8 Best Dublin Hotels with a Swimming Pool

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Want a real swim in Dublin? Book a hotel with a pool of its own, because at least one city-centre hotel sends guests to a leisure club next door instead. Several hotel pools also double as health clubs, so local members swim in the same lanes as you. Here’s where I’d book, from Merrion Square out to Castleknock.

Dublin Hotels with a Swimming Pool

How Long Are the Hotel Pools in Dublin?

Pool lengths run from proper lap pools down to a small thermal pool. Check the length before you pack goggles.

• Longest lengths: Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel has its 23-metre infinity pool on the mezzanine floor. At Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane, the Club Vitae pool runs to 22 metres.
• Eighteen metres: The Merrion Hotel sets its 18-metre pool in French limestone, with a painted neo-classical landscape at one end. The Spencer Hotel and Castleknock Hotel have 18-metre pools too. The pool at The Spencer Hotel is 1.3 metres deep.
• Shorter pools: Camden Court Hotel has a heated 16-metre pool. The one at InterContinental Dublin is 14 metres long and lit by daylight.
• What’s in Bask? Bask, the thermal spa in the basement of The Davenport Hotel, has a main pool 1.35 metres deep and a shallower vitality pool. The hotel doesn’t publish the main pool’s length. It fits only a few short laps, so book it for a long soak.

Is the Pool Included in the Room Rate?

A pool in the building doesn’t always mean a free swim. Check what the rate covers before you book.

• Free with the room: Guests at Camden Court Hotel, The Spencer Hotel and Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane use the pool at no extra cost. Castleknock Hotel includes its leisure centre too, first come, first served, with no booking.
• Towels and toiletries: The Spencer Hotel gives hotel guests towels at the pool, while its health club members bring their own. At Camden Court Hotel, towels and toiletries are laid out in the changing rooms.
• Paying for Bask: Sessions at the thermal spa in The Davenport Hotel are never part of a standard room rate. Add one to your booking or pick a package that includes it, then reserve a time through the link in the pre-arrival email. Sessions last one or two hours.
• Ask before you book: At InterContinental Dublin, you arrange a swim through reception or the spa desk, and suite bookings list free pool access. The Merrion Hotel doesn’t publish whether residents swim free. Ask both hotels what your room includes before you pay.

Swimming with Children at Dublin Hotels

Several hotels set aside hours for children in the pool. Plan family swims around those times.

• Set swim times at The Marker: Kids swim in the morning and the late afternoon at Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel. Go early or around lunchtime for quieter lengths.
• Lifeguard on duty: Castleknock Hotel runs daytime children’s swim times with a lifeguard on patrol, and stretches them in school holidays. Its family rooms sleep up to two adults and three children.
• Hotel guests only: Children’s pool hours at The Spencer Hotel are for hotel guests only. On weekdays they break for lunch, and at weekends they run through the day.
• Parents in the water: At Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane, a parent has to get into the pool with any child under 16. Bring swimwear for yourself even if you only planned to watch.
• No children at Bask: Bask at The Davenport Hotel takes guests aged 18 and over. Families get more from the other pools in the city.

Which Dublin Pool Hotels Have Spa Treatments?

Treatment menus differ a lot from hotel to hotel, and one thermal spa offers none. Book ahead if a massage is part of the plan.

• The Marker’s spa: Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel has five treatment rooms. A treatment of an hour or longer includes use of the pool and the thermal areas.
• ESPA at the InterContinental: InterContinental Dublin uses ESPA products across four treatment rooms. Treatments run every day of the week.
• Castleknock’s six rooms: Castleknock Hotel has six treatment rooms offering Elemis and VOYA treatments. A relaxation room sits alongside them.
• A day spa next door: Viola Day Spa sits beside the health club at The Spencer Hotel and offers massages and facials. You pay at the spa itself, not on your room bill.
• Book Merrion treatments online: The Merrion Hotel takes spa bookings online. Its spa also has a hair salon, and physiotherapy is available there.
• No treatments at Bask: Bask at The Davenport Hotel has no massage or facial menu. Book a treatment at another spa if you want one.

Where to Stay: Merrion Square, the Docklands or Castleknock

Dublin’s pool hotels sit in a handful of areas, each with its own tram or train stop. Pick by where you’ll spend your days.

