When you think of the Douro Valley, what springs to mind? For me it was long, languid days in the lush vineyards – sampling the local wines in the warm sunshine. But on our six week tour of Portugal, we also discovered it was a dream family holiday destination and here’s why:
Stunning Family Stays
Not one to gatekeep a bargain, we found a stellar family stay in the Douro Valley. Souto Village is a two-bed two bath villa with a shared pool, set in a lemon grove. It would amply sleep a family of four and was a bargain at £150 a night. Great weather and a swimming pool I feel is the foundation stone for any good family stay but what really kicks it up a gear is when you can share it with other loved ones.
This villa can be booked as interconnecting with the next door villa of the same size meaning it could sleep a multi-generational, or multi family stay of up to eight people. With a small outdoor cooking area it was perfect for entertaining too.
If you’re looking for something in the hotel lane, the Six Senses in the Douro Valley is a haven for family members of all ages, with babysitting available for mums and dads hoping to have a romantic wine tasting as part of their Douro experience. The Lamego Hotel offers dreamy accommodation, stunning views and a games room for all ages.
I have raved about the family oriented Octant brand before, and their Douro outpost the Octant Douro comes complete with their Octant Boat for river tours to go with the hotels unbeatable river views.
Beautiful Vineyard Picnics
One of the best days in our whole six weeks touring Portugal was our day at Quinta Da Pacheca, a stunning hotel and winery. I was wondering how compatible a vineyard day would be with a four year old, but was keen that a quintessential Douro Day was part of our trip. I am so glad we did it. The short wine tasting was very informal and hosted outside, with sommeliers dipping in and out while my little boy ran around in the sprinklers and was followed by an overflowing picnic basket set up in the grounds, which ended up being one of those forever memories as a family.
I found that at Pacheca not only was it family friendly but children were actively welcomed.
The experience cost us 44 euros each, including food and wine and was totally worth what we paid. All in all this activity was around 4 hours of our day, which was a great amount of time before returning back to our villa for a dip before BBQ and bed! Pacheca would also be a fabulous place to stay with their wine barrel cabins overlooking the vines.
Other family-friendly picnics in the Duoro can be found at: Quinta do Bomfim and Quinta do Tedo.
Other Child Friendly Days Out
The Douro river is a playground for families. Taking off from Pinhao, explorers can take river boat tours lasting from just one hour to all day and include lunch and wine tasting. For tweens and teens you can turn the adventures up a notch and take kayaks out onto the river.
Useful Tips
How to get there: The closest airport to Douro is Porto, which is between 45 minutes to 1.5 hours drive away, depending on which part of the river you are staying in. The region is not well serviced by a large range of public transport so I would recommend hiring a car.
When to go: We travelled in June and it was a delicious warm high 20s, perfect for long days in the vines.
Length of stay: We stayed for three days and I think if you are doing a dual centre stay with Porto (which would be a fabulous break!) that is long enough. However, you could easily do a week long family holiday and feel totally zen on return, following simple, sunshine days by the river.
Whilst it may not be as obvious a candidate for a Portuguese summer holiday as the Algarve, the Douro Valley makes a wonderfully sumptuous family break (even if, unlike me, you don’t love the wine!).
That Holiday Mum x