Piscinas Municipais Fernando Cunha

The Piscinas Municipais Fernando Cunha are Torres Novas council’s indoor swimming complex. They were built to host major competitions in swimming, water polo, synchronised swimming and diving, so it’s a serious sports building. For families, that means a lot of water, long opening hours and public swims that cost less than €2 an hour for children.

The council describes two pools in a hall of almost 1,800 m²:

• Pool 1, the competition pool: 25 m by 17 m, 2 m deep at the ends and 2.15 m in the middle. This is too deep for anyone who can’t swim well.
• Pool 2, the learner pool (piscina de aprendizagem): 25 m by 12.5 m, 0.9 to 1.60 m deep.

The learner pool is unusually long for a teaching pool, so older children can swim proper lengths in water where they can stand at the shallow end. There’s no separate toddler splash pool. At 90 cm, even the shallow end is over a toddler’s chest, so small children need to be held or wear armbands.

Beyond the pools there are two changing rooms, each with 12 showers and toilets that include accessible facilities, stands for 400 people, an upstairs bar of about 150 m², a first-aid room and two fitness studios (the Turris Estúdio).

From October to June the pool opens:

• Monday to Friday: 8:00 to 21:30
• Saturday: 9:00 to 13:00 and 15:00 to 18:00
• Sundays and public holidays: closed

Everyone has to be out of the water 30 minutes before closing time.

In July and August 2026 the building ran as a summer pool (piscina de verão) every day from 10:00 to 19:00, with lane swimming for training and fitness on weekdays from 8:00 to 21:30 and at weekends from 10:00 to 19:00.

The reception desk takes payments on weekdays from 8:00 to 21:00 and on Saturdays from 9:00 to 13:00 and 15:00 to 17:30.

Public swimming is called regime livre. The 2026/27 price list:

Ages 6 to 17 and over-60s:

• 1 hour: €1.80
• 2 hours: €2.70
• 10-hour pack: €12.20 (€9.15 in the cheaper hours)
• 30-hour pack: €27.64 (€20.73 in the cheaper hours)

Ages 18 to 59:

• 1 hour: €2.20
• 2 hours: €3
• 10-hour pack: €14.63 (€10.97 in the cheaper hours)
• 30-hour pack: €32.52 (€24.39 in the cheaper hours)

The cheaper hours, called Horário Azul, are weekdays from 8:00 to 17:00 and Saturdays from 15:00 to 18:00. There are also monthly unlimited passes (Aqua Azul and Aqua Livre Trânsito). All users pay a one-off €4.07 for an access card and a €7.32 yearly registration fee.

The price list doesn’t include a public-swim price for under-6s, so ask at reception what applies to little ones.

The council’s Escola Municipal de Natação is the main use of the pool. It groups children by age and ability.

Baby swimming runs from 6 to 48 months in three groups:

• BB 1, 6 to 24 months: parent in the water.
• BB 2, 24 to 36 months: classes start to build the child’s independence from the parent.
• BB 3, 36 to 48 months: the child works in the water without a parent, with the teacher. The council says this stage is about self-confidence and learning to trust the teacher.

The 2026/27 timetable shows baby classes on Tuesday and Wednesday late afternoons and several on Saturday mornings. Baby swimming costs €9 a month for one class a week or €16 for two (€7.65 and €13.60 in the cheaper hours).

Children’s swimming (natação pura) is split into age bands of 4 to 6 and 7 to 15, then over 15, each with levels:

• Level A: water confidence through games, up to learning to kick.
• Level B: first front crawl and backstroke, with starts and turns.
• Level C: perfecting those strokes and learning breaststroke and butterfly.
• Level D: keeping fit and first steps into training.

The timetable has a class for 3-year-olds as well, and most children’s classes run on weekdays between about 17:00 and 19:30 and on Saturday mornings. For ages 4 to 17 the monthly fee is €10.40 for one class a week, €18 for two and €23.40 for three (15% less in the cheaper hours).

The fitness studios also run Yoga Kids on Saturday mornings: one class for babies aged 6 to 24 months and one for children aged 3 to 6.

• The price list and timetable are online as a brochure; the council notes that timetables can change.
• The competition pool is deep throughout, so non-swimmers should stay in the learner pool.
• The building is used for competitions and club training, so some sessions will be busy and noisy.
• Pool rules such as swim caps aren’t published on the council’s page. Take a cap and flip-flops in case they’re needed, and ask at reception.

Torres Novas is in the middle of the Ribatejo, close to several of our listings. The Centro Ciência Viva do Alviela in Alcanena has hands-on science about water, caves and bats. The national railway museum in Entroncamento is a short drive south, and the dinosaur footprints at the Serra de Aire are north-west towards Fátima.

How much is a swim at the Torres Novas pool?

For ages 6 to 17 it was €1.80 for an hour and €2.70 for two hours on the 2026/27 price list; adults paid €2.20 and €3. You also need a user card (€4.07) and a yearly registration (€7.32).

Is there a toddler pool?

No. The learner pool starts at 90 cm, so toddlers need to be held or wear armbands. Baby swimming classes start at 6 months.

Is the pool open in summer?

Yes. In July and August 2026 it opened every day from 10:00 to 19:00 as a summer pool.

At what age can my child join a class without me?

In the BB 3 group, from 36 months, children are in the water with the teacher and without their parent.

Is it open on Sundays?

Not from October to June. In July and August 2026 it opened every day.