Natural Swimming Pool El Guincho, Tenerife island, Spain

Architects: Fernando Menis.

Location: Adeje, Tenerife, Spain.

Use: Natural swimming pool.

Structure: Concrete.

Materials: Local stone, concrete.

Status: Completed 1993.

Client: Samitensa SL.

Southern Tenerife El Guincho Natural Swimming Pool redirects the energies found in the well known force of the Atlantic Ocean to fill and renew the volume of water that supplies the pool in a natural way. Again, a low cost architecture case and social architecture also. For the construction of this sustainable and healthy work of architecture a tide calendar was consulted to determine the times of high and low tides according to the moon. This chart defined the day of the year with the lowest tide at this point of the island. The islands in the Canarian Archipelago are surrounded by natural swimming pools which seem to be made by the gods for the enjoyment of humankind. The passage of time is imprinted on all the materials used, providing them with their own personality, blended with the Mediterranean and African culture of this place. El Guincho Natural Swimming Pool recycles the energy of the sea to consolidate a tourist attraction on the coast with sustainable architecture that prevents an uncontrolled development, improves the image of the island, and helps the evolution of an economic architecture influenced by tourism. This soft intervention minimizes the impact on the landscape and uses the natural resources of the place, betting for a sustainable architecture needed in a tourism that aspires doing an investment for the future.