If you arrive in the region during the hot summer months, the lure of the rivers will probably prove irresistible. The water is so clean, so clear, and so cool – what better way to refresh yourself than by taking a dip? (or at least dipping in a toe…)

One of the greatest attractions of the Góis region is the abundance of places to swim in the summer months. There are any number of places along the river Ceira, Sinhal and Sótão where you can find a way into the water, and everyone has their own favourites. The area really does have something to suit everyone, from secluded spots that take a bit of hunting for, to river beaches with full facilities, café-bars and lifeguards, and everything in-between. It is always fun to find your own secluded little piece of riverbank or beach, but here we provide our guide to the most well-known swimming places. The more secluded spots that we know about we have decided to leave for people to discover for themselves – it is more fun that way, and we wont run the risk of publicising somebody’s ‘special place’. We have thoroughly enjoyed undertaking the research, and we include a critique from the point of view of a teenager and a 9-year old.

Below the crags of  Candosa, between Góis and Serpins, is a magnificent gorge through which the Ceira flows. Originally the train line was planned to run up this valley to Góis, but the rock in the gorge proved too great an obstacle. Now the track that was created for the line to follow provides a useful dirt road down to the swimming place at the gorge. Here there is a lovely natural pool, and a narrow passage flanked by the steep sides of the rock face. It is not unusual to find that once at the gorge, it is hard to leave, and some people do choose to pitch a tent and camp overnight. Above the swimming area, you can walk into the old railway tunnel that was excavated up to the point that the rock defeated the project. You can get all the way to the swimming area by car, although parking can be a bit tight.

The youngsters say: “The gorge is a beautiful swimming spot. It is away from the road and it takes a little while to get there. It doesn’t have a café. You can jump off the rocks into the river, but you have to be careful because it’s very high.”

The river beach at Várzea Pequena is one of the two in the ‘Praias Fluviais’ project of the Pinhal Interior that are within the concelho of Góis. This means that facilities have been provided and a lifeguard is on duty for several hours a day during the summer months. This beach also has disabled access. There is an excellent café-bar open from May to September, and facilities for picnicking and barbequeing, including a spacious shaded area under the trees. The car park is very close to all the facilities.

Our young critics say: “The Praia da Canavaias has a rope swing which is fun for kids. There is a very nice café there. You can sunbathe, or sit under a tree in the shade. It’s very good for young children, and there is a lifeguard supervising.”

In Góis itself there are three main places to swim. At the Parque de Cerejal the huge trees shade the picnic tables and there are barbeques to cook on, as well as a café-bar under the bandstand, a football court and a play-park. A beach of sand has been created in the river, accessible in the summer by a little wooden bridge. This is a very popular spot, especially for people with small children, as there is plenty of shallow water to paddle in. You can park the car very close by, right by the river in fact, and there are stone benches to sit on.

The young ones say: “It’s good for children. There’s shallow and deep parts. The beach does have shade, but not until the afternoon. There is a play-park very near it, and a café. You can even have a barbeque if you want!”

This is the main river beach in Góis, one of the two in the ‘Praias Fluviais’ project of the Pinhal Interior that are  within the concelho of Góis. If you walk or drive over the old bridge, as we did the very first time we came to Góis, and see the umbrellas of the riverside café-bar and the sandy beaches, the attraction is irresistible! There is a lifeguard on duty here at the busiest times, and both deep water for swimming and shallow water for paddling. There are boats for hire at the café, that you can take downstream or upstream (if you can carry it over the weir). Car parking is available close by, next to the river, then you walk over or under the bridge to your preferred side.

The kids say: “This is a very busy spot, as it’s in the centre of Góis. There is a great café nearby for ice-cream and snacks. You can sunbathe on the sand or lie on the grass. There is a good place to jump off into the river. We sometimes go there to swim at night too.”

