Piscina Municipal de Santo António dos Cavaleiros

The Piscina Municipal de Santo António dos Cavaleiros is one of four pools in the municipality of Loures run by GesLoures, the council’s company for sports and social facilities. (The others are in Loures town, Portela and Santa Iria de Azóia.) It’s a large sports centre: besides the pools it has a gym, four studios, a physiotherapy room, a café, a study space and a children’s area (espaço infantil), according to GesLoures’s photo gallery of the building.

For families, this pool is mainly about lessons. There’s a swimming school from 6 months to 15 years, week-long summer courses, and pool birthday parties. Drop-in swimming is only for children aged 8 and over who have passed a swimming test, so it isn’t a place to take a toddler for a splash.

The building has a 25-metre sports pool (piscina desportiva) and a learner pool (piscina de aprendizagem). GesLoures doesn’t publish the depths. Its rules follow the Portuguese standard for pool water temperatures: 24 to 26°C for sports pools and 26 to 28°C for learner and leisure pools.

From GesLoures’s 2026/27 rules:

• Babies (6 to 36 months): 30-minute classes once a week. An authorised adult goes in the water with the baby. Babies wear a lycra cap and their adult a silicone or latex one.
• Children and young people (3 to 15): 45-minute classes, one, two or three times a week. Levels 1 and 2 build water confidence and basic skills; levels 3 and 4 work on proper strokes, turns and starts.

The 2026/27 timetable at Santo António dos Cavaleiros has level 1 classes for 3 to 4 year olds every weekday at 16:20, 17:10, 17:55, 18:45 and 19:40, with other groups for 5 to 12 year olds at the same times and more classes on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Children with earlier swimming experience take a placement test. GesLoures also runs artistic swimming, adapted swimming and a masters group here, and karate for children in the studios.

In the month before the swimming festivals, parents may not be allowed to watch lessons.

Every summer GesLoures runs week-long swimming courses (cursos de verão), which suit children who want to learn or improve quickly during the holidays. In 2026 there were ten courses at Santo António dos Cavaleiros, from 29 June to 4 September, each Monday to Friday:

• 4 to 6 year olds at 9:30 in alternate weeks
• 7 to 9 year olds at 10:15
• 10 to 16 year olds at 11:00, and some weeks at 15:15
• 6 to 9 year olds at 14:30 in some weeks
• 12 to 24 year olds at 15:15 from late July

Look for the new dates on GesLoures’s summer courses page in June. The Loures and Portela pools run their own courses too.

A party here is about 60 minutes of games in the water, led by GesLoures’s teachers, who choose the pool and the games to suit the children’s ages and swimming. GesLoures provides a room with tables and chairs for the party food, which you organise yourself. The birthday child’s parents get two swim caps and a voucher for a free enrolment.

Parties need at least 10 children, and the birthday child goes free. The price is €13 per child if you or the birthday child live in Loures, or €14 otherwise. Book at least 15 days ahead at the pool office and pay 90% of the minimum (10 children) to confirm.

GesLoures’s drop-in swimming (utilização livre) takes place in the 25-metre pool, with at least one lane set aside. At Santo António dos Cavaleiros the 2026/27 hours are:

• Monday to Friday: 7:30 to 14:00
• Saturday: 9:00 to 13:15 and 14:45 to 18:00
• Sunday: 9:00 to 13:00

The rules are strict for children: drop-in swimming starts at age 8, everyone must first pass a free swimming test, and children aged 8 to 13 must come with an adult who stays responsible for them. A lane holds up to six people; when it’s full you wait for space.

On the 2026/27 price table, a single drop-in swim for someone without a monthly plan cost €8 for Loures residents and €9 for others; with a monthly plan it was €4 or €4.50. Occasional swimmers can buy up to 10 single entries a season before they must enrol.

From the Quadro Normativo 2026/27:

• Swim caps are compulsory: latex or silicone, or lycra for babies.
• Lycra swimwear, a shower before swimming, and flip-flops or pool socks on the poolside. No footwear in the water.
• Children aged 8 and under must be accompanied by an adult in the changing rooms; from 9 they change on their own.
• Lock your things in a locker with your own padlock and empty it when you leave. Lockers can also be rented by the month.

This is a busy teaching pool with a structured, rule-heavy system, which some families find reassuring and others find fussy. It works best for regular lessons. Younger children can’t join drop-in swims at all. There’s a café for parents waiting during lessons.

In the Loures countryside, As Colmeias da Joana in Lousa runs visits about bees and honey. In summer, Lisbon’s outdoor Espassus pool in Carnide is a short drive south and has a children’s pool.

From what age can children swim at Santo António dos Cavaleiros?

Baby classes start at 6 months with an adult, and children’s lessons from 3. Drop-in swimming starts at 8.

Can my 5-year-old come to a drop-in swim?

No. GesLoures’s rules only allow drop-in swimming from age 8, after a swimming test, and with an adult until 13.

Do children need a swim cap?

Yes. Latex or silicone for everyone, lycra for babies.

How much is a pool birthday party?

€13 per child for Loures residents or €14 for others in 2026/27, with a minimum of 10 children and the birthday child free.

Are there summer swimming courses?

Yes, week-long courses from late June to early September for ages 4 and up.