One of Sydney's most iconic places to swim is finally coming back, and North Sydney Olympic Pool is returning with a whole lot more than its famous harbourfront laps.
After being closed for more than five years, the landmark Milsons Point pool will officially reopen on Friday 7 August, almost exactly 90 years after it first welcomed swimmers in 1936.
While Sydneysiders will once again be able to swim laps beneath the Harbour Bridge in the iconic heated 50-metre outdoor pool, the redevelopment has transformed the historic venue into something much closer to a complete fitness and wellness destination.
There's now a gym overlooking Sydney Harbour, dedicated reformer Pilates and group fitness studios, around 90 group fitness classes each week and a recovery offering that includes a spa heated to 38 degrees, an 85-degree sauna and 50-degree steam room.
For swimmers, the famous outdoor pool has been joined by a 25-metre indoor pool and indoor program pool, while swim school and squad programs will also return.
Families have plenty to be excited about too.
A new heated children's pool and splash area has a shallow entry suitable for babies and toddlers, with the water kept at 26 degrees year-round. There are family and accessible change rooms, while an on-site crèche can be booked for up to two hours at $7 an hour — a particularly handy addition for parents wanting to squeeze in a swim, gym session or class.
And because apparently a harbourfront pool with a gym, sauna and reformer studio wasn't quite enough, there are also cafés, a sundeck and gelato bar. Even the downstairs bathrooms have had an upgrade, complete with heated floor tiles and Dyson hair dryers.
The best part? Sydney is being invited in for free to celebrate the reopening.
North Sydney Olympic Pool will offer free community access from Friday 7 until Sunday 9 August, giving visitors the chance to swim in the indoor and outdoor pools, check out the children's aquatic areas and use the spa, sauna and steam room. The gym and group fitness studios will also be open for self-guided tours across the weekend before full gym access and fitness classes begin from Monday 10 August.
For those already contemplating swapping their current gym membership for one with a Harbour Bridge view,
memberships are now open.
The $37-per-week Legends membership includes unlimited access to the pools, gym, standard group fitness classes, spa, sauna and steam room, while the $65-per-week Legends Plus membership adds reformer Pilates. Anyone who joins by 10 August will receive their first four weeks free.
Casual visits are also available, with adult pool entry priced at $11 and children's entry from $8, and importantly, access to the spa, sauna and steam room is included with an adult swim, meaning a swim followed by a sauna overlooking one of Sydney's most recognisable stretches of harbour doesn't require a full membership.
The pool will be open from 5.30am to 9.30pm Monday to Friday and 7am to 7pm on weekends, with pools closing 30 minutes before the centre.
North Sydney Olympic Pool is located at 4 Alfred Street South, Milsons Point, just a few minutes' walk from Milsons Point Station.
Book a personal tour ahead of the opening
here.
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Image credit- North Sydney Olympic Pool