It’s officially summer, ya’ll. Cool down at a public pool (for free, of course) and/or get some quality low-impact exercise – all while meeting new people and making new friends.
by Max Fisher
Beat the heat: check out the list of Buffalo Niagara public pools below to find a location near you
Frustration-Free (and Free) Summer Fun
Have you ever had the feeling where it’s so hot you feel like you’ll evaporate instantly as soon as you step out your front door? You want to go swimming, but you don’t want to go all the way to the beach. All those people? All that sand all over you at the end of the day? No thank you. So, what are your options? Open a fire hydrant as you’ve seen in hundreds of summer-themed movies? (It’s illegal to open a fire hydrant in New York with fines of up to $1,000, imprisonment for up to 30 days, or both FYI.) The suns beaming down on you, you look like a human waterfall as the sweat continues to pour down your body with no end in sight.
WHAT.CAN.YOU.DO?
How about going to one of the public pools in Buffalo Niagara? It might not be the solution that first comes to mind, but trust me, it’ll do the trick. So, give me a little bit of your time, and I’ll tell you about the public pools in Buffalo Niagara and why you should consider going as a means to cool down during the merciless summer heat!
Right Around the Corner
I understand that whoever is reading this may have some legitimate concerns. I imagine they fall along the lines of “Come on Max, a public pool? I didn’t want to go to one before Covid times, so why in the world would I want to go to one now?” A valid point (if not presented with a bit of hostility). My answer to you dear reader is ‘do you want to travel all the way to the beach?’ The borders are closed, so all the nice legit beaches are exclusively for happy Canadians at the moment. We’ve got lakes you can go to and have a nice time, but you can’t just get up and go there. You have to make a whole day out of it. Can you fit it into your schedule?
You can go to the gym or The Y, even the Jewish Community Center, but do you want to check if you’re still a member? Or were you even a member of any of these establishments in the first place? Do you want to pay the fees to get your membership card and forget about it the moment you stick it in your wallet? If you want to go through the whole rigmarole, be my guest, but if your goal is to cool out from the summer sun, the public pool is the way to go.
Connors, Kait, Harrity Memorial Pool in Buffalo
First off, let’s get the obvious out of the way. Using a public pool in Buffalo Niagara is free! Granted, you won’t get any fancy amenities, no massage jets or waiters bringing you poolside drinks, but as I said before, what they have available (which is a large body of water enclosed in a large structure designed for multiple people to swim at once), will do the trick.
Secondly, chlorine kills just about everything (I can’t make any absolute scientific statements for fear the science community will be mad at me). If the fact that chlorine kills almost everything doesn’t put your mind at ease, take solace in the fact that the New York Department of Health has issued whole new guidelines since Covid. So, they’re much more strict than they used to be (alas, no more grown men wrestling like it’s WWE. It was always embarrassing to see and now that it can be potentially dangerous in this situation, so I’m glad to see it go. Go wrestle in your yard like normal people, geez). Think of the public pool experience you’re used to in your mind, and then imagine it about 2x calmer and about 1.5x cleaner. Then you’ve got an idea of how it is now.
Thirdly it’s a good way to pass the time, and it gets you out of the house! Swimming is a great cardiovascular exercise that uses your entire body. Even if you can’t swim, simply walking around the pool will give you a workout, and you won’t even realize it. Not to mention you’ll be out doing a summer activity that gets you out of the house. You may even start thinking things are back to normal if you go a few times.
Beat the Heat & Meet and Greet
Lastly, it’s a great place to meet people. You wouldn’t think of the public pool as a meeting spot, but if we traveled back to 1950, they were all the rage. And with life slowly getting back into gear, people are slowly becoming the social animals they once were. Not quite ready yet for the social pressures/unwritten rules and absorbent prices of the bar (wait, so you want $8.50 for a Rum And Coke? You understand I can make this just as good as you can at home right?), or the anxiety-ridden maze that is the night club scene (to stay in the corner and look cool, or not stay in the corner and look cool—that is the question).
Practice your social skills at the pool. There’s absolutely no pressure. I mean, how could there be? Everyone is essentially in their underwear, and everyone there’s just looking to talk and swim the heat away.
Memorial Pool in North Tonawanda is great for kids cool down for an afternoon and meet new friends
The Best Things in Life are Free
It’s officially summer, so it’s going to get insanely hot as it goes on. Why not cool off in the best way? The free way. If you’re dead set against going to a public pool, I get it. Still, you could be missing out on a lot. Cooling down while getting some quality low impact exercise, possibly meeting new people, even getting a few dates if that’s your thing (be respectful and mind your space. Remember it’s a pool, not a speed dating room). Your local pool has a lot to offer, and it might be just the stepping-stone you need to turn you back into, or become a social butterfly. So what do you say? Fancy a swim?
Public Pools in Buffalo Niagara
choose any public pool to see location information, get directions, & more.
Aurora Town Pool
East Aurora
Brighton Big Pool
Tonawanda
Cheektowaga Public Swimming Pool
Cheektowaga
Clearfield Community Center Pool
Williamsville
Connors, Kait, Harrity Memorial Pool
Buffalo
Dingens Street Swimming Pool
Buffalo
Eden Town Pool
Eden
Fort Niagara State Park
Youngstown
Hamburg Village Swimming Center
Hamburg
Hyde Park Pool
Niagara Falls
Kenmore Pool
Kenmore
Kensington Pool and Splash Pad
Buffalo
Kohler Pool
Tonawanda
Lincoln Big Pool and Wading Pool
Buffalo
Lovejoy Pool
Buffalo
Mang Wading Pool
Kenmore
Memorial Pool
North Tonawanda
Parkside Village Wading Pool
Tonawanda
Raindrop Pool
North Tonawanda
Town Park Pool
Cheektowaga
Wilson Boatyard Marina Pool Club
Wilson
What do you think of our guide to public pools in Buffalo Niagara? Know a great one that we missed? Have a favorite? Let us know.
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