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Beach near Lisbon with public transport access - Recommendation for a family

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Hi I am planning a trip to spain and portugal in july for a month and want to have 3 or 4 nights at beach to chill out and relax. Which beach would you recommend (no car and need public transport access)? We are a family of four (two kids 2 and 6 yr old).

I found a lot of people recommend Cascais and Estoril. I found two apartments at beach and good access from train station that I like - one in Cascais (Praia da conceicao) and the other in Estoril (Praia da tamariz). If I have to choose between the two, which one would you recommend? (I like the apartment in Estoril a little better but then I see Cascais have access to a bigger and two beaches). If you ask me my beach style, I prefer Siesta Key beach over Clearwater beach in Florida and Laguna beach over Santa Monica in California.

I googled and found some other options such as:
• Praia de Carcavelos
• Praia de Santo Amaro de Oeiras
But I do not much discussion of the above (maybe I did not do enough research) so I am looking for some help!

Any advice will be appreciated. What I look for is a good family-friendly beach to enjoy with kids (do not need nightlife, or cultural experience - we will be flying from madrid so I want a time to relax before we explore lisbon).

Thanks!

Posted by
1663 posts

Carcavelos is really the largest beach between here and Lisbon. It is family friendly and an easy walk from the train station. However, there are not the wide variety of stores, restaurants, etc. that there are here in Cascais.

It’s somewhat the same for Estoril. It’s a nice town but there aren’t as many restaurants and stores.
Another nice advantage of Cascais is the park Marshal Carmona. It’s quite a large park with free roaming peacocks, ducks, chickens. It’s a favorite with younger children.

Of course, I’m not at all objective, but Cascais may have more of what you are looking for. That said, the beaches in Cascais are small and therefore quite crowded in July.

Oreiras would be my last choice.

Posted by
13 posts

Thank you! I just booked an accommodation in Cascais.
I plan to take a cab and go to Praia do Guincho for one day. How do you think? Will there be some places to eat in Guincho? Or should I bring food?
Also in Cascais I am staying right at the beach near train station. Any suggestions for restaurants (casual, kid-friendly), grocery market, etc.?
Thank you!

Posted by
1663 posts

There are a number of places to eat at Guincho but, at least some of them, are pretty expensive. Bar do Guincho is reasonable but not easy to access. I would suggest using trip advisor to look up restaurants at Guincho so you will have better info.

Be aware that Guincho is much windier than Cascais so don’t go on a day it’s windy in town. And, don’t plan to do any swimming or wading out there. It’s a big surf beach with strong waves. The beaches in town are much better for the children but the water will be cold.

There is a Pingo Doce in the Cascais Villa (ugly blue building across from the train station). If you are here on Wednesday or Saturday go to the Mercado. Jumbo is the largest market in town. It’s 5 minutes from Cascais Villa.

There is a large variety of restaurants in town. It really depends on what you want to eat. Zomato is a review site that is pretty good. And, even Trip Advisor isn’t bad for Cascais.

Posted by
13 posts

Thank you again. Great to hear from a local. I live in washington dc so let me know if you ever visit and i will cerntainly help out for any questions you would have! To see sunset where would you recommend going? Any suggestion? Thanks again!!

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