London has sailed handsomely into spring this week. If the past few months have been marked by a tin-coloured sky, today they are but a memory: temperatures will top 27ºC this week and the sun is showing no signs of letting up, with the minor heatwave expected to run into next week.
With London gracefully bounding into May it’s time to enjoy this new-found sunshine by diving into one of the city’s best outdoor swimming spots.
Happily, London is blessed with numerous lidos, alfresco pools and even a reservoir or two. Most offer more than just a spot to splash about, with cafes, exercise classes, sun beds and plenty more besides. Grab your cossie and take heed of the best of them.
Brockwell boasts an Olympic length pool, health suite and fitness centre, so it’s well kitted out. You can take the plunge in the lido from 6.30am on most days (later for the spa), and there are all sorts of workout classes available, from outdoor yoga to zumba. Follow up a dip with a trip to the Art Deco Grade II-listed Lido Café.
This heated rooftop pool is just five minutes from Holborn, making it the West End’s only outdoor heated pool open to the public. It tends to get busy on warm days, though at less than 30m long it’s not the place for a thorough workout or truly serious swimmers. But the location is ideally suited to weekdays and it’s open until 10pm on weekdays, which is handy for those hoping to enjoy a spot of evening sun, post-office. If you’re done in the pool, there are also squash courts and a gym.
This 60m unheated pool on Hampstead Heath is often busy, no doubt thanks to its cleanliness and beautiful location. For those wanting to get away from small, splashy children, there are adult-only swimming sessions that can be booked through the summer months, from late May. Whatever the day, there’s a good cafe on site, and Parliament Hill has the distinction of being the only outdoor pool in the UK with a stainless steel liner, which gives the water an unusual and – in the right light – a glamorous metallic shimmer. Note too that under 16s and over 60s swim free of charge before 9.30am, and it’s open every day of the year.
The swimming ponds might be the highlight of Hampstead Heath. Certainly, they are famous. There are three to swim in: one for men, elevated on a hillock; one for women, veiled by oak trees in a corner of the heath; and a mixed pond. If you’re looking for a decent, less crowded swim, go segregated. Children must be accompanied at all ponds and the single-sex ponds are for over-8s only. Mostly, families stick to the mixed area.
In excellent condition thanks to an £8million makeover, alongside the 50m long pool (also an impressive 23m wide), there are now new changing areas, bathroom facilities, and reception area and café. There’s also a children’s pool for families. Things get going at 6.30am each morning and sessions can be prebooked online. It’s been going since 1926 for good reason.
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Having been shut since late 2022 for refurbishments, London’s oldest lido (and the largest freshwater open-air pool in England at just over 90m long) reopened to the public last year with much fanfare. Improvements have been made: there’s both a new UV filtration and water purification system in place. Handy too is the on-site shop, picnic area and café, while there’s designated parking and a hoist for disabled swimmers. It’s open earlier than most, from 6am.
The 50m long London Fields Lido is heated, and includes lane swimming for those serious about their dip and classes for those seeking to improve their speed and technique. Check the timetable, as there are relaxed sessions for parents and children, or those just hoping to cool off. Whatever the exercise, head to the cafe afterwards, or doze on the sun deck.
Beckenham Place Park Lake
Those in Lewisham with a penchant for wild swimming should head here, a lake that was refilled after having sat dormant and drained for decades. Lifeguards watch on, with prebooking a spot required. All swimmers must be over 8 and able to swim 25m unaided. All are asked to respect the wildlife. Duck mites are common when the water temperature gets past 16ºC, and so “swimmer’s itch” is possible. Paddle boarding and yoga are available.
Serpentine Lido
Sunbathe here for one of the best views in London, with a pavilion, lush trees and, beyond these, towering skyscrapers reaching up from our fair city. Often reserved for members of the Serpentine Swimming Club, the general public are allowed to get involved from mid-May. Be warned that you’ll be sharing the water with local ducks and swans – but by nearly all accounts, they’re friendly, and the water is regularly tested to ensure it’s safe. For food and drink, try the Serpentine Bar & Kitchen or the Lido Café and Bar.
Hillingdon Sport and Leisure Complex
Formerly known as the Uxbridge Lido, this 1930s, Grade II-listed spot is really rather beautiful. The heated open-air pool is 50m, with fountains at either end. The lido is in excellent shape, having been restored in 2010, and there’s plenty of room to sunbathe and enjoy the poolside food and drink. The leisure complex is packed out with everything from 3G football pitches to a 400m athletics track and, if the weather is off, an indoor pool of the same size.
Despite perhaps not being as well known as some others on this list, Hampton is well worth a trip. There are two heated pools; the primary one is 36m, while the second is a learner pool for children and their parents. They’re open year-round, including Christmas, and the main pool is sometimes divided up into lanes, or split down the middle for lane swimming on one side and fun on the other. Once you’re done here, head out to Royal Bushy Park, next door.
For a rousing outdoor swim, the Docks are hard to beat. It’s a welcoming place for all types of outdoor swimmer, whether new to it all and hoping to take it easy in the casual area, or a seasoned pro ready for one of the 1500m sessions. Organisers check the water every fortnight to make sure it’s all in order. Annual membership (£15) is required alongside the £9.50-per-swim fee, and everything is regulated. Tea, coffee and hot chocolate are available, just remember it’s BYOM (bring your own mug).
Swimmers in the sun at Charlton Lido
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A fully heated 50m pool is the highlight of Charlton Lido, which is in tip-top condition thanks to a £5m refurbishment in 2013. There are two sun terraces, a gym and a fitness studio. They’ve even got eight tennis courts close by, which are flood lit, so games can be enjoyed through the evening. One of the cleanest pools going and lovely come evening, when the sun sets over Shooters Hill, though it’s open from 6am too, for the morning people.
Up in Barnet is an unheated and not especially well-sized outdoor pool. And it doesn’t open unless the outside temperature ticks past 20ºC. That said, when it is warm, it’s absolutely worth a journey — and after a good swim, enjoy the bowling alley, the cinema, and the indoor sports centre to boot. There’s an indoor pool in the gym and a grassy terrace outside for sun-kissed downtime.
There are two pools here. The one outdoors, 33m long, is now open year round. The facilities are perhaps now a little tired, though arguably unbeatable considering a swim might be combined with a stroll among the deer. Unsurprisingly, the outside pool is chillier, kept at a clement 24°C, but it also happens to be the larger of the two. Swimming lessons are on offer for all ages and abilities, and there’s both a fitness suite and indoor cycle studio on site as well.
Stoke Newington West Reservoir
One for the real hardy types — those who fancy a proper outdoor dip (still, don’t confuse it with the east reservoir). Naturally, the water isn’t heated, and there are no lanes or any of that, but there’s a tremendous sense of freedom and space abounds.
The Denham waterski club has marked out a huge swimming zone — 500m in length — and anyone over the age of 16 is welcome each morning (from 7.30am or 8am, depending on the day, until around 9.45am), with the 2025 season now underway. Wetsuits are advised and everyone swimming must wear a brightly coloured swimming cap for their own safety. A full list of rules is available on their site and is a must read. Being here feels like being out in the country for a while. It’s a spectacular spot.