Hotel rooftop day passes, an open-air Olympic 50m pool on Montjuic, a beachfront pool at the end of Barceloneta, a shallow quarry pool beneath a giant floating sculpture, and a park with giant slides and a misting lake. Most run April to October, and a few sell day passes at the door up to capacity, so check hours and prices and come early on hot days.
The Fòrum's enclosed saltwater bathing zone sits right on the seafront esplanade, a stretch of sea penned off from the open water. The flat decking makes it easy to lay out towels. It is a few minutes from the L4 metro at El Maresme | Fòrum, and easy to fold into a day that takes in the adventure forest and playground on the same esplanade.
A day pass to the Hotel Arts beachfront resort that lets non-guests use its outdoor pools without booking a room. The main freshwater pool has slides and a shallow children's section, with sunbeds and Balinese loungers around the terraces and gardens. The pass adds free parking and a food-and-drink credit to spend at the poolside Marina Coastal Food. A second pool is adults-only.
The Picornell pools sit in Montjuïc's Olympic Ring and hosted the 1992 Olympic swimming and water polo finals. The complex has two 50m pools, one open-air and one indoor, plus a separate diving pool. Non-members can buy a single entry to the open-air pools from April to October, with cheaper tickets for kids, and sales stop when the pool reaches capacity.
Built into a former quarry up in El Coll, this park wraps around a wide crescent pool with Eduardo Chillida's giant suspended concrete sculpture, Elogi de l'aigua, hanging on cables above the water. In summer the pool opens for bathing, with palm trees and a sandy edge. The rest of the year it is a calm spot with wide, uncrowded city views.
A municipal indoor swimming center on the Escola Industrial grounds, built in 1966 as the first covered Olympic-size pool in Spain. The 10-lane, 50-meter pool sits under a tall window wall, and the center runs swim school courses for kids from age 3, plus diving and artistic swimming groups. A gym and wellness area round out the building.
A century-old swim club on Sant Sebastià beach with direct access to the sand, plus a dedicated learn-to-swim pool. The pools are also listed as Piscina Sant Sebastià; it is the same place. Beyond the water there are padel courts, a gym, a spa, a poolside restaurant and a summer sports camp.
Barcelona's second-largest park spreads 14 hectares around a big lake, with looping steel tubes that hold mosaic plant pots and spray a fine mist over the water. The headline draw for kids is the Muntanya Màgica, a hill of wide stainless-steel slides you ride two at a time, plus two playgrounds, a skate area, and basketball courts. Paths run all the way down to the beach.
Hotel rooftop day passes, an open-air Olympic 50m pool on Montjuic, a beachfront pool at the end of Barceloneta, a shallow quarry pool beneath a giant floating sculpture, and a park with giant slides and a misting lake. Most run April to October, and a few sell day passes at the door up to capacity, so check hours and prices and come early on hot days.
The Fòrum's enclosed saltwater bathing zone sits right on the seafront esplanade, a stretch of sea penned off from the open water. The flat decking makes it easy to lay out towels. It is a few minutes from the L4 metro at El Maresme | Fòrum, and easy to fold into a day that takes in the adventure forest and playground on the same esplanade.
A day pass to the Hotel Arts beachfront resort that lets non-guests use its outdoor pools without booking a room. The main freshwater pool has slides and a shallow children's section, with sunbeds and Balinese loungers around the terraces and gardens. The pass adds free parking and a food-and-drink credit to spend at the poolside Marina Coastal Food. A second pool is adults-only.
The Picornell pools sit in Montjuïc's Olympic Ring and hosted the 1992 Olympic swimming and water polo finals. The complex has two 50m pools, one open-air and one indoor, plus a separate diving pool. Non-members can buy a single entry to the open-air pools from April to October, with cheaper tickets for kids, and sales stop when the pool reaches capacity.
Built into a former quarry up in El Coll, this park wraps around a wide crescent pool with Eduardo Chillida's giant suspended concrete sculpture, Elogi de l'aigua, hanging on cables above the water. In summer the pool opens for bathing, with palm trees and a sandy edge. The rest of the year it is a calm spot with wide, uncrowded city views.
A municipal indoor swimming center on the Escola Industrial grounds, built in 1966 as the first covered Olympic-size pool in Spain. The 10-lane, 50-meter pool sits under a tall window wall, and the center runs swim school courses for kids from age 3, plus diving and artistic swimming groups. A gym and wellness area round out the building.
A century-old swim club on Sant Sebastià beach with direct access to the sand, plus a dedicated learn-to-swim pool. The pools are also listed as Piscina Sant Sebastià; it is the same place. Beyond the water there are padel courts, a gym, a spa, a poolside restaurant and a summer sports camp.
Barcelona's second-largest park spreads 14 hectares around a big lake, with looping steel tubes that hold mosaic plant pots and spray a fine mist over the water. The headline draw for kids is the Muntanya Màgica, a hill of wide stainless-steel slides you ride two at a time, plus two playgrounds, a skate area, and basketball courts. Paths run all the way down to the beach.