If you are looking for a family friendly holiday in Portugal, you will likely have heard of Martinhal Sagres. Nestled in a protected natural park in Algarve on the far tip of Portugal, it is a 5-star family resort offering a mix of hotel rooms, villas and townhouses.

It has so much to offer for families it has garnered a loyal clientele - as a lovely Irish mum said to me as we watched our kids occupy themselves in the playground, 'we like it so much it's ruined other holiday options for me - I was in the room last night looking at when we can come back.'

We have stayed 3 times - when my twins were 1, 2.5 and 4.5 years old - and have been very happy with what it offers for babies and young children. Below is my honest, completely independent review (spoiler - we love it). I haven't benefited from gifted/subsidised stays and there are no affiliate links. Make sure to scroll to the bottom, where I've rounded up my top tips/insider intel! And if you need help packing for travel with babies and toddlers, check out this post.

Overall character and recommendation

Martinhal is characterised by a restrained elegance. Think a tipple of port or infused water at check in, a small welcome hamper in your room, soft clean bedding and waterfall showers.

If you are looking for a more-is-more resort with colourful chaos and bottomless entertainment for kids, this isn't it. It is slightly formal (for example, reservations are required when eating at the restaurants and wait staff are extremely attentive, even at the buffet breakfast), which initially felt incongruent with the family focus but actually led to smooth and pleasant (rather than chaotic) meals.

You will want for nothing at Martinhal - we have always felt calm, happy and very well looked after from the big/basic stuff to more niche requests (for example, my husband fell ill on one of our trips and we were advised he could see a nurse on-site the next day if required).

It took us a few full days to find our feet on the first stay, so don't despair if it's not quite as glam as you'd imagined. Depending on where your accommodation is everything is not necessarily at your doorstep - the set up is sprawling, with activities, pools and accommodation dotted over a large area. While this can prove challenging with young kids, it provides a sense of autonomy and peace that can be hard to come by at family resorts.

Offerings

In terms of facilities and services, Martinhal offers:

5 swimming pools: The most popular being the one by the beach, followed by the indoor pool in peak heat of inclement weather
Gym and spa: We have had half a dozen massages at the spa over the course of our stays, all were top notch.
Tennis courts: We haven't played, but they are flood lit and apparently early evening is a lovely time for a game
Astroturf football pitch: Sometimes occupied with football camp, but otherwise open to kick a ball around
Climbing wall
Water sports centre: Windsurfing, stand-up paddle and kayaking
Mini-golf, petanque: Outdoor 18 hole minigolf, good fun with the kids. Clubs can be borrowed from the entrance to the gym
Baby concierge: Efficient communication to arrange baby related supplies and assist with queries
Direct access to a beautiful sandy beach.
There are a range of other activities the concierge can arrange - we went on a boat trip to see dolphins and had a family photo shoot with a wonderful local photographer.
Bike station: You can rent a wide range of bikes and book individual or group lessons. My 4 year old twins could only ride balance bikes but after 1.5 hours of lessons from Lydia they were fully riding pedal bikes. We had another positive experience with lessons on a previous trip - cannot recommend the staff highly enough!! On our last day nearly all bikes had been rented out, so it's best to book in advance of your trip if you'd like lessons or to rent a bike.

Breakfast

Breakfast buffet is held in O Terraço, a beautiful glass walled room with indoor and outdoor seating, overlooking the coast. There is food to suit all diets, from a full english cooked breakfast to a selection of cheese, bread, fruit, vegetables, meat, salmon, cereals, pastries, and muesli (to which you can add chia seeds, seeds, nuts, dried fruit etc). Beverages include magnificent coffee (soy and oat milk available), hot chocolate, French press for the table, baby chinos, and sparking wine. It's usually cheaper (and worth it) to add breakfast on when booking, but even if you don't it's worth having it one day of your stay at least.

Most loos have baby changing facilities, and baby and child equipment can be requested when booking (bed guards, cots, potties etc). We even reserved a few strollers our first two trips, which meant we didn't have to fly with ours (worth asking if they have a double if you have twins/two little ones).

The main kids area is in the square in the centre of the resort, it has a camper van (always the firm favourite with my kids), a bouncy castle, little play houses, trampolines and table tennis. Kids can safely play while parents sip an aperitif from the nearby bar. There are other small play areas by the indoor pool and beach.

Accommodation

We have always stayed in the townhouses, and found them clean and very well equipped. Our accommodation has always had a washing machine and drying rack, which makes a huge difference when travelling with young children. The kitchens have everything you would need to self cater, and helpful instructions for the appliances.

There is a Mercato shop, located in the main square. It has basic fresh food (fruit, vegetables, cheese and milk, bread), a frozen food section (pizzas, frozen veg, ice cream); wine, beer, water and sodas; preserves (pasta sauce, jam, etc) as well as a selection of kids toys and souvenirs. It's pricy but very useful and convenient.

Kids clubs and babysitting

We have not put our children into clubs on holiday, but we did at Martinhal because we felt reassured they would be safe and well looked after. They enjoyed the creche and the kids club for 2-4 year olds. Make sure to book early as spaces do fill up. You can also hire a babysitter to enjoy dinner in peace, it came included in our package and the babysitter played with our kids in the playground and sent whatsaap updates while we had a quick dinner at a nearby restaurant.

Drawbacks/shortcomings

The two drawbacks in my view are transfer time/cost and food. It takes about an hour and a half to reach Martinhal from Faro airport, and transfers arranged by the hotel are approx. £180 each way. Our transfers arranged through the hotel have been excellent - punctual and extremely safe and professional drivers, but it is a significant expense. You can arrange your own and we will likely do this next time.

The second area it falls slightly short in my view is food. The baby menu is exceptional - you can order fresh purees from the menus and kids 0-2 can eat at the buffet free of charge if an adult orders a meal at Oz Gambozinos restaurant. However, I find the menus expensive for what you get in terms of quality and quantity, and missing some simple healthy wins for children (like crudités, hummus and flatbread, cheese and cucumber sandwiches, etc). I'd recommend eating a big breakfast, and making a trip to the local supermarket (Uber works and it's only a 5 minute drive) so you can self cater light lunches and some dinners. If you want to watch the sunset, head to As Dunas for stunning views overlooking the sea.

Top tips

If you have a child under 2 years old, see if you can book the Baby's First Holiday package. It comes with lots of perks and is excellent value
Travel in shoulder season if you can - March and October (before half terms) are significantly lower cost, quieter and you may still get marvellous weather - we went in March and had highs of 20
Email Martinhal to arrange any extras (bike rental or lessons, creche etc) when you book your stay, as they may well be full by the time you arrive
Due to its location, Martinhal is windy! If you're not travelling in peak summer, pack a light wind breaker
If the pool by the beach is busy or you've dropped your kids at the kids club and want peace and quite from other children, check out the Beach Hangout, a lovely sandy area to relax in shaded huts and swings located between the pool and the beach.
There is a sauna and steam room in the indoor pool area, but there are other (much nicer) ones in the spa - you don't need to book a treatment to gain access to the spa, just check in at the front desk and they'll give you a robe. It's a very peaceful escape!

2026 Independent Review of Martinhal Sagres