9 Best NYC Hotels with a Pool

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Packing a swimsuit for a winter trip? Book an indoor pool or a heated rooftop one, because the best-known outdoor pools in Brooklyn and SoHo are summer-only. July is easier. Lap swimmers should look downtown and around Columbus Circle, where the long indoor pools are. Here’s where I’d book, depending on when you travel and how you like to swim.

NYC Hotels with a Pool

Which NYC Hotel Pools Stay Open in Winter

Indoor pools swim the same in February as in July. Outdoor pools are where a winter booking goes wrong.

• Summer-Only Pools: The outdoor pools at The William Vale and 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge in Brooklyn, and the rooftop pool at ModernHaus SoHo in Manhattan, open for the warm months only. Book them for a July trip, when all three are open.
• Heated Through the Cold: Gansevoort Meatpacking heats its rooftop pool and keeps it open all year, so downtown still has an outdoor swim in winter. Pack a robe for the dash back indoors.
• Two Pools, One Seasonal: Equinox Hotel New York has an indoor pool and an outdoor one, and the outdoor pool becomes a cold plunge in winter. The indoor pool carries on as normal, so winter swimmers lose nothing.

Hotel Pools Long Enough for Laps

Lap swimmers need length, and 75 feet gives a real swim.

• The 75-Foot Pair: Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown and Mandarin Oriental, New York both have 75-foot lap pools. The downtown pool is a single four-foot depth, so you can stand anywhere along it.
• West Side Laps: Equinox Hotel New York measures its indoor pool at 25 yards, the same 75 feet. Book it for a long swim on the far west side of Midtown.
• Shorter Lengths: The Marmara Park Avenue has a 47-foot pool and Gansevoort Meatpacking a 45-foot one. Both suit a few easy lengths, but a serious swimmer spends a lot of time turning.

Swimming With Kids

Check the age rule before you promise the kids a swim.

• Adults Only at Equinox: Equinox Hotel New York limits its club and pools to guests aged 18 and over. Book it for a couples’ trip and pick another hotel when the kids come along.
• Four Feet Throughout: At The Marmara Park Avenue, the pool stays four feet deep from end to end. That depth suits confident young swimmers, and toddlers need an adult holding them.
• Shallow End and a Kids’ Club: The Peninsula New York has a shallow end in its pool and a kids’ club. Its Junior Suite has a sofa bed, so a child sleeps in the same room.

Spas Beside the Pool

Several Manhattan hotel pools sit inside full spas. A morning swim turns into an afternoon there.

• Saunas and Steam: The Peninsula New York has a sauna and steam room in its spa, and Trump International Hotel & Tower New York has both in its spa as well. Use them after a swim on a cold day.
• Heat Rooms and a Tea Lounge: Mandarin Oriental, New York runs a 14,500-square-foot spa with heat rooms and a tea lounge. Plan on a long afternoon if you book a treatment.
• Spa de La Mer: Baccarat Hotel New York pairs its pool with a Spa de La Mer. Book a facial or massage, then swim straight after it.

Pools That Aren’t What They Look Like

A pool icon on a hotel’s page doesn’t always mean a pool in the building.

• Off-Site Pools: CIVILIAN Hotel on the edge of Hell’s Kitchen lists a saltwater pool, but it’s at a health club a block north of the hotel. You get dressed and walk down the street to swim.
• Spa Soaking Pools: Fouquet’s New York in Tribeca has a hydrotherapy pool in its underground spa. It’s built for soaking, so don’t book it for lengths.

When NYC Pool Hotels Cost Less

October is one of Manhattan’s fullest months. January and February are when rooms open up.

• Autumn Peak: New York hotels run close to full in October, and the Hudson River View suite at Mandarin Oriental, New York reaches twice its quiet January rate. Book early for a fall trip.
• Winter Weeknights: At Gansevoort Meatpacking, Trump International Hotel & Tower New York and The Marmara Park Avenue, a January Tuesday in the same suite costs about a third less than an October weekend night. At The Marmara Park Avenue the saving reaches half.

FAQs

1. Is there a hotel with a pool in Times Square?

Yes, Margaritaville Resort Times Square has an outdoor pool on its sixth floor, a short walk south of the square. It’s the only hotel in the Times Square area with an outdoor pool, on Seventh Avenue at 40th Street. For an indoor pool in Midtown, The Peninsula New York and Baccarat Hotel New York are farther northeast, closer to Central Park.

2. Which hotels with a pool are near Central Park?

Mandarin Oriental, New York and Trump International Hotel & Tower New York both look onto the park’s southwest corner. The Peninsula New York and Baccarat Hotel New York are a few blocks south of the park, on the east side of Midtown. All four have indoor pools, so a morning in the park and an afternoon swim work in any season.

3. Do any Brooklyn hotels have a pool?

Several do, all for summer swims. Arlo Williamsburg has a rooftop pool eight stories up, The William Vale a 60-foot pool on its fourth floor, and 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge a rooftop pool beside the bridge. All three look across the East River to Manhattan. For a winter swim, stay in Manhattan, where the indoor pools are.

4. Is there a hotel with a pool in Lower Manhattan?

Book Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown. Its pool sits inside the hotel’s spa, which has seven treatment rooms and an outdoor relaxation terrace. The hotel stands one block from the World Trade Center, where Tribeca meets the Financial District, so the 9/11 Memorial and the Oculus are a short walk away.

5. Which NYC hotel pools are heated?

Indoors, Baccarat Hotel New York heats La Piscine, its pool two floors under the street. Mandarin Oriental, New York heats its indoor lap pool, and the hotel says so on its own pages. The Peninsula New York, Equinox Hotel New York and The Marmara Park Avenue don’t publish a water temperature. If you feel the cold, ask the hotel before you book.

6. Is there a hotel with a pool near Penn Station?

Equinox Hotel New York is a 12-minute walk from Penn Station. The High Line and Hudson River Park are both close by. That makes it a handy base for a game or concert at Madison Square Garden, which sits on top of the station, with an indoor swim the next morning.

7. Which NYC hotel with a pool is easiest on the budget?

For a pool hotel that keeps the budget in check, book The Marmara Park Avenue. Its Junior Suites cost less than the suites at Trump International Hotel & Tower New York and Margaritaville Resort Times Square on both quiet and peak nights. They come with a wet bar or a kitchenette, depending on the tier. At Mandarin Oriental, New York, even a quiet January night costs more than four times one at The Marmara Park Avenue.