Amsterdam has around a dozen public pools, and the thing that decides whether you get a swim is not which one you pick but which session you turn up for.
Swimming pools to try first
Amsterdam has barely a handful of public pools and this is very nearly all of them, so the choice comes down to hours and what each one was built for rather than to any ranking.
Two of the six publish no opening times at all, which is why their phone numbers are in the text.
De Mirandabad
Slides, artificial waves, a heated outdoor pool and a glass-domed indoor one make De Mirandabad the one to pick when you are taking children rather than swimming lengths.
Its 2,218 reviews are more than double any other pool here, though no opening hours are published, so ring +31 20 252 4444 before setting out.
Sportfondsen Mercator
The longest hours of any pool in the city belong to Mercator on the Jan van Galenstraat, seven in the morning to ten at night on weekdays and eight to six at weekends.
A 3.4 average across 413 reviews is the lowest score in this group, which is worth weighing against a timetable nothing else here can match.
Brediusbad
Outdoors on the Spaarndammerdijk, and the timetable tells you exactly who it is for: lengths from seven in the morning, evening swims from half past five, and a general afternoon session only from Wednesday onwards.
Mondays are closed, and 235 reviews make 4.2 the best score of the six.
Sportfondsenbad
Every day at the Land van Cocagneplein pool in Oost keeps different hours, from a midday start on Monday and Friday to half past seven on Wednesday running through to nine at night.
Weekends finish before half past one, so checking the day you plan to go matters more here than the 3.7 across 574 reviews.
Optisport Bijlmer Sports
Known as De Smagtenbocht and run by Optisport, this is the Zuidoost pool, on the Anton de Komplein with a cafe on site and swimming for all ages and abilities.
Late evenings are Monday, Tuesday and Thursday only, weekends are short, and 539 reviews leave it at 3.7.
Noorderparkbad
Noord’s pool sits on the Sneeuwbalweg beside the park it is named after, and 916 reviews at 3.9 make it the second most talked-about in the city.
Nothing else is published about it, not even opening times, so +31 20 435 2120 is the number to call first.
Sessions, not opening hours
City-run pools publish a rooster, a weekly schedule of sessions, rather than opening hours, and the door being unlocked means nothing if the water is booked.
The three you need to recognise are banenzwemmen (lane swimming, no children, no floats), vrij zwemmen or recreatief zwemmen (open swimming, families, inflatables and noise), and doelgroepzwemmen (sessions reserved for a group, such as women-only, over-fifties or aquajogging).
Lessons take up most of the weekday late afternoon across the whole city, which is why four in the afternoon is the worst possible time to arrive hoping for a lane.
Every municipal pool’s current schedule sits on amsterdam.nl under the pool’s own name, and it changes at school holidays.
The pools not listed above
Sloterparkbad on President Allendelaan in Nieuw-West is the city’s fifty-metre competition pool, and the one to go to if you want a proper long course rather than a leisure basin.
Marnixbad on Marnixplein sits on the western edge of the Jordaan and is the most convenient indoor pool for anyone living in the centre or west.
Flevoparkbad in Oost is outdoor only and open for the summer season, which makes it the other half of the answer alongside Brediusbad in Westerpark.
Sportfondsen Mercator on Jan van Galenstraat covers De Baarsjes and Bos en Lommer, though at 3.4 across 413 reviews it is the weakest score in the city.
Zwembad de Meerkamp is in Amstelveen rather than Amsterdam, which matters for anyone in Buitenveldert deciding between it and De Mirandabad.
The outdoor season
Open-air swimming here runs from late spring to early autumn, and the exact opening and closing dates are announced each year rather than fixed.
Brediusbad, Flevoparkbad and the outdoor basin at De Mirandabad are the three that matter, and all three fill within an hour of opening on the first genuinely hot day.
Go early on weekdays, and check before travelling on a warm Saturday, because pools close their gates once they reach capacity rather than queueing people down the street.
Swimming outside a pool
Open-water swimming is legal and popular at designated spots, and the official ones near the city are the Sloterplas in Nieuw-West, the Gaasperplas in Zuidoost, Het Twiske just north of the ring, and the beach at Blijburg on IJburg.
Water quality at every official swimming location is monitored through the summer and published, with warnings for blue-green algae, so check the current status before getting in rather than judging by how the water looks.
Do not swim in the canals or the IJ: the traffic is the danger rather than the water, and the IJ in particular carries commercial shipping with no room to stop.
Before you go
Take a swimming cap for lane sessions, since some pools require one and none of them lend you one.
Showering before you enter the water is expected rather than suggested, and most pools charge for a locker in coins or by card.
If you swim regularly, ask at the desk about a multi-visit card, and if you hold a Stadspas ask what it covers at that pool, because the discounts differ by location.
To find the pool nearest you, browse the full guide to Amsterdam swimming pools.
Related guides
- A Guide to Spas and Wellness in Amsterdam
- Finding a Doctor in Amsterdam: A Guide
- How to Choose a Personal Trainer in Amsterdam
![Top [count] Travel Blogs to Follow - OnToplist.com](https://www.ontoplist.com/images/ontoplist31.png?id=6a8dcf108f478)