• Merrion Square: The Merrion Hotel faces Government Buildings on Upper Merrion Street, and The Davenport Hotel stands on Merrion Street Lower. Pearse Station, for DART trains along the coast, is a three-minute walk from The Davenport Hotel.
• Camden Street: Camden Court Hotel is a minute or two on foot from the Harcourt stop on the Luas Green Line. Ask for a room facing the courtyard, because rooms on the Camden Street side pick up noise from the street and the bar downstairs.
• The Docklands: Mayor Square, on the Luas Red Line, is a two-minute walk from The Spencer Hotel, and Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane is five minutes from the Spencer Dock stop. From Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel, the Luas and the Grand Canal Dock and Pearse DART stations are each about ten minutes away on foot.
• Ballsbridge: InterContinental Dublin is a five-minute walk from Sandymount DART station. An airport coach stops outside the hotel.
• Out in Castleknock: Castleknock Hotel is a 15-minute walk from Coolmine station, on the commuter line into Connolly. Dublin Airport is about 25 minutes away by car.

Parking at Dublin Hotels with a Pool

Few of the city-centre pool hotels have parking on the premises. Check height limits and whether you can reserve a space before you drive in.

• On site: The Merrion Hotel parks cars by valet, and InterContinental Dublin has its own car park with self-park and valet. Castleknock Hotel keeps its car park behind a coded barrier, with two EV chargers.
• Underground: Camden Court Hotel has a secure underground car park. Spaces can’t be booked ahead, so have a backup plan if you arrive late.
• A code from the hotel: Guests at The Davenport Hotel park at Alexander Court on Fenian Street, three minutes’ walk away. Get the access code from the hotel before you arrive, and check your car fits under the 1.9-metre height limit.
• Shared car parks: Clarion Quay car park holds marked spaces for The Spencer Hotel, though they can’t be reserved and the height limit is 2.1 metres. Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane has no car park of its own, and guests use the one across the street.
• Off-site at The Marker: Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel parks cars with a nearby partner, either self-park or valet. Ask for a space when you book.

FAQs

1. Do you need a swim cap in a Dublin hotel pool?

At The Spencer Hotel, Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane and Castleknock Hotel, yes: swim hats are compulsory in the pool. Each sells hats at its health club reception, so a forgotten one is easy to replace. Pack your own anyway and you won’t need to stop at the desk. For the other pools, ask when you check in.

2. Can you use a Dublin hotel pool without staying there?

Mostly through a health club membership or a spa booking. InterContinental Dublin sells no day passes, but non-residents can use its pool with a booked treatment or package. Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel, The Merrion Hotel, Camden Court Hotel, The Spencer Hotel, Castleknock Hotel and Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane all sell memberships that include the pool. Bask at The Davenport Hotel is aimed at people staying in the hotel.

3. Is there a hotel in Dublin with an outdoor pool?

Yes: The Dean Dublin on Harcourt Street has a heated outdoor pool, and The Dean Dublin Docklands, which used to be The Mayson, has a heated outdoor infinity pool. Both stay open all year. At The Dean Dublin Docklands, the pool sits in an outdoor courtyard next to a sauna, a steam room and the gym, so you can warm up between dips.

4. Are Dublin hotel pools heated?

Most are: the pools at The Merrion Hotel, Camden Court Hotel, InterContinental Dublin, Castleknock Hotel, The Spencer Hotel and Clayton Hotel Cardiff Lane are all heated. Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel doesn’t publish its pool temperature, so ask if you feel the cold. The Davenport Hotel lists heated pools at Bask, its thermal spa.

5. How do you get from Dublin Airport to the city centre?

Take a taxi, which runs 20 to 30 minutes to the centre, or an airport coach. Aircoach and Dublin Express both leave from the terminals and reach town in around half an hour. From Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel, the Aircoach stop at Samuel Beckett Bridge is under five minutes’ walk.

6. When are Dublin hotels cheapest?

January and February. Fáilte Ireland’s hotel surveys put Dublin room occupancy at around two-thirds in those months, against roughly 90% or more in August and September, and average room rates run about a third lower. Big concerts and matches push prices up on the nights they play, so check what’s on before you pick dates.

7. Which hotel with a pool is near St Stephen’s Green?

The Merrion Hotel is a 9-minute walk from the middle of the park, along Merrion Street Upper. Camden Court Hotel is 11 minutes away on foot, to the south. The Shelbourne faces the green and has a pool in its health club, but ask whether it’s open for your dates before you book a room for it.