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Finding a hotel in London with an indoor place to swim isn’t a problem – there are scores of places to stay where an enclosed stretch of water comes as standard.
Finding a hotel with an outdoor pool, however, is a different story.
After all, the UK’s weather and climate don’t always lend themselves to taking an al fresco dip.
Look closely enough though and you can find venues where guests enjoy not only five-star service but access to an open-air pool.
There’s nothing more invigorating than taking a dip outdoors, especially when there’s a bit of a chill in the air.
But if swimming when it’s nippy isn’t your thing, never fear, most of the pools on our list are heated so you can stay toasty even when you’re just wearing your bathing suit.
Let’s dive in.
1. The Berkeley
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The 190-room, five-star hotel sells itself as the go-to destination for visitors looking to spend the dog days of summer in the British capital.
Chief among its summer attractions is its heated open-air pool, which can be found on the roof.
Given the hotel’s location on the border of London’s two bougiest boroughs – Knightsbridge and Belgravia – bathers enjoy wonderful views of the capital’s poshest parts and the natural beauty of neighbouring Hyde Park.
Boxy sun loungers and striped parasols bring a hint of the French Riviera to the poolside where you’ll also find a bar serving up iced Granita, tropical smoothies and a cooling spritz.
As for food, the pool restaurant serves up Mexican-inspired fare, with spicy tacos and tequila on the menu.
Opening Times
The pool is open between 07:00 and 19:00 each day (hotel guests only).
How to Book
You can book a room or a suite here.
Contact Info
The Berkeley
Wilton Place
Knightsbridge
London
SW1X 7RL
Tel: +44 (0)20 7235 6000
Email: info@the-berkeley.co.uk
2. Art’otel London Battersea Power Station
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Fittingly, given this hotel sits on the site of what was once the UK’s most famous power-generating plant, the open-air pool is kept at a toasty temperature year-round.
The pool is an infinity pool – which means it is rimless and so bathers seem to run the risk of being precipitated over the edge of the hotel should they get too close to the edge. But never fear, it is just an illusion that adds to the charm of the outdoor swimming experience.
Bathers enjoy not just the temperate waters of the pool but views of Wandsworth and the power station’s towering chimney stacks also provide a post-industrial backdrop as you practise your backstroke.
Guests can also take part in sessions of aqua aerobics, in which the hotel’s resident personal trainer guides participants through a vigorous water-based exercise session.
Opening Times
The pool is open daily between 06:00 and 23:00.
How to Book
Rooms and suites can be booked here.
Contact Info
Art’otel London Battersea Power Station
1 Electric Boulevard
London
SW11 8BJ
Tel: +44 333 400 6152
Email: ask.battersea@artotel.com
3. The Ned
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The Ned is housed in what was once the HQ of Midland Bank in the heart of the city’s financial district. The hotel that now sits on the site is a vast space that sports ten restaurants and bars and 250 rooms.
Designed by Sir Edwin ‘Ned’ Lutyens in 1924, the hotel is a handsome edifice that despite its recent renovation has tacked close to its origins by sticking with an inter-war aesthetic for its decor and fixtures.
The hotel’s outdoor pool can be used exclusively by members of Ned’s Club, a private members club that is hosted at the hotel.
Ned Club membership also affords holders access to the hotel’s nightclub, located in the erstwhile bank’s vault, and Ned’s Upstairs, a rooftop hangout where you’ll find not just the pool, but also one of the hotel’s ten restaurants and a chilled-out terrace.
The pool is heated and when swimmers aren’t swimming they can rest by taking in stunning views of neighbouring St Paul’s Cathedral and the Square Mile’s skyscrapers.
Opening Times
The pool is open Monday to Saturday between 07:00 and 00:00.
On Sunday it is open between 07:00 and 23:00.
Children can use the pool between 07:00 and 10:30 daily.
How to Book
Rooms and suites can be booked here.
Contact Info
The Ned
27 Poultry
EC2R 8AJ
London
Tel: + 44 020 3828 2000
Email: enquiries@thened.com
4. Shoreditch House
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East Enders will recognise the building housing this hotel in Shoreditch as the Tea Building, which was once the hub of the capital’s tea-packing business.
The Shoreditch is not the biggest hotel you’ll encounter in London – it has just 26 bedrooms – but it is perfectly appointed and its decor has managed to retain many of its original 1930s fixtures and fittings, reminding guests of the building’s past life as a tea-leaf entrepot.
On the hotel’s rooftop, you’ll find the Pen Yen restaurant, a bar, a terrace surrounded by striped sun loungers and of course the pool.
Annexed to the pool area is a green space where you’ll find a herb garden and open fires so you can reheat should the temperature take a dive.
It should be borne in mind that you are only eligible to use the hotel’s pool during your stay.
To use the pool at other times, you will need to become a full Soho House member.
Opening Times
The pool is open seven days a week between 07:30 and 22:00.
Child members can swim until midday each day.
How to Book
You can book rooms and suites here.
Members of Soho House and Soho Friends can book bedrooms at reduced rates. Sign up here.
Rooftop sunbeds and loungers can be booked via the Soho House app. On the app, choose ‘Poolside’ in the bookings section, then hit ‘White City House pool’ to reserve your lounger.
Contact Info
Shoreditch House
Ebor St
London
E1 6AW
Tel: 020 7739 5040
Email: membership@sohohouse.com
5. White City House
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This hotel in Shepherd’s Bush is also part of the Soho House group and another that sports a superb outdoor rooftop pool.
