Plum Guide review – Lisbon apartment with kids

Much as I love a gorgeous hotel, it’s hard to beat the flexibility of self-catering when you’re travelling with kids, so I’m always on the look-out for great family accommodation – which brings me neatly to this Plum Guide review.

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Having first come across the site last year, even just the concept was tempting – accommodation world-wide, including quite a few European cities, where someone else has vetted each property before it is listed.

A site with hand-picked family-friendly accommodation sounded perfect after several slightly disappointing experiences with other places that looked better online than in reality, so we booked in for our stay in Lisbon. Here’s what I thought.

For ideas of the best things to do in Lisbon with kids, check out my top picks

Plum Guide review – the essentials

The quickest way to describe Plum Guide is that it’s a little like AirBNB, but all the properties are vetted, with only the best ones making the cut.

There’s a mix of individually owned places and businesses with several properties, a range of budgets and sizes, and you’re not short of choice – but without feeling entirely overwhelmed by options.

As well as the usual filters – type of property, number of bedrooms, price, amenities, you can also filter by family-friendly options.

There are separate filters depending if you’re travelling with infants under one year, or kids aged one to 12, so you can be sure the owners welcome families and have some of the essentials you might need for babies.

If you want to stay in a particular area – or just want to check where the apartment is based – there’s a map to search by as well.

And given how uncertain things have been when it comes to travel, you can also choose properties with free cancellation,.

But one of the things I liked most was that the listings flag up any potential issues too – especially handy if you’re looking at places to stay with kids.

Some properties have more limited cooking facilities, which won’t bother people who are eating out the whole time, for example, while others have a decent kitchen but warn you if it’s not prestocked with storecupboard odds and ends. 

They even tell you the approximate WiFi speed, so if you’re working (or sharing frantically on social media), you’ll know before you go. 

When I was looking at where to stay in Lisbon with kids, I ruled out a couple on that basis: while they had WiFi, the speeds would have been too slow for what I needed – I’ve been caught like this before, so it’s incredibly handy to know that in advance.

The ‘home truths’ go into impressive detail as well: one listing for accommodation in Lisbon flagged up that there isn’t a lot of natural light in the bedroom, another pointed out the fact it’s on a very narrow street (so you would likely be walking from a taxi drop-off), as well as others highlighting a lack of oven or washing machine, as well as any less than pristine furnishings and decor.

Chances are, you won’t be bothered most of the time, but it’s very reassuring knowing someone has gone over everything with the finest of fine toothcombs.

Check out my complete guide to Portugal with kids here

Our self-catering apartment in Lisbon with kids

So, with our booking sorted for Marigold apartment in Baixa, how did Plum Guide stack up in reality for our stay? 

There’s a messaging system on the site and we’d been sent check-in info, plus a phone number to use when we arrived, with quick answers to the couple of questions I asked in advance.

Always a good start when there’s a person on the end of the computer (or phone) to chat to.

So when we arrived, we were able to sort out an earlier check-in with Maria, who met us at the apartment, sorted out the essentials, showed us the apartment guides and recommended a nearby restaurant and supermarket.

It’s worth knowing that you may need to have a temporary payment on your credit card against any breakages – a fairly standard deposit, but I’d either missed, forgotten or hadn’t been told when I booked.

The same went for the small tourist tax that had to be paid – fortunately I had Euros on me to cover it.

And the apartment itself was lovely – bright with some quirky touches, just like Lisbon, and pretty much everything we needed inside as well.

We were about two minutes walk from Praca do Comercio, just over five minutes from Rossio, so it was really easy to get around, either on foot or by public transport with stops and stations nearby.

Despite being so central, the windows kept out the sound of nearby traffic, so the only occasional noise came from the people in the flat below us.

There was both aircon and heating (which came in handy during the evening in February) and toiletries in the bathroom, as well as a hairdryer.

The kitchen had a coffee machine with Nespresso-style capsules, as well as electric hobs plus a combined microwave and oven. In the end, we never used the combi oven, so I’m not sure how it would have performed if we had done much cooking beyond using the hobs.

The cupboards were all pretty high too – there was a mini step-ladder provided to access them, but I could reach all the essentials without bothering though.

Handy if you have younger kids that you don’t want rummaging in cupboards, slightly less handy when I had to keep getting a glass down for my daughter to have a drink. But those really are minor niggles.

With a dishwasher (and tablets supplied), plus a washing machine, big fridge and plenty of crockery and cutlery, it was just what we needed – especially as there were several little supermarkets within a couple of streets to grab essentials.

The bedroom also got full marks too – a plug by the bed, bedside light, cupboard and drawer space so we could unpack, and some handy extras like a chair and bench, plus some cushions adding a splash of colour.

As I was travelling solo with my daughter, we only needed somewhere which slept two, but there were plenty of options for larger families as well, along with options for different budgets and other areas of Lisbon.

Add in some comfy chairs in the living room, a TV (although we were so busy exploring we never turned it on), a dining table and a string of magazines and guidebooks on Lisbon, and it made a perfect base to explore the city.

Plum Guide apartments for families: my verdict

Move over AirBNB – PlumGuide has totally won me over. All the advantages of self-catering accommodation but with lashings of extra style, a guarantee of good quality and some peace of mind thanks to the free cancellation.

While there were plenty of places to stay in Lisbon with kids, we could hardly have been in a better location either, walking distance from the centre and a short stroll from buses, trams and trains to help us explore further.

There’s not even necessarily a huge difference in price: checking the same area, a similar apartment on AirBNB cost almost the same – and while you can still find bargains there, they often turn out to be no use for families (such as teeny studio apartments) or suddenly end up more expensive once you’ve added in the extra fees.

As a bonus, we had a lovely welcome at check-in, including tips on where to eat, plus a messaging system and phone number to contact in advance and if we had any problems.

I’ve already started eyeing up some of the places to stay in the UK: when someone else has done all the hard word, filtering out the gems from the avalanche of properties available, it makes holiday planning – and holiday dreaming – all the more fun.

Check out my complete guide to Portugal with kids here

Disclosure: My stay was discounted for review but I paid the remainder myself – all opinions, and choice of apartment, are my own. This post contains affiliate links – any purchases you make are unaffected but I may receive a small commission

Images copyright MummyTravels

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