I had a girls day with the big one yesterday while baby bro was in nursery, so I took advantage of having just 1 kid and took her swimming – her fave thing to do. This girl loves swimming. She constantly asks to go “fun swimming”. (By which she just means not her swimming lesson.) We’ve got a few days over summer where her wee bro will be in nursery so I’m planning on taking her to a couple of the fun swimming pools around Glasgow that she loves.

I quite like it too. Swimming tires my kids out so much, and bedtimes are always easier after a swim. It’s also a great way to cool down on a hot day, a bonus in muggy weather. And a great way to spend time indoors without it costing the earth on days when it’s horrible weather outside.

To be honest the kids don’t mind where we go for a swim as long as they can splash and jump in, but some pools are definitely better than others. So I thought I’d share our favourite fun swimming pools around Glasgow that my kids enjoy.

Sadly the fun stuff has been taken away from most of the pools within Glasgow Council. Most recently, just after lockdown ended the flume in Bellahouston pool was removed. I think the only one left within Glasgow that has fun stuff is the Gorbals Leisure Centre, but there are a few others around that we like going to when we want something more than just a pool.

Gorbals Leisure Centre

The Gorbals swimming pool has a beach entry pool which leads into a river rapids area. In the centre of this area there is a jacuzzi bit with bubbly seats which my kids love splashing about in. There is a flume here too which is open at certain times on weekends and during school holidays. It also has a bigger 25m swimming pool.

Ratios

  • 3 years and under 1 adult can accompany 1 child only.
  • 4-7 years 1 adult can accompany 2 children.

Cost

£3 for adults, £1 for under 16’s.

Pros

Nice wee beach entry pool. Never been too busy when we’ve been along.

Cons

Closed at various times throughout the week for swimming lessons.

Eastwood Park Leisure Centre

Eastwood pool has a nice wee kids pool that is a great depth for toddlers to splash around in. It has a couple of little slides too. It also has a bigger 25m swimming pool.

There’s a whole post on Eastwood pool here.

Ratios

A bit more complicated… 

  • 8 years & under with no armbands 1 adult:1 child.
  • 8 years & under with armbands on 1 adults:2 children. If one child is aged 5-7 and has a swim competency award, ratio is 1 adult:3 children provided all others wear armbands.

Cost

£3.30 for adults, £2.30 for under 16’s.

Pros

Never been too busy when we’ve been along. Nice wee toddler area.

Cons

Closed (for pensioner only sessions) at various times throughout the week. Check the timetable before heading along! Also they rarely answer the phone in my experience.

Hamilton Water Palace

Hamilton Water Palace has a great splash pool with a few tiny slides (quite fast ones that splash into the pool). Its main attraction for the little kids is a tall pirate ship they can play on (watch out for the bucket that tips water on you) and with a slide coming down the side of it back into the pool. The “fun pool” as the little lady calls is has rapids, an outdoor pool (open when the temperature is right), a wee not-too-warm spa pool and some bubble beds at the edge of the water.

The Water Palace also has a fast rubber ring slide & a flume. Both have 1m height requirement and the little lady absolutely loves them. Neither of them are too scary – she’s been going on them since she turned 5 anyway. The main 25m swimming pool sometimes has some fun inflatables (I think it actually was a foam thing you had to walk across but it was like the inflatable things you have try to get to the end of) during school holidays. (Kids have to be able to swim a certain length to be able to use these).

There’s a whole post on Hamilton Water Palace here.

Ratios

  • 3 & under 1 adult : 1 child.
  • 4-7yrs 1 adult : 2 children.

Cost

£5.40 for adults, £3.20 for under 16’s, free for under 4’s. Family swim (2 adults, 2 children), £13.85.

Pros

Lots of fun for little kids. Not too expensive for the time you can spend there and the number of things there are to do. The best pool for 3yrs +. They’ve got a full body drier by the showers that the kids love getting a heat in before we get dressed. (You need a £1 coin for that.)

Cons

It does get pretty busy and pretty noisy here. You need to pay for parking outside too.

