A Little Escape to Lisbon

Myself and Kevin spent a weekend in Lisbon in October and we absolutely loved it.

How to Get There?

We went on the inaugural Aer Lingus flight from Cork to Lisbon. The flight left on a Friday evening and returned late on Monday so it was perfect for the bank holiday weekend and we didn't need to take any time off work for it. 

Where to Stay?

Lisbon had a few surrounding towns/suburbs that are accessible by tram. We tried to stay as close to the Avenida da Liberdade as possible as everything seemed to be in walking distance from there. We stayed in an Air BnB called the Lisbon Gloria Apartment and it was perfect. It was in an ideal location, lovely inside, reasonably priced and the hosts were great with information on Lisbon.

What to Do?

Ponte 25 de Abril

Visiting this bridge is a must!!!! It's similar to the Golden Gate bridge and it's incredible to see. The views are fab and we really enjoyed sitting down next to the water looking at it.

Torre de Belem

The Belem Tower is a must see! We got a tram to it and it was lovely! We didn't go inside but admired it from the outside :P It looked lovely with the water behind it.

Padrão dos Descobrimentos

The Monument to the Discoveries is a fab sculpture that is definitely worth seeing if you're visiting the Belem Tower as they're very near each other. We also viewed it from the top of the museum across the road which was definitely worth it - there was literally no one else there so we had all the view to ourselves!

Bairro Alto

We loved the graffiti walls of Bairro Alto and it was so close to our apartment. It had loads of insta worthy backdrops which was ideal :P the whole area has some gorgeous graffiti that I'd definitely recommend you go and see.

See the Trams

Lisbon is famous for it's little trams (especially Tram 28 which still runs). There's loads around the area as Lisbon is very hilly so it's a great way to get around though they are incredibly crowded as they're so small!

I'd definitely go back to Lisbon and maybe visit Sintra next time (I've heard it's fab). It's been great having new routes added to Cork airport!

Torremolinos - The Perfect Spanish Getaway

Over the summer, myself and Kevin spent two days in the beautiful town of Torremolinos in Spain's Costa del Sol for a little weekend break. I had previously been here with my family when I was younger but it was Kevin's first time.

How to Get There?
We flew direct from Cork to Malaga with Aer Lingus. Ryanair also fly there on a different schedule so it's worth looking at both. They can be expensive flights so if you're flexible, I'd definitely play around with dates.

Where to Stay?
We stayed in the Sol Principe which was gorgeous. We went full board so had breakfast, lunch and dinner included. They also do all inclusive for longer stays which we definitely would have done if we were there longer. The hotel was fab; perfect for both families and couples. The food was a buffet style which changed each day and had lots of variety.

The pool was large and there were lots of sunbeds. Get there early though as they get snapped up very quickly!

We also had a gorgeous view of the sea from our balcony.

The location wasn't the best if you wanted to spend most of your time in Torremolinos centre. The hotel is at the opposite end to the centre so it was about half an hour's walk. We didn't mind this as it was a short trip and the walk along the beach was gorgeous but it's something to consider if you're staying for longer and wanted to spend most of your evenings in the centre.

We loved Torremolinos centre. It had lots of narrow, winding streets and lots of shops with local crafts and gifts. There were also a variety of high street shops which I wasn't expecting! The area itself had a gorgeous Spanish vibe to it and I'd definitely spend more time there if we go back.

It was a short trip but a relaxing one! We wanted a bit of sun before our summer holidays so it was the perfect weekend. I'll definitely be looking into it again for this year!