Kitsilano Pool, Vancouver

Monthly water temperature temperature

The surface runs about 25 °C in August. The annual low is 0 °C in January and the high is 25 °C in June. No pronounced summer thermocline is recorded here. For November, the mean surface figure is 0 °C.

Mean water temperature by month (°C)

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
0	0	0	0	23	25	25	25	24	0	0	0

Safety safety

Filled with filtered and chlorinated seawater from English Bay and tested daily under Vancouver Coastal Health regulations. The combination — saltwater chemistry, a heated 25 °C temperature and a shoreline setting — is unusual and is the main reason the pool is a Vancouver institution.

Safety notes (3)

• The pool is 137 m long and 1.6 m deep in the middle — a long way from the sides. Children must be supervised even in the shallow beach entry, because the slope continues further than it looks.
• The pool is heated to 25 °C but the air over English Bay in June can be 16 °C with wind. Hypothermia is not the risk here; sunburn and wind chill on exit are.
• The pool closes for the season in mid-September and does not reopen in winter. Do not travel expecting a year-round facility.

Where to get in

• Beach entry (east end) — Graded slope into 10 cm of water, deepening gradually — the family and children's entry.
• Pool ladder (north side) — Ladders along the whole north side; the fastest way into a lap lane.
• Diving boards (west end) — 1 m and 3 m boards into 3.5 m; open when the pool is staffed for diving.

On site

• Changing rooms, hot showers and lockers, included in admission
• Concession stand and a large lawn with picnic tables
• Lifeguards on duty at all times the pool is open

Getting there arrival · entry · exit

Getting there

Kitsilano Pool is at the east end of Kitsilano Beach, ten minutes by bus from downtown Vancouver or a 25 minute walk from the Burrard Street bridge. The pool is visible from the beach car park.

It opens at 07:00 for lane swimming and gets very busy from 11:00 in July and August. Early morning lap sessions are the reason locals put up with the queue at the gate.

Getting in

For laps, use the northern ladders and start at the eastern end. The 137 m length means a 1 km swim is just over seven lengths — with far fewer turns than any normal pool, which is why distance swimmers like it.

For families, use the beach entry at the east end. The slope is genuinely gradual and there is a lifeguard station directly above it.

Getting out

Exit via the beach slope or the ladders. The concrete deck around the pool is unshaded and hot by midday — keep footwear by your lane.

Hot showers are inside the changing rooms. The lawn outside is the standard post-swim spot and has shade, which the pool deck does not.

Depth profile

The full 137 m length runs parallel to the shore, with a walk-in beach entry at the eastern end sloping to 1 m, a long middle section around 1.6 m, and a 3.5 m diving area with two boards at the western end. Because the whole pool is only about 20 m wide, it is effectively a 137 m lane.

Season window

Victoria Day (late May) to mid-September; closed in winter

Cold-water questions

Is Kitsilano Pool saltwater?

Yes — it is filled with filtered and chlorinated seawater from English Bay, then heated to about 25 °C. That combination of saltwater chemistry and a shoreline setting is what makes it distinctive.

How long is Kitsilano Pool?

137 m — the longest pool in Canada, and about 1.5 times the length of an Olympic 50 m pool, so a 1 km swim takes just over seven lengths.