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Want to freshen up? The answer is... A watery plunge
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Florence can get very hot in the summer and, when it does, you will probably just long for some watery respite. Although the coast is not far, when in town you have to make do with a good outdoor swimming pool and, while you are about it, you can keep fit and get yourself a healthy-looking suntan. Once at the pool, take care to leave all your valuables in the lockers provided and never leave your belongings unattended when you go for a swim. Normal opening times are from 10am to 6pm, while admission charges range from 6 to 8 Euros upwards. You can often hire a deck-chair, sun bed or beach umbrella if you want something more comfortable than just your towel!Below you can find some of Florence’s best pools...
The Costoli, situated near the Campo di Marte Stadium, is the largest and most popular public swimming structure in town, with three pools (ranging from an Olympic pool, a medium-sized pool with a diving board and a children’s pool). It can be rather crowded and noisy, especially once the schools break up in mid-June, but its water slides are still great fun! The Nannini pool at Bellariva is another public swimming centre, which also stays open in the evenings on certain days of the week (usually 8 to 11pm, call 055.6236027 for details).
One of the nicest - characterwise - is very probably Le Pavoniere at the Cascine Park. Surrounded by the shady trees of the Park, it was once used to house the aviary of the Lorraine princes and therefore, from the outside at least, looks nothing like we imagine a sports structure would normally look like, though the pool itself is L-shaped and therefore not suitable for more serious swimmers. It is also the closest pool to the city center, easily reached on foot and is again open in the evenings.
The Flog swimming pool in the Poggetto area usually requires membership, but in the summer it opens its doors to non-members too.
Further afield, but not far, we can find the San Marcellino pool on the way to Bagno a Ripoli, run by Fiorentina Nuoto. It is another fairly new structure and well worth investigating.
The box opposite gives details on all these pools plus the addresses of other pools in and around Florence, with info on how to reach them on the Ataf city buses.
There are of course many private as well as public pools in the country around Florence. Most have very similar charges to the city pools but are usually surrounded by shady trees and lawns, which adds to the pleasure of spending a hot day by the side of the water! Others are in hotels or private houses and obviously require authorisation to use.
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