Our experience so far at Emler has been A++. I was a private swim teacher for 10 years so I'm difficult to please (even though clearly, I have limitations teaching my own kids which is why we're here LOL) and in general, I have been really hesitant about group lessons. And ...I definitely can see how they might not be for everyone. However, WOW! Emler has a methodology that really works - it empowers my kid to want to show me what he learned vs me pushing to level him up. Big dynamic shift and as a mom who wants to be fun in the water with her kids, not a "teacher", this is really valuable when we're practicing. More importantly, they have been incredibly accommodating with us as we juggled timing issues etc and have bent over backwards to ensure both of my kids get the most out of each lesson. All of the teachers we've had are excellent and the whole staff is just the bees knees read more

We are so happy we found Emler when our son was 2 because he was not progressing in the current swim class we were enrolled in. This class really pushed him to the next level and within 6 months our son was jumping into the water staying several seconds under water and floating on his back. He loves the songs and props and always talks about swim class and reenacts it at home. Jaide has been a phenomenal teacher, pushing the students just enough to get them to improve each week. She also knows when to be more sensitive when they are experiencing fear and needed to go easy that day, ultimately building trust with them. We have also had makeups with Sami, Bella, and Isaiah and they are also phenomenal with the kids. Such a talented team at Emler - you can't go wrong! Thank you for teaching 2 year old how to swim, float, and stay safe in the water. read more

Emler Swim School of Austin - Oak Hill - Our 2 year old floating independently! - Swimming Lessons/Schools Near Me - Austin, Texas

We started 4 months ago with an extreme water fear and my 4 year old went from zero skills to independently swimming several feet in 10 lessons. The management is responsive, knowledgeable and helpful at answering questions. Big shoutout to John for all of his help. 10/10 recommend. This was our first summer here and won't be our last. read more

If you learn best in a loud and crowded environment, then this is the place for you. Otherwise, it's a chaotic, anxiety-inducing atmosphere that isn't welcoming or inviting to new swimmers. Emler squeezes in the students like cattle in a chute. It feels like a factory model as opposed to anything personable. I took my daughter to her first swim class expecting a small class or two with 4-6 students because that is clearly what they promote on their website. I found a pool with at least 30 to 40 people in it. Because there were so many people the echo off the tiles makes hearing the instructor very difficult. The decibel level in this establishment is likely an OSHA violation. On top of all this, the instructor didn't introduce herself to my daughter or discuss what the lesson plan was going to look like. They just expected my daughter to jump right in and swim to a stranger in a crowded and noisy pool. I explained this was not the environment for us and requested a refund, which they adamantly refused to give. They will reply on here to say they offered different days/times, but those did not work for us and honestly after the negative first impression we got, we don't ever want to return. I hope this review saves the wasted time and money for another parent. read more

