Piscinas Municipais de São Brás de Alportel

São Brás de Alportel, in the hills north of Faro, has two municipal pools less than a kilometre apart, and they take turns. The indoor pool (Piscinas Municipais Cobertas) runs from mid September to the end of June. When it closes for its summer maintenance, the outdoor pool (Piscinas Municipais Descobertas) opens for the hot months. The same user card works at both, and children up to 6 swim free at both.

The indoor complex has been open since 2008 in the town’s Parque de Desporto e Lazer. It’s built from brecha, the local stone, with a glass wall facing south to let the daylight in. The council publishes the details:

• A 25-metre pool with six lanes, 15.5 metres wide and 2 to 2.2 metres deep, kept at about 28 °C.
• A learner pool (tanque de aprendizagem or tanque pequeno), 12.5 by 6 metres and 1 to 1.2 metres deep, kept at about 29.5 °C.
• A sauna and steam room, a massage centre, a first-aid room and four changing rooms.

The learner pool is warm, but at a metre deep it’s out of standing depth for toddlers, so small children need to be held.

The complex is open from 16 September to 30 June. Hours are Monday and Thursday 08:00 to 13:30 and 15:00 to 21:00; Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 09:00 to 13:30 and 15:00 to 21:00; Saturday 09:00 to 19:00. It’s closed on Sundays, public holidays and Carnival Tuesday. In 2026 it reopened on 16 September.

Public swimming indoors

Public swimming (regime livre) is sold in 90-minute entries. You need the pools’ user card first: fill in a form on your first visit and pay €17.41, which includes accident insurance and lasts for life (insurance renews at €6.97 a season). Prices in the 2026/2027 leaflet:

• Up to age 6: free.
• Ages 7 to 10: €2.05, or €18.44 for 10 entries and €32.78 for 20.
• Ages 11 to 16 and adults: €2.56, or €23.05 for 10 and €40.97 for 20.

For families with little ones, the timing that matters is when the small pool is free for public use. The council’s sheet (marked “subject to change”) gives:

• Monday: 12:30 to 13:30 and 15:00 to 16:00.
• Tuesday and Wednesday: around lunchtime, 12:15 or 12:30 to 13:30.
• Thursday: 12:30 to 13:30 and 15:00 to 16:00.
• Friday: 12:15 to 13:30 and 15:00 to 16:45.
• Saturday: 13:00 to 15:30 and 17:30 to 19:00.

After school on weekdays the small pool is full of lessons, so Saturday afternoon is the easiest time for a family swim.

Swimming lessons at the Escola Municipal de Natação

The municipal swimming school runs from 1 October. Its classes, listed in the council’s September 2026 agenda, go from baby classes through water confidence (adaptação ao meio aquático), learning to swim (aprendizagem), improvers (aperfeiçoamento) and pre-competition, plus classes for people with disabilities. Baby classes (Bebés 1 to 4) run on some weekday evenings and on Saturdays, in half-hour sessions; water-confidence classes (AMA) run on weekday evenings.

Monthly fees in the 2026/2027 leaflet: baby classes once a week and water-confidence classes €18.44 a month for once a week or €24.58 for twice; baby classes twice a week, learning and improvers classes €24.58. Pay by the 8th of each month to keep your child’s place. Sign up at the pool, by phone on 289 840 070 or by email.

At the end of the 2025/26 season, the swim school held an open day with inflatables in the pools, which about 200 children, teenagers and families went to, according to the regional press.

Indoor rules

The leaflet makes these compulsory: a swim cap, flip-flops, close-fitting Lycra trunks for boys and men and a full one-piece swimsuit for girls and women. You need the user card to get in.

The outdoor complex was built in 1989 in the grounds of the old Episcopal Palace of the Algarve, known as the Jardim da Verbena. The council refurbished it after 30 years, redoing the pools and water treatment and making the whole site accessible to people with reduced mobility.

