Somewhere where I can swim.. and look at things

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I'm looking for a holiday of up to a week in late September, somewhere where I can get a bit of warmth before the winter. Because I'll be by myself I know I'll get bored with just sitting on a beach, so would like to be somewhere where there are interesting things to do/see, as well as well as swim. Places like Split/Dubrovnik or Valencia/Barcelona - but I've been to all of those. Any other ideas? It probably needs to be within Europe, due to budget/time, and the swimming doesn't have to be in the sea.

Have you ever looked at swim trek holidays?

Budapest maybe? They have a thermal spring. It's on my list at some point !

How about Bavaria?
Fabulous lake swimming and lots of cultural type stuff to do/see as well

Amalfi Coast. You can walk/drive/bus
/boat around Amalfi, Positano, Capri, Sorrento etc all beautiful…

Cruise?

Denmark? Though you may find it’s not as warm as you want by end of September - gorgeous lake and outdoor pool swimming though so for another time would highly recommend!

Swimming off Dubrovnik / Lokrum is one of my favourite things. We did go to Split but I didn't find the swimming as good. I like to swim off rocks rather than beach and the port is very central in Split itself whereas Dubrovnik, Gruz is away from the old town so there isn't lots of marine "traffic". September, the sea is still quite warm too.

Greece for sure. So much choice!

We loved Malta and loads of things to see

Cote d'Azur. Lots to see and do and not only is the sea amazing to swim in but if you take yourself up to the Gorge du Verdon it is absolutely spectacular and perfect for swimming aswell.

Swim in a crystal clear river, amongst the fish, with monkeys and macaws in the trees! https://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/Attraction_Review-g303349-d2225119-Reviews-Recanto_Ecologico_Rio_da_Prata-Bonito_State_of_Mato_Grosso_do_Sul.html

Not easy to get to but lovely. I've often wondered if there is anything similar in Europe.

The Cenotes in the Yucutan peninsular, plus some Mayan ruins 👌

@PinkPondQueen just jumping in here. Where would you recommend on the Côte d’Azur for sea swimming? Thanks.

We were in Menton last year in June. It was lovely. It's right on the border to Italy, close to Monaco, Nice etc. Lots to see in the area, and a lovely beach.

@Chelsea26 Weirdly enough, I came back from the Amalfi Coast a couple of weeks ago. The weather was poor, and I only got to swim once, which is one of the reasons why I'm looking for another holiday!

Sitges (south of barcelona) beautiful town with gorgeous beaches and fiestas in September. Loads of nice restaurants, museums etc. And it's quite upmarket

Crete - lots of interesting towns and history as well as sun and warm sea in September

Lake Garda - weather not always reliable tho as it’s mountainous

Sicily? I’ve never been but it’s on my list, sounds perfect for what you want

Madeira or Malta could work too

We've swum in lots of places, Menton was lovely as another poster has mentioned plus Antibes, Saint Maxime, Le Lavandou but my absolute favoutite was l'Escalet and Cap Taillat which is just around the bay from St Tropez and is also where the beach scenes were filmed in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang 😍

Palma? Beautiful old town full of museums and galleries to explore and if you stay a little along the coast further from the harbour then lovely swimming too.

Alghero.
Or if you would combine it with walking, Lake Bohinj in Slovenia. And Lake Bled, but I’d stay in Bohinj.

Some brilliant ideas here - thank you! I'm particularly interested in Sitges and Palma, so will investigate further!

SICILY!

I did a solo trip there last year in Late Sept/early Oct. Swam most days (the days I didn’t swim were because of day trips to Etna, Taormina, Agrigento etc.)

Some of the suggestions on this thread are going to be too cold in late Sept frankly!

I second crete. Loads of options and lots of history/things to see.

Left field - Iceland. Some amazing thermal pools and rivers to swim in, and there’s a great culture of public swimming pools. You can even put on a serious wetsuit and scuba between the American and European continents.

Plus all the other amazing geology/ Viking stuff to look at.

Malaga! Can't recommend it highly enough. Cheap flights, great food & drink, lots of lovely arty farty attractions, fantastic beach, markets, music, good hotels. Just a great vibe. I went alone in December and it was perfect.