dish in this delightful kitchen. Highly recommended for local and visiting friends!

Manuel picked us up for a drive to Douro valley to Quinta do Val Moreira. Wine tour and tasting followed by some amazing valley view finding then back to the winery for lunch. After that we had a boat tour before heading back to Porto via scenic valleys and hills.

Very comfortable, great staff and good location.

A remarkable evening with a very authentic feel. Highly recommend!

This was a FANTASTIC food tour--possibly the best ever! It was great to visit a less touristy area and nibble the day away.

Very crowded. Had to leave to meet our guide before we got inside.

Beautiful hotel and wonderfully located! We were close to a shopping area and had a lovely walk along the water. We had a spectacular balcony view from our room on the 6th floor. The restaurant was excellent and the staff very friendly and helpful. Definitely a great place to stay.

Beautiful hotel with an amazing amount of marble. Great underground parking. Staff were very helpful with excellent suggestions for places to visit and to eat. We had great service in the bar/snack area one evening when we decided to stay in for something light. The buffet breakfast was excellent.

What a lovely place to stay! Close to shopping and historical areas. A great place to stay and go on a walking tour.

We enjoyed our stay at Tivoli Avenida Liberdade. It was very nice and we experienced a great customer service. The only downside was having to wait for the check-in, but they let us use the spa before the check-in to compensate the waiting time.

A Great Retreat with Breathtaking Views of the Southern Coast and Atlantic Ocean!

This hotel was the last one of our trip and it was very unique being right on the coast, the view was amazing. I highly recommend staying at least two nights to have time to recharge.

The boat tour on the coast of the Algarve was a pleasant activity to do to enjoy the views of the coasts. However, we couldn't enter the cave for safety due to weather conditions, which made the activity be shorter and less interesting.

Amazing! Great port and amazing lunch. Also appreciated the tour, as our first introduction to porto.

Great experience to see the valley via car and the short boat ride. Port and the tour were best at the first winery. Tour guide, wine and port were not great at the second.

Highly recommend this day trip - amazing houses and castles, and a lovely little town

Batalha Monastery was amazing, probably my favorite monastery we visited Nazare was warm and lovely, a fun little beach town And Obidos was really interesting. It was very crowded on the day we went, so avoid the Chocolate festival!

We loved this hotel. Wonderful staff and delicious food. The rooms were large and beautifully decorated. Great central location for Lagos.

This hotel is so unique. Beautiful with interesting architecture. Room was large with a unique floor plan. The staff was lovely and so helpful. Perfect location within the walls of Evora.

We liked this hotel. The room was small but clean and comfortable. The staff was great and helpful. The location is central but a bit of a walk to old town Lisbon.

This hotel is in a great location for Porto. Parking is a bit of hike from the hotel. The staff was great and the breakfasts were delicious. Rooms were just OK.

We loved our evening sail in Lisdon. Mary and Hele were so sweet and gave us lots of history of Lisdon. Really enjoyable way to see the sunset.

Almost sumptuous rooms and a very friendly and competent staff. Very well located for tourist purposes.

Well located, very professional staff, and a great location. This hotel provided a great start to our visit.

We had a room and a half at the hotel. That is, we had a very nice regular room, with a loft above containing another bed and another bathroom. We had a great view of the street. Excellent breakfast.

Our room was extremely compact, and arranged in an unusual manner. For example, after using the toilet, one had two walk around the shower a few feet more to find the sink. However, the accommodations themselves- for example, the bed- were fine. The breakfast was excellent, and the staff were very friendly.

We regret only that we had only one night here. The hotel is a pleasure to the eyes as well as providing excellent accommodations. The staff are friendly and competent.

Fado music is unique. Hearing it performed in a neighborhood Cafe/ restaurant, by local singers and musicians (plus a proprietress who took a personal interest in our being served and enjoying the multi-course meal.)

The leader of the tour was knowledgeable, very friendly, and quite humorous. We had a wide range of food and wines. I recommend the experience.

Great location and extremely helpful staff.

Excellent location and very helpful staff. Good breakfast.

Nice hotel and excellent restaurant. Very helpful staff, We would have preferred to be in the city of Evora.

Beautiful hotel with great views. Excellent restaurant. Very helpful staff and great location. Clean, comfortable and outstanding!

Good location, helpful staff. Hotel is just okay, food marginal.

Good tour, bad weather.

Outstanding experience. Dani was a great guide, who was passionate about her city and its culture. Food and drink samplings were very good. Highly recommend.

Mannu did a great job. He was very knowledgeable about Portugal’s past and present. Very good local lunch.

We special experience with Pepito as our guide. He was very informative and took us to interesting locales.

One of the highlights of our trip! The boat ride was great. The wineries and food were excellent! Very good guide. Lots of fun.

While the Octant is not charming on the outside, the people and the experience on the inside were outstanding, and the modern, green, design elements were original, attractive, and soothing. The team at reception (especially Luisa) and at the spa were so incredibly welcoming and eager to help in any way -- essentially, they conveyed a warm sense that "anything you would like to do, we can find a way to make happen," from booking us a slot to enjoy the thermal bath experience as a family to recommending and giving directions to their favorite hikes on the island. I only regret that the weather was not warm enough for us to enjoy the spectacular rooftop pool and bar area (though we might have hunkered down into the wind and done so anyway, if the pool had appeared to be heated, since the views and design were so amazing) The breakfast buffet (included) was a true feast and allowed us to savor local products as well as more familiar ones. In particular, the staff came to our rescue in the middle of the night when my daughter got terribly sick with food poisoning -- although they were down to a tiny overnight crew without anyone from housekeeping, the two men manning the fort rallied with whatever resources and creativity they had to help us clean up and set up an extra cot in our room when she could not stay in hers.

