Resources

An overview of where to swim and who to swim with around Cape Town, the Western Cape and more. Join any of the social groups or the more serious training athletes!

Social Swim Groups in Cape Town

Robben Island Swim

There is usually someone training for a crossing, so contact anyone listed below or CLDSA for more information.

Camps Bay Beach

There is a social swim at Camps Bay every Sunday morning with the Sunday Hot Chocolate Swimming Group at 9h00 all year round. This is a purely social swim and newcomers are welcome and will be looked after by the more experienced swimmers as they acclimatise to the cold. Sea temperatures are usually around 13 degrees but can go as low as 9 degrees. The course of 1.5km is close to shore so that swimmers can exit at any point.

The group meets on the lawns in front of Cafe Caprice with hot chocolate afterwards. This is an ideal opportunity to meet many of the best and most experienced local swimmers and to find out what is happening locally.

Contact Ram Barkai on WhatsApp: +27 082 656 8909
Facebook group: Sunday Hot Chocolate Swimming Group

Atlantic Seaboard

There is a separate WhatsApp group for social swims on the Atlantic side particularly from Camps Bay and Clifton 4th beaches during the week.

Contact Delle Henry: +27 083 292 2928 to be added to the WhatsApp group.

Big Bay Beach, Blouberg

If you live in the Northern Suburbs, and the Tableview area, social swims take place from outside Big Bay Life Saving Club and Little Bay. The distance is temperature related.

Request Monéne Murray on: +27 082 570 2917 or Michelle Petring on: +27 083 269 8673 to be added to the Big Bay WhatsApp group.

False Bay swimming

If you live in the False Bay area, there are Sunday social swims called ATB “Around the Buoy” at Simon’s Town Long Beach at 09h00.

Contact Scott Tait on: +27 76 1562 619 or swimcapetown@gmail.com

There is also a social False Bay swimming WhatsApp group. 
Contact on Clare Louise Thomas +27 78 430 4730 

Gordon’s Bay

If you live in the Gordons Bay area, contact Celia Pienaar on +27 083 463 1827 or celia@celiapienaar.com and Howard Warrington on +27 824616955 or  howard@warringtonbrokers.com .They have a kind of regular swim group on Sunday 16:00 and in summer Friday mornings at 06:00.

Social Swim Groups Outside of Cape Town

Location Name of Group Contact Person Contact Details
Benoni (Gauteng)  BOWS Tommy Gibson tommy.e.gibson@gmail.com
Durban Harbour Wall Durban Undersea Club (DUC) open water swimming Steve Evans +27 082 855 5516
evans.s@mweb.co.za
Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth) Ralph West +27 082 806 3030 / +27 074 730 0650
www.adventureswimsza.com
info@adverturesza.com
Hermanus Hermanus Open Water Group Herman de Vries +27 082 739 0159 (WhatsApp Group)
Jeffrey’s Bay Marina Mile 30 Dec Brenton Williams +27 083 549 6795
brenton2311@gmail.com
Johannesburg Karon “Kiki” Marx + 27 083 692 6399
kikimarx@worldonline.co.za
Colin Gluch +27 083 255 1199
colin@extruder.co.za
Knysna Knysna Seahorses Delle Henry +27 083 292 2928
Langebaan Langebaan Lagoon Open Water Swim Club Walter Hart +27 072 795 5371
walter@sicitur.co.za
Floating Ducks Hanli Theron +27 082 853 8187
Mosselbay Bronwyn MacDonald +27 83 275 2141

Swim Training

Swim Coaches and Squads in Cape Town

LocationCoach / ClubContactDetails
Point Virgin  Foreshore & City BowlK8 CoachingBritt Hyland
WhatsApp: +27 82 337 2885 britt@k8coaching.co.za
Britt runs a swim squad and she trains open water swimmers for Robben Island crossings.  Britt also runs Clifton swims on Wednesday evenings.
Goodwood Swimming PoolPhoenix Open Water Swimming ClubJoyce Blows
+27 083 648 4338
joyceblows@gmail.com
Find more details on Facebook: “Phoenix Open Water Swimming Club”