What’s there, according to the council:

• A main pool, 25 by 12.5 metres, from 1.10 metres at the shallow end to 3 metres at the deep end, with a diving board. Average water temperature about 24 °C.
• A children’s pool (piscina infantil), 10.5 metres square and 60 cm deep all over, at about 25 °C.
• Changing rooms, a bar, a first-aid post, a big lawn and a children’s playground.

It’s popular: in summer 2025 the pools recorded 26,361 entries, 592 of them on the busiest day, 3 August, according to council figures reported by Mais Algarve.

In 2026 the outdoor pool opened from 15 June to 13 September. Hours were Monday 14:00 to 19:00 and Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 19:00. The council holds summer events there too; in September 2026 its agenda listed a “Bye Bye Summer” sunset afternoon for young people at the pool.

In late July 2026 the council closed the outdoor pools temporarily after routine water tests found staphylococcus bacteria above the reference levels, and said it would reopen them once new tests were clear, CNN Portugal reported. The pools were back in use by September, when the council held its end-of-summer event there.

Outdoor prices

Day entry in the June 2026 price table:

• Up to age 6: free.
• Ages 7 to 10: €1.02 with the pools’ user card, €2.05 without.
• Ages 11 to 16: €1.54 with the card, €3.07 without.
• 17 and over: €2.56 with the card, €5.12 without.
• Guests staying in tourist accommodation in the municipality, booked in advance through their accommodation and the council: €3.59.

Families who’ll go more than a few times save money by getting the card (€17.41), which also works at the indoor pool.

Outdoor rules parents should know

The council’s rules sheet for the outdoor complex says:

• Children under 10 must be with an adult.
• Children aged 10 to 16 can only come on their own with a signed authorisation from a parent (the form is on the council website).
• Lifeguards are on duty whenever the pools are open.
• No parasols, tents or other shade you bring yourself.
• No balls, inflatables, lilos, fins or boards. Any float for a child needs the lifeguard’s permission.
• No eating or drinking by the pools or on the grass; use the bar.
• Change only in the changing rooms, and don’t leave clothes or shoes outside them.
• No photos without permission from the pool manager.
• No animals except guide dogs, and no smoking.

• The ban on bringing your own shade at the outdoor pool matters on a hot Algarve afternoon. Check what shade there is on the lawn before settling in with a baby.
• The no-inflatables rule means armbands and rings need the lifeguard’s say-so, so ask when you arrive.
• The indoor pool is closed on Sundays, and public-swim time in the small pool is short on weekdays.
• In March 2026 the small indoor pool closed for two weeks to replace floor tiles, while the big pool stayed open, and in July 2026 the outdoor pools shut for a time after a failed water test. Short closures like these happen, so ring before a special trip.

São Brás is a short drive inland from the coast. Loulé’s municipal pools and its municipal park are the nearest alternatives, and the Loulé rock salt mine makes an unusual rainy-day trip. Towards the coast, Faro’s Parque de Lazer das Figuras has play space, and Praia de Faro is the city’s beach.

Do children need a swim cap in São Brás de Alportel?

Yes at the indoor pool, where a cap, flip-flops and close-fitting swimwear are compulsory. The outdoor pool’s rules sheet doesn’t list a cap, so check at the gate.

Is there a baby pool?

The outdoor pool has a children’s pool 60 cm deep, open in summer. The indoor learner pool is 1 to 1.2 metres deep, so toddlers need holding.

How much does it cost?

Children up to 6 swim free at both pools. Indoors, a 90-minute swim costs €2.05 for ages 7 to 10 and €2.56 from 11, with the €17.41 user card. Outdoors, day entry runs from €1.02 to €5.12, depending on age and whether you have the card.

Is the indoor pool heated?

Yes. The council gives average temperatures of 28 °C in the big pool and 29.5 °C in the learner pool.

Can my 12-year-old go to the outdoor pool alone?

Only with a signed parental authorisation form. Children under 10 must always be with an adult.

When is each pool open?

The indoor pool runs from 16 September to 30 June. The outdoor pool runs through the summer; in 2026 it was open from 15 June to 13 September.