Fairchild Swimming Pool is part of Fairchild Park located near the city cemeteries near Houston St…read more As far as I can tell, this is the closest to downtown free swimming pool. It is one of several public swimming pools run by San Antonio Parks and Rec. All outdoor public swimming pools run by the city are free to all, open six days a week throughout the summer swimming season, and follow very similar rules and protocol. This review will focus on Fairchild Swimming Pool and what sets it apart from other city swimming pools. As with most city pools, you are required to sign in at the front desk with name, age group, and gender. These roles help the parks department obtain funding to continue operation of the pools, so it is very important to sign in. A family favorite, and not just because it was the closest to our home. Fairchild Pool has had consistent and mature staff over the past few seasons so the lifeguards are no greenhorns to the job. To pool is fairly basic and a short walking distance from the parking lot, but your car remains in sight which can be important in this area. Fairchild Pool has a large shallow swimming area and a decent sized deep area ranging from 3ft to 9ft. This pool used to have a diving board but it was removed after a tragic accident during the 2017 season. The good that came out of it is the pool was completely renovated over the spring in 2018 with new pump equipment and a pool lift, making this one of the more fresh feeling pools to swim in. It can be incredibly refreshing to dive in after a long day. Fairchild Pool is one of a handful a pools not running at the normal 1pm to 7pm hours, it opens at 2pm and runs until 8pm. the entire pool is surrounded by concrete which can become blisteringly hot in the summer. Be warned. The west side of the pool has decent tree coverage for the bi-hourly swimming breaks times for the pool pH to settle. Food is not allowed, although you may bring drinking water. There are both Men's and Women's bathrooms with a small dressing area, and a shower off area near the pool entrance. Radios seem pretty well tolerated here, and someone is usually rocking music at either side of the pool. Fairchild Pool is rarely busy as Lincoln Pool is just up the street, so there is always ample room to play or swim laps. The southeast corner of the pool does have a problem with wasps every now and then, but it's not too bad. Interesting tidbit, from the south side of the pool, you can see the Mass Grave of Alamo Defenders in the Oddfellow Cemetery.

I'm calling and no one answer me we want to know if it's open cause it is really hot outsideread more

Great pool, especially during the summer!…read more Bonus: sometimes during lunch a group of Fire Fighters come by and swim for an hour or so! Talk about nice eye candy!

I went to the highly rated SA Natatorium today because Northside pools were closed and I really…read morewanted to swim. Unfortunately, my experience was not the best. The bottom of the lap pool was dirty, strewn with many band aids and hair scrunchies. The water was cloudy and too warm for lap swimming at 85 degrees F. However, most impressive was the women's changing room that looked brand new. But it would be nice to see the Natatorium pools cleaned up to attract more swimmers.

Roosevelt Swimming Pool is part of Roosevelt Park south of downtown. It is one of several public…read moreswimming pools run by San Antonio Parks and Rec. All outdoor public swimming pools run by the city are free to all, open six days a week throughout the summer swimming season, and follow very similar rules and protocol. This review will focus on Roosevelt Swimming Pool and what sets it apart from other city swimming pools. As with most city pools, you are required to sign in at the front desk with name, age group, and gender. These roles help the parks department obtain funding to continue operation of the pools, so it is very important to sign in. Roosevelt Pool is a throwpack to 1950's pool design. Larger than most city pools, Roosevelt also is kidney shaped with several rows of concrete bleachers. This is one of the more popular pools and there are always dozens of people in the water, especially at the shallow end. It can get very crowded in the shallow area on weekends and holidays. The depth ranges from 3ft to about 10ft. There is usually ample room for swimming laps although the pool sides in the deep end can become crowded with teenagers, and we all know how they can be. Although it is a bigger pool, parking is limited, and you may find yourself waiting or walking up a stretch of hill to the entrance. There are male and female changing rooms that double as bathrooms. Roosevelt Pool is feeling its age, and you will want to be careful not to cut yourself on the rough cracks on the walls and floor of the pool. They hurt! The pool has a small waterslide for the kids, but they rarely open it up all season. Not sure why, but they just don't seem to like to. The manager for this pool is not the friendliest, and that attitude is passed along to the lifeguards who can be surly but are generally nice. Fruit and water are allowed in the pool area, but no other food. They have hourly or bi-hourly breaks for pH leveling, and you will spend between 20-30 minutes of time out of the water per break. The concrete can be very hot and shade is limited.

Went to a birthday party and the kids had so much fun! So many tables available. Was not overly…read morecrowded

To be honest this is pretty good. It's clean, it's well maintained and it's got plenty of room for…read moremultiple sports even. My kids have swam competitions here, and now they practice all year round here. It's indoors meaning it's open rain or shine. They're raising champions here folks, but really I just enjoy watching my kids enjoy getting better at swimming. The maximum occupancy of the pool is 483, but they never have that many folks in here training all at once. Pool hours start as early as 6am M-F. Lap swim from 1100-1300, M-Su.

I attended a college swim meet at this new natatorium and I was impressed with how quickly and…read moreefficiently the meet was run. The only drawbacks were the lack of parking, difficulty seeing the scoreboard from certain lanes, and lack of seating for spectators. However, the facilities are very nice and the pool is conveniently located in central San Antonio.

Great place, people are friendly and knowledgeable. They have very good classes, instructors,…read moreequipment..including an e-gym circuit training program that's very effective & cool. If you play pickleball, they have a few courts & the morning open pickleball is quite busy!