Mon/ Wed evenings at Clifton

Weekend swims in Simon's Town

Cape Town Open Water CoMaryse Pretorius
+27 071 878 7941
info@capetownswim.com
Find more details on website: www.capetownswim.com
Wynberg Military BaseGary Freeling+27 082 216 3633
garyfreeling@hotmail.com

Squad coaching Mon/Tues/Thurs

Wed/Fri/Sat/Sun

The Quadrant ClaremontFUNdamental Swimmingadmin@fundamentalswimming.comCoaching by top open water swimmers including, Claire Amner
 Sea Point Pavilion

Maike Diercks

Nadine Borchardt

+27 068 259 6325
maik.diercks@gmail.com+27 083 7359777
coachnades@gmail.com
 
AthloneMarlin Swimming Club (MSC)

Fagri: +27 0833207366
Anwar: +27 0827708627

marlinswimmingclub@gmail.com

More information: www.marlins.co.za

Swim Coaches and Squads in Johannesburg

Location

Coach

Contact

Details

Johannesburg North, Cradle Moon

Sue Young

+27 071 870 8083
Sue@swimfast.co.za

Last Sunday of the month casual swim at Cradle Moon.

More information on:
http://www.swimfast.co

Other Places to Open Water Swim in Cape Town

Waterfront Canals

There are a number of training squads that access the canals at the Waterfront for regular squad training. The canals are filled with sea water can provide training from 1.6km up to 3.2km in a 2 hour session and are slightly warmer than the sea and protected.

ATC Swimming has access to the canals often on Friday mornings.

Contact ATC/Embark Steve Atwell on: +27 082 739 9010 steve@embark.co.za
Or Gert Wilkins on: +27 082 774 7910

Silvermine Dam

In 1898 the reservoir was built to be used as a water supply, but since 1912 this beautifully still body of water, surrounded by picnic spots and trees as part of the Silvermine Nature Reserve, is home to birds, fish, dogs in search of sticks and happy human swimmers. The Dam temperatures are usually warmer than the sea in summer but can drop quite low in winter. The distance from one length of the dam to another is about 300m. If a swimmer follows a triangular route around the dam, each route or lap, can equal about 700m.

Public Pools in Cape Town

Cape Town’s swimming pools boast world-class facilities such as Olympic-sized pools, springboard diving pools and splash pools for children. There are 35 public pools in Cape Town.

Some of the more well-known and popular pools for open water swimmers are listed below, other swimming pool information can be found here.

Please refer to the City of Cape Town’s website or contact the local pool directly for up-to-date information on the entrance fees and opening hours. Some pools may be closed due to maintenance. 

Location Description
Long Street Indoor Pool This 25m heated pool is a popular training facility especially used in winter.
Newlands Swimming Pool This 50m pool on the Main Road Newlands is a popular site for the local school galas.
Sea Point Pavilion This beautiful 50 m Sea Point sea water pool is part of the Sea Point Promenade Lower Beach Road. Open throughout the year.
Trafalgar Swimming Pool, Woodstock This 48m pool provides a good City Bowl training option located in Woodstock
Wynberg Swimming Pool This 30m pool is on Rosmead Avenue, Wynberg.

Cape Town Tidal Pools

Cape Town has several tidal pools with some being used for open water training offering a relatively protected environment when the sea is too rough to swim in.

Some of the more popular tidal pools are listed below:

Location

Name

Description

Atlantic Sea Board

Camps Bay Tidal Pool

The most popular tidal pool to train on the Atlantic Seaboard as swimmers can get distances of up to 50m.

Maiden’s Cove

A smaller tidal pool in-between Camps Bay and Clifton often used by holiday makers.

Saunders Rock

A popular dipping tidal pool in Bantry Bay,

False Bay

St James

A shallow tidal pool near the famous colourful St James beach houses. This can get very busy in summer.

Dale Brook - Kalk Bay

This tidal pool has become very popular with a large number of swimmers each morning.

Brass Bell - Kalk Bay

There are two interconnected pools. Can often have bluebottles and debris lurking in it.

Woolys - Clovelly

A tidal pool located below the railway line which is a great place for a dip.

Millers Point

A beautiful pool with a slide.

Glencairn

The recently refurbished tidal pool is beautiful but very shallow.

Cape Point Nature Reserve

The tidal pools at Buffel’s Bay are beautiful but there is an entrance fee into the Cape Point Nature Reserve.