Piscina Municipal de Odivelas

The Piscina Municipal de Odivelas is run directly by Odivelas council (Câmara Municipal de Odivelas). It’s a busy teaching pool: the 2026/27 plan lists 544 classes a week, and on 1 September 2026 the council reported 92.7% of class places already taken. Its swimming school was again given the top “Excellence” level by the Portuguese Swimming Federation’s Portugal a Nadar certification in 2025.

For families who just want to swim, the pool also sets aside 45-minute slots for utilização livre, which the council describes as relaxed, family use of the water without a teacher. Under-7s swimming with a parent don’t pay.

The building has three pools (the council’s plan mentions staff checking the water in all three). The two you’ll use are:

• The sports pool (piscina desportiva): 25 metres, used for lanes, classes and lane swimming.
• The learner pool (tanque de aprendizagem): used for baby classes, beginners’ classes, birthday parties and most family swims. The price list calls it the 16-metre pool. The swimming school handbook gives its temperature for baby classes as 30.5 to 31.5°C, which is warm for a public pool.

There are separate children’s changing rooms for boys and girls, and inclusive changing rooms. Wheelchair users can ask for a pool wheelchair to get to the showers and into the water.

The pool separates two kinds of drop-in swimming:

• Natação livre (lane swimming) in the 25-metre pool, for swimmers from 14 who can show they swim 25 metres on their own, up to eight people a lane.
• Utilização livre (family swim), in the learner pool or the sports pool, for play and relaxed swimming. It’s for ages 7 and up with a responsible adult, up to six people per lane, with no swimming test.

The swimming school handbook adds that children under 7 can go into family swims with their parents without registering, with at most one child per adult. The older leaflet says the same children swim free.

From 1 September 2026 the learner pool is open for family swims at these times, each a 45-minute slot:

• Monday: 7:00, 13:45 and 14:30
• Tuesday: 7:00
• Wednesday: 13:45
• Thursday: 7:00 and 13:45
• Friday: 7:00, 13:45 and 14:30

On Saturday and Sunday mornings the family swim slots are marked “Desportiva”, which points to the sports pool rather than the learner pool; ask when you book if you have a non-swimmer. Weekday early afternoons suit home-educating families well.

You have to book. Reservations are made in the Desporto Odivelas app or on the council’s Portal do Desporto, for the same day or up to six days ahead. If you don’t cancel at least an hour before, you lose the swim.

From the 2025/26 aquatic activities price list, still the one linked when we checked in September 2026:

• Registration: €20 (renewal €10), valid for a year, also covering the council’s sports hall and therapy centre
• One 45-minute swim without registering: €4
• 10 swims: €25 (needs registration; valid for a year)
• Monthly pass for up to seven swims a week: €25

Families with two or more members in monthly activities get discounts: 20% off for the second person, 30% for the third, 40% for the fourth and 50% from the fifth, and no registration fee from the third.

The swimming school starts at 6 months. Baby classes last 30 minutes in the warm learner pool, with a parent or other familiar adult in the water. They’re grouped by age, with names children like:

• Tartarugas (turtles): 6 to 17 months
• Peixinhos (little fish): 18 to 29 months
• Golfinhos (dolphins): 30 to 47 months

Baby classes are mostly on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 8:30, with some weekday classes at 17:00. Babies must wear a swim nappy; a lycra cap is optional for babies and their adult. In 2025/26 baby classes cost €30 a month for one a week or €40 for two.

Children’s classes last 45 minutes and are grouped by age as well as ability: water confidence (AMA) for 4 to 6, 7 to 9 and 10 to 13, then elementary, learning and advanced levels up to 13. Teenagers from 14 join the youth and adult classes. There are classes most weekday afternoons from 16:45 and on Saturday and Sunday mornings. For ages 4 to 13, lessons cost €20 a month for one a week, €30 for two and €37.50 for three in 2025/26.

The pool also runs family events through the year, including Halloween and Christmas activities, a Father’s Day and Mother’s Day session where parents are invited into the water, a Children’s Day celebration and a summer Festa da Água (water party).

Parties for ages 6 to 13 take place in the learner pool for an hour, led by the pool’s teachers; younger guests can join with an adult in the water. In 2025/26 the price was €50 for up to 10 children and €5 for each extra child. The party covers only the pool activities, not food or a cake. The birthday child’s parents can watch from the poolside in flip-flops; other adults sit in the spectator stand.

From the council’s 2024 regulations and the pool’s own rules:

• Everyone wears a swim cap. The handbook specifies silicone caps for family swims.
• Pool-only flip-flops in the barefoot zones, proper swimwear (lycra or similar), a shower to remove creams and a walk through the footbath.
• Swim nappies for babies.
• In family swims, children must be supervised directly in the water by the adult responsible for them.
• Children aged 9 and under must be accompanied by an adult in the changing rooms. Use the children’s changing rooms where indicated.
• Lockers take a padlock, so bring your own.

The pool closes to the public for the whole of August. Family swim times are limited and mostly on weekday mornings and early afternoons, which is great for home-educating families but hard for working parents; check the weekend slots on the timetable. The pool is also busy with classes, so expect a lively, echoey atmosphere in the late afternoon.

Odivelas borders Lisbon’s northern edge. For another rainy-day plan nearby, KidZania and Sould Park Jump are at the UBBO centre in Amadora. In summer, Lisbon’s outdoor Espassus pool in Carnide is a short drive away.

Can a toddler go to a family swim at Odivelas pool?

Yes. Children under 7 can swim with a parent without registering, one child per adult, with the adult in the water.

How much does it cost to swim?

€4 for a single 45-minute swim on the 2025/26 price list, or €25 for ten swims after a €20 registration. Under-7s with a parent go free.

Do I need to book?

Yes, through the Desporto Odivelas app or the Portal do Desporto, up to six days ahead.

Is the water warm enough for babies?

The handbook gives 30.5 to 31.5°C for baby classes in the learner pool.

Do children need a swim cap?

Yes. Everyone must wear a cap, silicone for family swims.