Summer is hot, hot, hot, with the baking Australian sun, and the best way to cool down is a dip in the ocean. But Australia is notorious for dangerous currents, powerful waves and large swells. Indeed you need to choose your place to swim carefully in order to stay safe, especially if you go with kids (but please don’t drown without kids either.. you know, like the sign on the back of many cars say: “I don’t have kids, but I don’t want to die either.”).
The Northern Beaches is our closest beach neighborhood, so we spent plenty of time on its different beaches in the past two years. They share quite a few features: most of them are long, picturesque sandy beaches, with large waves kissing the shoreline (and knocking you off your feet if you venture too far into the water). They’re quite unsheltered, and while most of them are perfect for surfing, swimming is a different matter.
The solution? Public rockpools were built at almost every beach on the Northern Beaches.
What are rockpools, anyway?
They’re filled with ocean water, but are protected from the strong currents. Though waves might crash into them at high tide, which is quite fun. Yes, they look like swimming pools, but they’re open to the public for free (I love you, Australia!), they offer stunning scenery and are cleaned regularly. Oh, and they’re open year round, and Sydneysiders do swim in the ocean any time of the year (not me though).
Some beaches don’t only have ocean pools for adults, but also shallow kiddie pools for the little ones to splash around safely. Moving to Australia with a 3-year-old gave me a chance to explore all of the Northern Beaches rockpools, and this is my summary of the best ones we found.
Our family’s favorite kiddie rockpools on the Northern Beaches
All of these ocean pools are free to use and have all the necessary facilities (toilets, showers, drinking water) nearby. Parking is ticketed in the council parking lots, but there’s usually plenty of free, unlimited parking on the residential streets. On that note, the reason I don’t include Manly rockpools in the list is because parking is crazy in Manly, very expensive and almost non-existent if you’re not a resident.
All the ocean pools are cleaned each week all year long, and they’re closed on cleaning days. Please check the cleaning schedule here to avoid disappointment.
Mona Vale rockpool
The Mona Vale ocean pools are the coolest ones I’ve ever seen. Ever. (Sorry, Eastern suburbs.) The pair of them are situated on the tip of a sand spit near the northern end of Mona Vale Beach, offering stunning scenery and giving you the feeling that you are swimming in the ocean. Actually, the pools are hugged around by the ocean from all sides at high tide.
The bigger pool is 30 metres long, suitable for adults and kids who can swim. The smaller pool is shallow enough for toddlers and young kids to play and get confident in the water. It’s not a zero-entry pool though, there are a few steps to enter the water, which gradually gets a bit deeper as you walk further in.
At low tide you can find crabs, little fish and sea stars in the natural rock pools which completely disappear under the water as the tide is rising. If you’d like to swim in the ocean, Bongin Bongin Bay just north of the Mona Vale rockpools is more sheltered than Mona Vale Beach, especially at low tide.
Since the Mona Vale ocean pools are accessible through the beach, you don’t need to choose between the beach and the rock pool when you settle down with your blanket and sunshade. It’s a big advantage, because you easily switch between playing in the pool or in the sand.
No one can complain about the facilities. There are several outdoor showers (cold) and water taps, and a large bathroom block with toilets and warm indoor showers. In the park behind the beach you find picnic shelters, electric BBQs, a shaded playground and biking paths for kids. Some cafés are located nearby on Darley Street..
South Curl Curl rockpool
The South Curl Curl ocean pool is a special one, because there’s one huge pool here, with a 50 metre swimming pool area for adults and a zero-entry pool for kids, which gradually gets deeper as you get further in. A concrete wall separates the adult and kiddie pool, but there are two access points between the two. The kiddie pool is quite big, providing enough space for toddlers to splash around in the shallow area and for older kids to practice swimming or kicking with a board.
South Curl Curl Beach is right next to the pool, so you can set up your sunshade on the sand and still be a few steps away from the pool. The bathroom block with toilets, showers and drinking water is also right behind the pool. And your view? You’re looking over long, picturesque Curl Curl Beach as you sit on the side of the pool.
Collaroy rockpool
The Collaroy ocean pools are south of Collaroy Beach, the longest beach on the Northern Beaches (combined with Narrabeen Beach in the north). They’re a short walk away from Collaroy Beach and the bathroom block, but they’re a few steps away from neighboring Fishermans Beach, especially the kiddie pool.
Because there are two pools here, as well, one swimming pool and a shallow, kid-friendly, zero-entry pool. You’ll enjoy views of Fishermans Beach and the dramatic red Long Reef Headland from the pool, and at low tide you can enjoy the countless shallow natural tidal pools on the rocky plateau right next to the kiddie pool. You can set up your sunshade on Fishermans Beach while keeping an eye on both the sandy beach and the kiddie pool.
At the southern end of Collaroy Beach, there’s an enclosed playground, with swings, slides and other fun play equipment, looking over the beach.
Avalon rockpool
Avalon Beach is one of my favorites in Sydney, because it’s so pretty and peaceful! We love visiting both its northern and southern end, but the rock pools are in the south. (There are very cool tidal pools at the northern end at low tide.)
The two ocean pools are connected to the beach by a short paved walkway (which is often flooded at high tide). The kiddie pool is quite small, but we never found it too crowded, anyway. Large waves crash into both the adult and kiddie pool at high tide, and the scenery is stunning!
If you need shade, set up your sunshade on the southern end of Avalon Beach and walk to the rock pool from there. The beach is not as close to the rock pool as it’s the case for Mona Vale or South Curl Curl, but it’s still only a short walk. And there’s no shade at the pools, nor sand to play with.
There are no toilets or changing rooms right by the pools either. You need to walk to the SLSC building for changing rooms, toilets and indoor showers.
Dee Why rockpool
Dee Why ocean pools are among the most popular ones, hence I list them as last. Also, they’re a fair bit of walk away from Dee Why Beach. The oceanfront promenade is really nice to stroll, but you can’t be at the rock pool and at Dee Why Beach at the same time.
But the Dee Why rockpools have a nice seating area with sunshade and a bathroom block right behind the pools. There’s a 50 metre swimming pool and a zero-entry toddler wading pool right next to it. At low tide you find several tidal pools below the kiddie pool.
The rockpools are south of Dee Why Beach. If you walk back to the beach, you find a large grassy park, plenty of picnic tables and a few electric BBQs behind the beach. Oh, and a fenced playground, looking over Dee Why Beach.
Looking for kid-friendly beaches in Sydney? Here, I wrote a long article about them.
Now it’s your turn. Which is your favorite kiddie rock pool in Sydney?
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