I loved training at this gym facility!…read more Very modern, clean, spacious, and organized. There is so much equipment here which is well maintained. So many benches, machines, free weights, dumbbells, and cardio equipment. Everything is spread out so you don't feel you're in top of each other. Even the bathroom was fresh and clean. Front desk staff was very helpful. When I told them I was in town for a few days on biz they worked out a nice daily rate deal so I could get in my training without taking a big hit on my credit card. Nice crowd here too. Not a typical meathead group but more everyday middle of the road people more interested in staying fit and healthy.

Concepcion Swimming Pool is part of Concepcion Park which is just down the road from Mission…read moreConcepcion. Notice a pattern here? It is one of several public swimming pools run by San Antonio Parks and Rec. All outdoor public swimming pools run by the city are free to all, open six days a week throughout the summer swimming season, and follow very similar rules and protocol. This review will focus on Concepcion Swimming Pool and what sets it apart from other city swimming pools. As with most city pools, you are required to sign in at the front desk with name, age group, and gender. These roles help the parks department obtain funding to continue operation of the pools, so it is very important to sign in. Concepcion Pool is a moderate sized pool. Unlike some of the other pools, this pool does not have a diving board or water slide. It's a moderate sized pool running from 3ft to 9ft deep, most of which is on the shallower side. Great pool for the kids. If you're looking for something deeper or larger, Roosevelt Pool is only five minutes away. I always see tons of families at Concepcion Pool with lots of little kids. The staff and lifeguards are friendly and talkative. Parking is never a problem, and thanks to the surrounding park, there are picnic tables and grills to use if you want to spend an afternoon, though note only water is allowed in the pool area. The pool is partially shaded in afternoons. I have noticed, the chlorine content is a little higher here, and have had to leave because of breathing issues and itchy eyes, so keep an eye on you and your kids while at this pool.

My initial visit went fairly well. The ladies at the counter were a bit cold shouldered, not…read morereadily offering information to newcomers about the pool without a bit of prodding in my questions. When I left for the day I did leave them with smiles. I was AMAZED at how this pool is FREE this year (2016)! FREE, FREE, FREE! As well as being free, Tuesdays thru Fridays from 1:30pm-2:30pm they offer FREE MEALS to children 18 and under to help those who may be struggling without the assistance of school lunch programs during the summer. They do NOT allow any type of flotation devices even for children. They do have at least 2-3 lifeguards on duty at all time. The best time to go would be right when they open at 1:00pm or by 2:00pm during the week. Around 4:00pm the pool fills up very quickly but because it is such a large pool, you will have plenty of room to swim and have fun. Parking is sparce as the other park visitors take up most of the parking but you can park all along the sides of Theo Parkway (but not recommended to park inside bike lanes).

This is an awesome park that affords large groups the ability to do many outdoor activities,…read moreespecially running clubs and cycling clubs because there is plenty of open space and parking. Shout out to Urban Run Club for introducing me to the park! I love that they have air pumps, a pool, and other amenities. I wish that there was more water fountains along the trails though. I do appreciate how clean the park is and everyone is friendly around the trails. It is dog-friendly, I bring my dogs here every Saturday and they love it. It's a great place for a long walk with your dogs. Beware of the deer or deer dung in the grassy areas. Also, they only have porta-potties.

Enjoyed a tranquil park experience with my dog, as it wasn't overly busy and provided a peaceful…read moresetting for my pet to run freely off-leash. The serene atmosphere made for a pleasant visit.

Dellview Swimming Pool is located in the corner of a neighborhood park. It's a little tucked away,…read morebut you'll be glad you found it. It is one of several public swimming pools run by San Antonio Parks and Rec. All outdoor public swimming pools run by the city are free to all, open six days a week throughout the summer swimming season, and follow very similar rules and protocol. This review will focus on Dellview Swimming Pool and what sets it apart from other city swimming pools. As with most city pools, you are required to sign in at the front desk with name, age group, and gender. These roles help the parks department obtain funding to continue operation of the pools, so it is very important to sign in. Dellview Pool is my favorite out of all the free city pools. We drive across town from the East Side to go there at least once a week. It's layout of just about the same as the one at South Side Lions Park including the diving board. The staff and lifeguards are friendly (even if the lifeguards exhibit typical teenage behavior a lot of the time) and experienced. My daughter was trapped between the diving board and the platform last summer after slipping, and the whole team rushed to help her, and we were able to rescue without injury. The pool has a modern pump system, changing rooms and a covered patio to wait out the hourly pH level breaks. This location also has a toddler splash pool which is nice if you have little ones. The water is always refreshing. It does get a little crowded here on weekends and holidays, especially if the diving board is open. The diving board is opened every half hour for a half hour. They split the time pretty evenly since it is so popular. The pool runs from 3ft to 11ft. Maybe it's just me, but this pool always seems a lot brighter and I need to wear sunglasses when I'm there. It's a nice place.

The pool was clean and well kept for a city facility. There is handicapped access. The pool itself…read moreonly has ladders to get in, so it could be a challenge for the elderly or those with mobility issues without the access chair. The lifeguards were very attentive. Some things to know if you're going for the first time: no goggles that cover your nose, no water guns, no big inflatables. Children can wear goggles that don't cover their nose and use life jackets/puddle jumpers if needed. At the top of the hour there is a mandatory pool break for 15 minutes. Great experience, but know they do stick to the rules so there is no trouble.