Bondi Icebergs Pool

Monthly water temperature temperature

The surface runs about 17.5 °C in August. The annual low is 17.5 °C in July and the high is 24 °C in February. No pronounced summer thermocline is recorded here. For November, the mean surface figure is 20.5 °C.

Mean water temperature by month (°C)

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
23.5	24	23.5	22	20	18.5	17.5	17.5	18	19	20.5	22

Safety safety

The pool is flushed by the ocean and tested by Waverley Council under the NSW bathing-water programme. Water quality follows Bondi Beach itself: excellent in dry weather, with a 24–48 hour avoid-swimming advisory after heavy rain because of stormwater outfalls at the beach.

Safety notes (3)

• The pool is closed for swimming during the annual two-day ocean swim events and whenever the swell overtops the wall. The closure flag is at the entrance and is not advisory.
• Winter water is 17–18 °C and the air can be 12 °C. The Icebergs' own rule is a maximum of 10 minutes without a wetsuit for unacclimatised swimmers.
• Do not swim outside the pool. Bondi has permanent rip currents and the rocks south of the pool are a known fatality site.

Where to get in

• Shallow-end steps (north) — Steps into 1.2 m at the northern end; the only genuinely easy entry when the swell is running.
• Deck edge step-in — A 40 cm step from the concrete deck into 2 m along the western side; the way most lap swimmers get in.
• Wave-washed seaward wall (do not) — People climb in from the outer rocks at low swell. It is outside the pool's supervision, the rocks are sharp with urchins, and the swell can rise while you are out there.

On site

• Sauna on the pool deck with an ocean-facing window, included with entry
• Licensed bistro upstairs, open to swimmers in robes
• Changing rooms with hot showers; lockers AUD 2

Getting there arrival · entry · exit

Getting there

Walk south along Bondi Beach to the far end; the pool building with the white facade is unmistakable against the cliff. Four minutes from the beach car park, 10 from the bus terminus at the north end.

The Icebergs is busiest at 06:00–08:00 for the club lap sessions and at sunset, when the light on the pool is the reason half of Sydney's photographs of Bondi exist.

Getting in

Use the shallow-end steps if the swell is up, or the 40 cm deck step on the western side in calm conditions. Look at the water for a full minute before you get in: the pool level pulses with each set of waves.

Laps run along the 50 m length of the southern half. In summer the water is 23–24 °C and in winter 17–18 °C, so this is the only site on this list where the seasonal temperature swing is under 7 °C.

Getting out

Climb out at the shallow-end steps. The deck is unshaded and the ocean wind is constant, so have a towel within reach rather than across the pool.

The sauna on the deck is included in the entry fee and is the standard way to finish a winter lap session here; it looks directly out over the pool and the beach.

Depth profile

An irregular rock-cut basin: 50 m long, but the depth varies with the swell. At the shallow (northern) end it holds 1.2 m; the main body is 2–2.6 m, and the southern end next to the clubhouse is a 2.6 m deep rectangle used for laps. On a big swell, waves wash over the seaward wall and briefly raise the level by 300 mm.

Season window

Year round; the winter swimming club races from May to September

Cold-water questions

Is the Bondi Icebergs pool heated?

No. It is an ocean pool flushed by the Pacific, running 23–24 °C in summer and 17–18 °C in winter — the smallest seasonal swing of any site on this list.

Can you swim at the Bondi Icebergs in winter?

Yes, it is open all year and hosts the winter swimming club races from May to September. Water sits at 17–18 °C, so a wetsuit is optional but a sauna afterwards is traditional.