The hotel is housed in the Grade II listed Helios Building, which was once upon a time the West London headquarters of the national broadcaster, the BBC.
The decor of the hotel’s 45 rooms and communal areas nod to this historic association with the Beeb with TV and radio-related objects and artwork and continue the media theme by hosting not one but three screening rooms where private film viewings can be hosted.
The roof-based pool is not just ideal for doing a few lengths but is also an ideal vantage point from which to drink in the visual delights of the West London skyline.
Stripy loungers and parasols give the pool a seaside feel. Once the summer season has passed, the loungers are switched for bistro-style tables and chairs.
As this is another Soho House hotel, you will have to be a full Soho House member to use the pool once your stay has ended.
Opening Times
The pool is open Monday and Sunday between 08:00 and 22:00.
How to Book
Rooms can be booked here.
Members of Soho House and Soho Friends can book bedrooms at reduced rates. Sign up here.
Rooftop sunbeds and loungers can be booked via the Soho House app. On the app, choose ‘Poolside’ in the bookings section, then hit ‘White City House pool’ to reserve your lounger.
Contact Info
2 Television Centre
101 Wood Lane
London
W12 7FR
Tel: +44 020 7870 0000
Email: membership@sohohouse.com
6. Virgin Hotels London-Shoreditch (formerly The Mondrian)
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Until recently the Virgin Shoreditch was known as The Mondrian and had a reputation for being a hipster hangout, part of the East End’s growing gentrification.
The Mondrian was taken over by its current owners in 2024 and got its big opening in August 2024.
The new hotel’s layout and decor are much the same as the previous one – the aesthetic employed in its 120 rooms is gritty urban, with exposed brick and steel framed windows featuring heavily.
The hotel’s outdoor pool can be found on the building’s rooftop, along with Merlin’s, a Mediterranean eatery.
Bathers can also take in eclectic views of London, with some of London’s loftiest edifices to the west and views of the remaining red-brick houses, a taste of London’s old East End, to the east.
Opening Times
After noon, the pool is restricted to guests aged 16 and over.
The pool is open to guests staying at the hotel and Blue Marlin Ibiza London’s private members.
How to Book
Rooms and suites can be booked here.
Contact Info
Virgin Hotels London-Shoreditch
45 Curtain Rd
Shoreditch
London
EC2A 3PT
Tel: +44 020 39884455
Email: reservations@bluemarlinibiza.london
7. Cliveden House
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Cliveden House is a Grade I listed building and synonymous with one of the most notorious sex scandals in British political history – the Profumo Affair.
In fact, the affair is thought to have started in the house’s pool, a fact that the hotel nods to by referring to its open-air pool informally as the ‘Profumo’ pool.
The building that hosts the hotel is easily the oldest on our list – it can trace its roots back to 1666 when the second Duke of Buckingham gifted the pile to his mistress.
Today, Cliveden is a sprawling estate on the Bucks-Berks and owned by the National Trust, with the hotel – a luxurious five-star operated by the chain Relais & Châteaux – just one of the attractions on the 376-acre site.
The hotel’s pool is not just a good place to take an outdoor dip, but an historic site in itself.
Indeed, such is the historic significance of the pool that it is the only listed outdoor one in England.
The pool’s not heated but when the waters get a bit chilly, hot tubs are on hand next to the pool to re-warm.
Opening Times
The pool is open Monday to Friday between 06:30 and 22:00.
On Saturdays and Sundays, it is open between 07:00 to 21:00.
Children can swim in the pool between 09:00 – 18:00 daily.
How to Book
You can book rooms and suites here.
Contact Info
Cliveden House & Spa
Taplow
Berkshire
England
SL6 0JF
Tel: +44 01628 668 561
Email: reservations@clivedenhouse.co.uk
8. Fairmont Windsor Park
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The Fairmont is a new-build hotel situated in the ancient woodland of Great Windsor Park on the edge of London. The 250-room hotel was built in 2021 and opened its doors to the public in 2022.
The hotel offers the best of both worlds if you’re looking to escape the city but remain within a quick commute of the capital.
It’s just an hour’s drive from central London and it is also within easy reach of Heathrow Airport.
The hotel’s outdoor pool is a real feature – its courtyard vitality pool is open to the elements but enclosed on four sides so you can maintain your privacy when swimming.
It promises bathers hydrotherapy in the shape of invigorating jets that afford the pool a jacuzzi feel to relax and soothe swimmers as they complete their lengths.
Pool-side there are no sun loungers – the enclosed terrace is a bit too shaded to soak up much UV – but you’ll find capacious hammock-like egg chairs that again offer a bit of much-needed privacy.
Opening Times
The pool is open Monday to Friday between 06:00 and 21:00.
On Saturdays and Sundays, it is open between 07:00 and 20:00.
How to Book
You can book rooms and suites here.
Contact Info
Fairmont Windsor Hotel
Bishopsgate Rd
Windsor
Englefield Green
Egham
TW20 0YL
Tel: +44 1784 535 555
E-mail: RoyalService.WindsorPark@Fairmont.com
Final Thoughts
There’s nothing more refreshing than an outdoor dip during the balmiest days of a London summer.
Sadly, outdoor pools are not common in the city’s hospitality sector; however, as we have shown, if you know where to look, alfresco swimming is there to be had.
And because many of the pools we’ve highlighted are kept at toasty temperatures, they are not just perfect for a summer plunge but are very much waters for all seasons.
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