City Pools and Aquatic Centers in San Diego

City pools belong to the Parks and Recreation Department, whose Aquatics Program runs swim lessons, lap and recreational swim, youth swim and water polo teams, water fitness classes and an adaptive swim program (see the City's Aquatic Programs page). The department's Pools page is the hub for all of them.

• Each pool has its own phone line. The City does not publish one central Aquatics phone number on its Pools page. Its program pages say to call your local pool, and each pool's page lists a number (table below).
• Questions and feedback: [email protected]. The City's pool closure schedule and its Clairemont Pool renovation page both give this address. The Ask Parks page also has a contact form with "Pools" as one of its subjects.
• Shared facilities. Standley Aquatic Center is a joint-use facility with the San Diego Unified School District, and Ned Baumer Aquatic Center is a joint-use facility with Miramar Community College. Both are on the City's list of pools.

As of November 6, 2026, the City's Pools page lists these 16 pools and aquatic centers. (The Parks and Recreation recreation centers page still says 15; the Mira Mesa Aquatic Complex opened in 2026.) The phone numbers and accessibility features are the ones on each pool's own page. The City also has an online map of pools.

Kearny Mesa and Swanson are designated arthritis therapy pools, kept near 85°F according to their pages. Several pool pages say lockers are available but you must bring your own lock.

Searches for "City of San Diego pool hours" are common, but there is no single set of hours: each pool runs its own lap, recreational swim and program schedule, and it changes by season. Here is where the City posts it.

• Each pool's page. Pool pages link to a program guide for that pool and to its "Activities and Programs" on SDRecConnect, the City's online registration system. The City's lap and recreational swim schedule says it is updated only periodically and asks swimmers to call the pool for the most accurate hours.
• Closures. City pools close in turn for routine maintenance. The City's pool closure schedule says closures are staggered across the city so other pools stay open, and lists each pool's closure dates. Pools under construction or renovation are marked there too, and each pool's page shows a closure notice at the top while it is closed. The Clairemont Pool has its own renovation page with updates.
• Fees. The Admission Fees page lists the current single-visit and multi-visit pass prices for recreational and lap swimming, with lower rates for children, seniors and people with disabilities. Passes can be used at any City pool, payment is made at a pool, and an SDRecConnect account is needed to buy a pass. There is no re-entry.
• Reduced fees. The Parks and Recreation fee waiver program offers discounted or free recreation and aquatic programs to income-qualified people who live full-time in the City of San Diego. You apply through a recreation or pool supervisor, and approval lasts for the calendar year. Not every program is eligible.

Start with the lifeguards or pool staff on site. The City's rules say patrons must follow staff directions and that staff can dismiss people from the facility, and the pool's own phone line is the City's listed contact for each pool.

• Pool closed unexpectedly. Check the pool's page and the closure schedule first. If neither explains it, call the pool's number; closure notices on pool pages ask people to "call the pool office for updates." The City has said the Clairemont renovation, for example, is meant to bring fewer unexpected closures due to aging equipment.
• Broken equipment, restrooms or locker rooms. Tell staff on deck or at the front desk, then call the pool if it stays broken. Note what is broken, where, and since when. If repeated reports go nowhere, email [email protected] with the pool name and the dates you reported it.
• Cloudy water or a sanitation problem. Tell a lifeguard. The County Department of Environmental Health and Quality's Pool Program says its permitted public pools include those in parks, and that its specialists inspect them for violations of the California Health and Safety Code. If the problem is not dealt with, its Complaints Desk is at (858) 505-6903 and [email protected].
• Safety or conduct. Report rough play, harassment or someone who seems impaired to a lifeguard. For a crime that is not an emergency, the San Diego Police non-emergency line is 619-531-2000. For anything happening now that puts someone in danger, call 911.
• Get It Done. The Parks and Recreation Ask Parks page says the City's Get It Done app can be used to report problems with City assets, that a report can take up to 48 hours to be reviewed, and that it should not be used for emergencies or time-sensitive issues. For a problem at a pool that is open today, call the pool instead.

The City's Rules and Regulations apply at every City pool. Knowing them helps when you report a problem:

• Children. Children under 8 or shorter than 48 inches must be with a guardian at least 16 years old, in swim attire and within arm's reach. Children under 4 must wear a swim diaper.
• Conduct. Dangerous practices and abusive language are prohibited, and staff can dismiss people from the facility. People under the influence of alcohol or recreational drugs are not allowed in. Alcohol, smoking, vaping, glass and gum are prohibited.
• Health. Everyone must shower before entering the pool. People with a contagious illness, infection or open wounds are not allowed in the pool. Only service animals are allowed, in designated areas.

Every City pool page lists its disability access, usually a lift and sometimes a ramp, an elevator or a water wheelchair (see the table above). If the lift is out of service, call the pool before you go and tell staff when it is broken.

• ADA complaints and requests. The City's ADA Compliance and Accessibility division takes complaints when a person with a disability believes the City has denied access to its programs, services or activities, and requests for a reasonable modification. File online through the City's service portal, call 619-236-5979 (TTY 711) or email [email protected]. The division sends each complaint to the department responsible for the program, and asks for the date, exact location and a description of the issue.
• Adaptive swim. The City's Aquatic Programs page describes an Adaptive Swim Program for people with disabilities, age 4 and up, with a pre-assessment arranged through a pool manager. For sidewalks and curb ramps on the way to a pool, see our accessibility barriers guide.

A pool does not have to be City-owned to be a "public pool." California's pool safety law, Health and Safety Code section 116064.2 (reprinted in the County's pool law excerpts), defines a public swimming pool to include one open to the public, or open only to members of an organization and their guests, residents of a multiunit apartment building, apartment complex, residential real estate development or other multifamily residential area, or patrons of a hotel. Pools at athletic clubs and schools are included too. A pool at a single-family home is not.

• The County permits and inspects them. The County's Pool Program, in the Department of Environmental Health and Quality's Food and Housing Division, says it has about 4,000 public pools and spas under permit, including those at apartments, hotels, parks, health clubs and bathhouses, and inspects them for violations of the Health and Safety Code.
• To report one. As of November 6, 2026, the County's pool complaints page lists the Complaints Desk at (858) 505-6903 and [email protected]. General questions go to the Food and Housing Division duty desk at (858) 505-6900 or [email protected]. Renters with problems inside their unit can see our rental habitability guide.

Neither the City Aquatics Program nor the County Pool Program handles a pool at a private house. Two problems come up most often:

• A green or abandoned pool next door. That is a mosquito problem for County Vector Control. Our green pools and standing water guide explains how to report it and what the owner can be required to do.
• A missing or broken pool fence or gate. As of November 6, 2026, the City's Priority of Cases list puts inadequate barriers for swimming pools and spas in Priority I, imminent health and safety hazards, inspected within a business day. Report it to Building & Land Use Enforcement at 619-236-5500. See also our code enforcement guide.

For problems elsewhere in a park, see our park and playground problems guide, and for anything else, our guide to reporting a problem to the City of San Diego.