I wanted to start off this review saying this is a one star review is aimed mainly at Emler upper management, their policies, and their handling of this situation. My family and I have had nothing but praise for the friendly teachers here, their teaching of my children, the leaps and bounds my children have improved their swimming here, and my overall experience. The teachers I didn't care for were few and far between, weren't around long, and if this event had not occurred we would still be attending Emler. This situation occurred during the Spring 2024 semester and I waited until the semester ended to post my review for the safety of the minor involved and to give the Regional Director a chance to contact me, which they did not. At the beginning of Spring 2024 during our scheduled class my husband and I unfortunately noticed a young minor, nude and exposed. The guardian that was with them, that undressed them in the lobby, had not provided them a towel, was not making an effort or urgency to give the minor privacy to dress, and had them standing on top of a table with the minor bending over and getting into positions that were completely inappropriate and wrong in their current state. The school has 3 bathrooms and 6 changing rooms, so the guardian of the minor had no excuse. This minor was of an appropriate age to be taught about proper decency and to cover themselves up but it seems that wasn't happening here. I'm not sure if the minor had any mental disabilities, but that would make this situation even worse. This minor was probably nude and exposed for 3-5 min before finally getting dressed. I'm not a confrontational person but as someone who has dealt with SA I felt the need to address staff about this. I was given a generic CS response of "I'm sorry you feel that way, there is nothing we can do," from the teacher at the front desk which was not only frustrating but alarming to me. The next couple weeks this happened two more times, including the minor undressing in the main pool area where all the kids swim and the minor running up and down the lobby naked throwing their clothes and towels in the air while their guardian casually walked around on their phone. The Emler staff stood at the front desk, looking straight ahead like statues while this happened. In those moments I was very angry and didn't feel emotionally in control to confront the guardian, so I hoped the employees would step up before I possibly made a scene. I spoke to Justin, the General Manager of this location, and he explained to me that his hands were tied. He was reprimanded by his higher ups earlier for telling this guardian that they needed to change the minor in the changing room/bathroom. Their corporate policy compares the naked minor running around to breast feeding, which blew my mind. Children aren't nude and exposed during breastfeeding so how can you compare the two? And that Emler staff don't have the right to tell someone to cover their child, even if the child is exposed and vulnerable. I asked to contact the Regional Director directly but after the deer in the headlights look I was told that the DM would contact them for me and I should hear back from the Regional Director, which I never did. The manager was scared that his own concern for the minor will be turned back on him as "Why are you thinking of the minor in a s*x*u*l manner?" When a manager is scared of getting accused and in trouble for protecting a child, these are alarm bells of what kind of company and culture this is and how outdated their policies are. I didn't get a sense that the GM did not care about what was going on, but that the situation made him very uncomfortable and that he was in a situation of caring about the minors' well being but not wanting to lose his job. Finally, we contacted CPS to see what their input on this was and was told because Emler is a private company, they can make whatever policies they see fit and there is nothing CPS can do. If it was a public company they could provide Emler with literature on what is appropriate, but the company is private so CPS's hands are tied. There are so many parents and kids at these classes taking pictures and videos of their kids or siblings swimming at any given time. If any image of this minor ended up accidentally (or not) on a cloud/computer drive there would no doubt be federal charges for that individual if caught. I was told this was a common situation at multiple Emler schools and the company's stance is to do nothing about it. This situation is completely unacceptable and though it is a drop in the bucket for their corporate machine, we will not be going back and will be taking our money elsewhere. I do wish the wonderful teachers and staff at this location the best of luck and that Emler is lucky to have such amazing staff working for them. The staff deserves better. Emler, do better. read more

We've been going to emler for almost four years now - and about two years at this location . The director , Petra , is absolutely wonderful . She always takes the time to check in to see how things are going with both of my kids in our classes . She is extremely accommodating and runs this facility so well ! My four year old is extremely strong willed and has difficulty feeling comfortable with new adults . He is also not very compliant but somehow Mr Sergiy gets him to be compliant . He talks about him outside of class all. the . time . Haha . He actually asks to go to swim class so he can see him . My two year old is taught by Mr Ryan who is also great ! She also asks to go to swim on days that aren't swim days ! read more

It's really too bad. Despite the friendly staff and great teachers, the owners of this place have gotten too greedy. We have a special needs child and we were paying $60 for a 30 min lesson. To come in today and hear that it's now $85 for a 30 min lesson, you have to ask yourself, how much is enough? I know the rent didn't go up 40% in this dying shopping center next to a goodwill and Napa auto parts. And I doubt their employees salaries went up 40%. It's what I like to call inflation gouging. For the record, that's a 41.6% increase. Greedy! This is Oak Hill man, not Westlake. read more

The instructors are always positive with their swim lessons for my 7 year old daughter. They have a whole plan with building steps for various levels of ability for improving each kid's skill for swimming & confidence in the water. read more

Emler has a fun, gentle and systematic approach to teaching kids to swim. If you are hoping to introduce swimming in a manner that gives your kids life long confidence and enjoyment in the water, then Emler is the perfect place to begin. Their curriculum is so organized, and it works. We love the staff at the Oak Hill location: friendly, attentive, and great with kids. read more

My daughter loves it here! Miss Sam is very gentle but firm with her teaching, which works really well for my daughter. I've seen her confidence grow so much since starting with Miss Sam. Thank you so much Sam and Emler! read more

Miss Lexi teaches both of our daughters and is great. They love her. If you can sign up for her classes, do it.