Tremendously welcoming and helpful front desk staff -- they greeted us with a local pineapple liqueur, communicated with a local restaurant for us, and put out breakfast for us to grab when we had to depart for the airport at 4 a.m. (!). The spa treatments were phenomenal, and the thermal bath suite - both indoor and outdoor -- was open around the clock and, while actively used by many guests, never felt crowded (though it would be extra nice if some of their lovely herbal water or cold tea brews were available poolside). Although the bedrooms are small and have unimpressive views, the hotel overall provides an indulgent experience -- great food, beautiful greenery everywhere - - but with a laid-back tone: guests wander around in their spa robes, the fun cocktail bar has a wealth of games, the dining room combines chic, grown-up eco-design with a foosball table. Perfect for a refuge for adventuring in the region!

Loved this place! It was like having an AirBNB with the services of a hotel. The location was great, it’s an easy walk to most things in Porto and yet perfectly quiet at night. I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with all of the staff, particularly Diogo. The place itself had a full kitchen with a washer, living room, and 2 floors - 2 bedrooms upstairs. This would be a great place for anyone who needs to stay for a long period of time. The breakfast offered was always good and a little different each day. Note: This might be a challenge for someone with mobility issues as there are steps to enter the hotel and several steps to get up to the bedrooms. Traveler tip: If you are relying on wi-fi during your travels, ask the hotel for their travel phone device that has maps and recommendations loaded - nice feature but we didn’t know about it until last night there.

It was clean, quiet and safe with all the normal amenities. Staff was friendly. We loved our little “suite” set-up. Had one main shared door and then each room had its own locking door - perfect for families or friends traveling together.

We were given a great overview of Porto. Sara was a lovely guide and knew her history. She told us tips along the way that helped us navigate on our own afterwards.

We loved our ride to Douro Valley. Ivo was our driver but he’s also a guide and knows both Porto & Douro Valley. We learned so much from him. He’s the BEST!! One of our favorite moments was going off the beaten path and seeing an area that we would have never seen on our own.

The boat was perfectly fine, the Captain was pleasant and the ride on the river was relaxing. We only did an hour and that was plenty of time. We got lucky with nice weather but there is an enclosed cabin if it were to rain and they have blankets on board too. The reason for the 3 stars is it was a private boat trip and nothing special l. We had to download an app which made it feel impersonal. I could understand having to use an app with a public boat trip where everyone speaks a different language but this trip was just for us. It just wasn’t special.

First we had lunch and then did a winery tour with a tasting. The restaurant within the hotel, was fine dining with beautiful views. Wine pairing with delicious food. I traveled with college aged daughters who had not tried wine before, this added to the fun of the experience. The wine was great! Many options to pick from for the tasting and can also make purchases. The grounds were simply beautiful even in the off season.

We had Pedro as our guide, he was great! Even though he's originally from Porto, he was very knowledgeable about Lisbon and its history. He was up for adapting the tour in any way that we wanted, our preference was for him to show us the highlights and give us a lay of the land so that we could navigate on our own afterwards. We enjoyed our personal conversations with him, he was very natural and adaptable. He gave us some great recommendations along the way and shared many good tips too. I should have taken notes as he referenced things because later on I realized we wanted to go to a restaurant that he recommended and had to reach back out - got our answer though which we appreciated. The tour ends on a very special note with wine tasting and pairings. It was the perfect way to relax and end the tour.

This was such a unique experience to Portugal. We typically are not night owls and tend to eat dinner on the early side. We were given the option of the earlier Fado or later and chose the later because it's the one that the Portuguese people tend to join and enjoy. We wanted a local's perspective and we got it!

This is a beautiful and charming town and we were happy to see it. The palace was nice but there were lines although they moved quickly. The grounds (gardens and lakes) are pretty, be sure to walk around. We didn't need a full day in Sintra, but it was nice to see.

This was a little more touristy and scripted. That said, our driver was personable and tried to make it enjoyable for us. To discover Belem you need to drive to get out there if you are staying in the heart of Lisbon. We weren't fans of being driven in a TukTuk on the busy streets. Our driver was fine and there weren't any problems, but having done it, I think I would have chosen another option to get out to Belem.

Very well located hotel, our room has river view and balcony . Staff is so kind , do all their best to make our stay the most pleasant .

Very nice boutique hotel , well situated

Such a nice hotel and staff

Very modern reception area, room average size a bit stuffy

The Douro Valley excursion was a lovely experience, but nothing too remarkable. We enjoyed the wine and olive oil tastings, as well as the relaxing river cruise. The scenery was beautiful, and it was a nice break from the city. Overall, it was a delightful day out.

Everything was good, but we wish we had more time and someone with us to show us the oldest university. Unfortunately, we skipped that visit because we didn't know where to start from.

This was the highlight of our trip. It was so interesting to taste the local cuisine from a lovely couple home. The food was delicious and something you wouldn't normally find in a restaurant.

We spent three days in Lagos, and everything was lovely. I would do it again.

All guides were high-quality and were very accommodating towards my husband. But Braga's guide was exceptionally awesome!

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.

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.