Pego de Escuro means ‘shady pool’, and just a few minutes’ walk (or swim) from the Praia de Peneda is the third of Góis’s swimming places. It is different from the Praia de Peneda, in that it is surrounded by trees, and is usually quiet during the day - although we have heard that it comes alive at night! The café-bar hosts some famous parties, and is a good place for a quiet coffee in the daytime. An old water-wheel still turns, sometimes with an eerie moan, and there is a sandy beach reached by a little wooden bridge. If you walk over the weir, or paddle through the river, you can reach a tree-shaded sandy beach, excellent for an afternoon’s sunbathing. There is shallow water for children’s paddling, and deep water for swimming. You can also drive up and park close by, and we have heard that a footpath is planned to be created alongside the river.

Our children say: “You can take a boat up here - (from the river-bar). There’s a nice little café. There are shady spots. It’s quieter than the main place in Góis, which is sometimes what you want.”

If you carry on driving past the turning to the Pego de Escuro the road eventually ends at the little village of Carcavelos - a place that once had a royal connection, as you may be able to sense. Leave the car parked tidily in the village, and walk along the path that leads on through the houses. As you leave the houses behind you, there is a signed path down to your left, leading down to the river. This path zig-zags down the hill – it is quite steep and rough in places, so you need to be able-bodied and not too weighed-down to follow it down and back up again. When you do get to the river it is well worth the effort, as it tumbles over rocks to form waterfalls you can clamber up and down, below which there is a good stretch for swimming.

Our daughters commented: “We watched a fish jumping up the waterfall when we went there last time. It’s fun to climb on the rocks, but you have to walk to get there. It’s not like any of the other places where we swim – and there’s no café!”

To follow the Ceira upstream, you need to take the road to Colmeal. In the middle of Cabreira, after you take the turning for Cadafaz, park the car beneath the trees on your left and you will see a swimming place beneath the bridge, reached by a short steep cemented slope. The area has been tastefully landscaped in stone, providing steps on which to sit or sunbathe, or you can paddle across the weir to a pebbly beach on the other side. Here you can enjoy a great swim while appreciating the beautiful village of Cabreira above you, and all the facilities you need, including three cafés, are close at hand.

The young ones say: “This is a beautiful swimming spot. It’s so refreshing. There’s not a café at the river but you can always take a picnic.”

Just past the village of Cabreira, towards Colmeal, is an old olive-press with all the little ‘tulhas’ (olive-stores) down by the river, and a delightful medieval bridge. This is one of our favourite swimming spots, since it is so very pretty, and the water cool and clear. Cars can be left in the parking bay at the side of the road, or some people drive theirs right down to the olive stores beside the river. In the summer there is wooden decking and picnic tables provided (but be warned – no toilets). The water beside the picnic area is quite deep – great for swimming and dinghies, and you can scramble down to more shallow water beneath the weir, - this summer a sandy beach was created down there. If you swim upstream you soon find yourself alone with just the fish and the dragonflies for company, and sunflowers and ripening grapes on the bank beside you. A little way along, out of sight of the olive press, or of anyone, are some lovely warm rocks for sunbathing – but that’s just between you and me…

Our young advisors say: “This is another beautiful spot. There is so much space to swim! It has a diving board and a rope swing. It’s lovely to take a picnic down there, where there’s picnic tables. And if you want to do it the Portuguese way, you can cook sardines on the barbeque stand they have there.

Between Sandinha and Colmeal, after you have passed the village of Candosa on your right and the turning to Sobral on your left, you will sooner or later see a small parking bay on your right as the road curves to the left, and in the parking bay a white mailbox. This is the only landmark for the path down to a beautiful pool and waterfall. This was created in the 1940’s by political prisoners under Salazar’s regime, in order to divert the course of the river and make land available for agriculture. Politics aside, this is a lovely out of the way spot, that does entail a little scrambling down to get to. It is worth it when you get there.

But our teenager says: “I don’t really like this place so much because there’s not much space, but most other people do like it! It has got a beautiful waterfall though.