ON-X

The ON-X in Linwood has a pool with a wee lazy river and a few flumes. The red flume has a height restriction of 1.2m and the yellow one has a height restriction of 1.4m. Kids can go down the red flume on an adults knee if they are under 1.2m though. There’s also the main 25m swimming pool and a smaller (and warmer) teaching pool.

Ratios

  • Under 8yrs with no armbands 1 adult : 1 child
  • Under 8 yrs 1 adult : 2 children
    • If one child aged 5-7 yrs has a swim competency award ratio is 1 adult : 3 children provided that the others are wearing armbands

Cost

£4.20 for adults, £2 for under 16’s, free for under 5’s.

Pros

The best pool ratios around, and free for under 5’s.

Cons

I have a tall almost 6 yr old and she isn’t quite 1.2m yet, so she would need to go on someone’s knee down the red slide. Which means that I’d need another adult to supervise the other one!

Paisley Lagoon Centre

The main pool at the Lagoon Centre is a beach entry pool with a wave machine. Last time we were there they had a big inflatable course out which meant that the waves weren’t on. (As above, kids have to be able to swim a certain length to be able to use the inflatables). Paisley also has a nice warm kids pool that sometimes has a bunch of foam floaty things and balls in it to play with.

Ratios

  • 3 & under 1 adult : 1 child
  • 4-7yrs 1 adult : 2 children

Cost

£4.20 for adults, £2 for under 16’s, free for under 5’s.

Pros

An easy pool for young kids as the beach entry bit is big. Also the free under 5’s is good too.

Cons

The car park isn’t huge & you need to pay and display. You do get refunded inside the leisure centre for parking though. Inflatable fun sessions are a bit mental so check before you go when these are on if you won’t be using them!

The Time Capsule

The main pool at the Time Capsule is a beach entry pool with a wave machine & waterfall features. There is a small slide off to the side that the little man loved the last time he was there. There are some family slides (I remember these from when I was kid – they used to have dinosaurs looking down at you) leading round to a lazy rive.

There’s a big splash pad area with water squirters and a massive bucket that tips out every 10 minutes or so. This is a really big bucket – you’ll hear the warnings prior to it tipping but definitely make sure your tiny one isn’t in the way or they’ll get knocked off their feet with the force of the water coming down.

The Time Capsule also has 2 big flumes and a big rubber ring slide. These all have a 1.2m height requirement & the flumes have a minimum age 8.

Ratios

  • 3 & under 1 adult : 1 child
  • 4-7yrs 1 adult : 2 children

Cost

£7.85 for adults, £5.90 for 5-16’s, £3.20 for 3-4’s, free for under 3’s.

Pros

A really fun place. Even though we couldn’t use the big 3 flumes there was still plenty to occupy us (me & 5 yr old) for the allotted time.

Cons

It is an expensive few hours out, but if you have kids who are confident in the water it’s worth it, even if they don’t meet the 1.2m height restriction. There are hordes of teenagers jumping about though.

Falkirk Mariner Centre

This is probably our favourite pool for when we’re all going swimming together. The pool is beach entry with a wave machine & there are always foam floaty things to play with in here. There is a nice not-too-big frog slide that splashes you into the deep end of the main pool. Just to give an age range for it, the little lady has been using that by herself since she turned 4 – you can catch them at the bottom. It’s a good fast slide & a big favourite of Big A.

There’s also a smaller pool just off the main pool that the waves don’t get to when it’s wavy. This has a couple of smaller-but-still-fast slides and a bunch of little interactive boards like mirrors and things they can spin. Little A really enjoys these.

Ratios

  • 1 adult : 2 children under 8 with stipulations:
    • If both children are 4-7yrs or one is under 4, both children must wear armbands
    • If both children are under 4 they must both wear armbands and remain within 1m depth or less at all times

Cost

£4.40 for adults, £2.50 for under 16’s, free for under 3’s.

Pros

Fantastic place for young kids. Keeps the little lady super happy too at age almost 6.

Cons

There aren’t any big flumes. And it’s a bit farther than the rest.

I will be updating this list at we find more that we enjoy, but for now that’s all folks. If there are any others that you and your little ones enjoy let me know in the comments below!