We've been coming to Emler since my daughter was 18 months. She's almost 3 now and she loves the water and learning to swim! The instructors are great, you can tell they really love the kids. The staff keeps the facility super clean and are careful about following covid prevention protocols (staff and instructors wear masks, class sizes are limited and spaced out, etc). I've felt very comfortable being at the facility with my daughter, it's one of the few activities we've kept up during the pandemic. Highly recommend to parents looking for something fun to do with their littles, and teach them an important skill, too! read more

We LOVE the Oak Hill Emler Swim School! We've done different classes for my kiddos and they both LOVED them. Taking a break right now from outside activities but my oldest can't wait to go back! The staff are so helpful and friendly! They take extra precautions and have thorough cleaning processes to ensure the safety of the swimmers and staff. They are so understanding and helpful if your current class schedule isn't working and they helped us get into a class on a different day/time. We will continue to bring our swimmers here! One is just about to start water babies and the other is 4. They have a perfect class for whatever level your swimmer is at! read more

I am so impressed with the philosophy of teaching swimming to children here at Emler. Also LOVE this location! Enviroment is clean and bright. All the staff is friendly, knowledgeable and child-friendly! My grandson LOVES to go swimming there and is progressing by leaps and bounds! It was a slow start but then he got his confidence ( and the teacher's were especially patient with him)! read more

My kids have been swimming with Emler for multiple years and we've had a wonderful experience! The teachers have been wonderful and the staff have been so helpful! Highly recommend them!! read more

My son is 16 months and we went for the first time last week! We had a blast! He was in the waterbabies class, they had fun rotations and a great teacher. We can't wait to go back ! read more

The oak hill location was very well thought out the dressing rooms are in the pool area so the kids don't get super cold and the teachers are all amazing! read more

I take my grandson to Emler for swim safety/lessons. He LOVES to go for his weekly lessons and has big smiles when he realizes where we are going. He is currently 16 months old and started when he was under a year old. At this age, in the Water Babies class, an adult goes in the pool with the kid - Yay! It is a fun and bonding experience for us. He is learning to be comfortable and safe in the water. I highly recommend Emler at Oak Hill. I don't know if we will ever stop going. It is my favorite part of the babysitting week. He can progress from going under water and kicking to real swimming strokes. The place is warm inside, so perfect for all year swimming. FYI, I just learned that there are little seats for the kids in the dressing stalls so I can get dry and dressed without wrangling a toddler. They sell little swim suits :) The facility is clean and user friendly. Staff is super friendly and helpful and our teacher Petra is excellent. read more

Our daughter started swim classes at 2 months and it has been a great experience! Staff are extremely friendly and helpful, the facilities are clean, and we love open swim on Saturdays. We have met other parents and their children and we are glad we started swim class for our daughter. We look forward to continuing her swim journey at Emler! read more

We have really enjoyed our time in Elmer, we have seen a big growth on our son. He is now able to get himself out of the water and we feel he is safer. Ms. Lexi is very patient and understanding. read more

We love Emler Oak Hill! Ms. Petra and all the staff are helpful and extremely courteous! My children love going to swim class and have grown tremendously since we started classes. All our teachers have been knowledgeable, patient, and kind. read more

My son has made awesome progress since starting at Emler a little over 2 yrs ago. But more than that he really enjoys it!! I'm happy he is getting safer at the pool! read more

Our daughter has been in group swim lessons at Emler since she was 18 months old. She started in Waterbabies which was always super fun and now she is 3 years old and in Advanced Aquatots. We have had such a wonderful experience at the Oak Hill location and she always looks forward to swim time. Her current teacher Ms. Shania is absolutely wonderful! She is very engaging with the kids as well as patient with them. She tailors the class to each child's individual needs/skills and she is very fun too! All of the teachers and staff members have been amazing and we would 100% recommend Emler at Oak Hill! read more

My son loves going to swim lessons here. The staff is very helpful and Petra, the director, is friendly and always willing to discuss any concerns or questions you may have. Learning how to swim and conquering the fear of submersion has been a real boost to my son's confidence. Also, if you need to miss a lesson, there are several time slots throughout the week where you can attend a make up lesson. Overall, I'd highly recommend Emler Oak Hill. read more

I have been taking my son (who is now 5 months) to Bathtime Babies at Emler for a couple months now and we both love it! Not only is bathtime babies (ages 2 - 6 months) FREE (you just pay $30 annual membership fee), but it has been a really fun activity for us both and is getting him more comfortable in water. Petra is a great teacher, who encourages safety and fun! I can not recommend Emler enough! read more

Shania is a great baby swim class teacher Super constructive and informative instructor