A little way past the village of Colmeal is the last swimming place on the Ceira in the concelho of Góis. Stone steps have been built here to sit on and sunbathe, and there is easy access with room to park close by. The water is deep, wonderful for swimming and dinghies, and very tranquil. Colmeal is only a couple of minutes away, and has two cafés and a general store.

The offspring said: “I really liked this spot. It’s spacious and relaxing. It’s quite a drive to get there from Góis (20km) but I think it’s a beautiful spot.”

The river Sinhel flows through the picturesque little town of Alvares, and the swimming area is centred around the old packhorse bridge that crosses the river. The setting is very beautiful, and there is easy access and car-parking. Several huge-girthed black poplar trees provide shade, and there is a little bar open beside the river and a café just across the road. When we visited we were struck by the potential Alvares has to have a really unique swimming spot, with a little improvement. It looked as if work had been started to make an area for sitting and sun-bathing, but abandoned, and there was nowhere to comfortably sit. The local teenagers preferred to sunbathe on the bridge itself, when they weren’t taking turns to jump off it! The water is very deep at this point, although there are more shallow areas a little way down stream. One thing I feel compelled to comment on however, is the truly ugly concrete building that has been built on stilts across the river, a few metres upstream from the bridge. In my opinion this building, whatever its use (which was not apparent) detracts enormously from the beauty of the bridge, the other buildings around, and the river itself.

The young people’s opinion is: “Alvares is different – not like the other beaches. It has a fantastic bridge to jump off, and lots of room to swim. There is a café nearby. But it’s not very good for sunbathing.

Amiosinho is not the easiest village to locate – the road connecting it to Alvares and Relva da Mó was only built in the 1970’s, and is a narrow, winding single track along the Sinhel valley. But it boasts one of the loveliest swimming places that we have ever come across. There is plenty of space to park the car in the village, and a long, steep flight of concrete steps leads down, and indeed into the river, necessitating a duck under the railing to reach the sunbathing area at the bottom! (Definitely for the reasonably fit and able-bodied.) The area has been landscaped on one side to provide a flat paved sun-bathing area stepped down into the river. It is the clarity of the water that is so remarkable. We have been told by a resident of the village that the limpid water is renowned as being good for rheumatism, and it has a unique turquoise colour. The pool is deep in the middle, shelving at one side, with rocks you can scramble up on to, and is not overlooked by any houses (though it can be seen at a distance from the road). It is surrounded by natural vegetation, though without trees – when we were there in the middle of the day we were in full sun, but we were not complaining!

Our children say: “It’s a beautiful, refreshing, quiet spot. It’s like an outdoor swimming pool. It’s very clean. You can sit on the rocks and sunbathe, and it’s not very public. We had the place to ourselves.”

A few kilometres north of Amiosinho are the twin villages of  Roda Fundeira and Roda Cimeira. You actually have to drive uphill a little way to get to Roda Cimeira, and care must be taken with the car as the streets in the village are very narrow, with few places to turn. You are best advised to park the car outside the village wherever you can do so without obstructing the highway, and walk the rest of the way. Walking through the village, past the café and the chapel, the track leads you down to a wonderful landscaped swimming pool in the river Sinhel. This village, being south-facing, benefits from maximum sunshine, and this swimming area can get very hot, although there are shaded areas to sit in. In contrast to the heat of the surrounds, the water is invigoratingly cold, and the effect can be remarkably like that of taking a sauna. Whenever I swim here I emerge with skin that tingles for hours afterwards!

Our young consultants advise: “We love it! It’s like an outside swimming pool, and you can jump off the edge. There are picnic tables, and lots of space to sunbathe or sit. The water is deep. People go there, but it’s never too crowded.

The Sótão has its source on the Penedo de Góis, and flows down to join the Ceira below Vila Nova do Ceira. On its way, it provides several delightful waterfalls and ‘wild’ swimming places, to be discovered by those prepared to scramble and explore. Some of these are well-kept local secrets! The xisto village of Pena is a good starting point – there are no marked paths, but it is possible to get down here to the river. Happy explorations!