Water & swimming in Crosby

You can swim indoors a hundred yards from Crosby Beach, in a 25 metre main pool or the 12 metre second one that suits a child still learning. Adults are £7.30 and children £4.80, and on Tuesdays the main pool fills up with Atlantis Splash, a full length inflatable. Outside, the beach is free once you have paid to park, with Antony Gormley's hundred iron men standing out in the sand, and Crosby Lakeside next to it runs paddle sessions you generally need to book first.

Water & swimming in Crosby

Crosby Beach

Crosby~35 min

★★★★★4.7(1,862)

A hundred cast-iron men stare out to sea along two miles of sand - Antony Gormley's Another Place, and the strangest, most memorable free afternoon on this coast. Sand, statues, ships from the port gliding past.

Free, paid parkingAges 4-11

Crosby Leisure Centre

Crosby~35 min

★★★★☆4.3(1,091)

Two pools a hundred yards from the beach, the smaller one shallow enough for a child who is still learning. On Tuesdays the main pool gets Atlantis Splash, a full length inflatable obstacle course.

Adults £7.30, children £4.80IndoorsAges 0-16

Crosby Lakeside Adventure Centre

Crosby~40 min

★★★★☆4.2(514)

Sefton's watersports centre on Crosby Marine Lake, with pay and play paddle sessions in season and the Gormley iron men on the beach over the road. More of a booked-session place than a turn-up attraction, so plan before you drive.

Pay per sessionAges 8-11

Water & swimming elsewhere in the North West

Blue Planet Aquarium

Ellesmere Port~35 min

★★★★☆4.1(8,117)

Sharks over a moving walkway tunnel, all under cover. A dependable answer to a washout forecast that still feels like a proper day out.

Day ticketIndoorsAges 4-11

Formby Beach & Pinewoods

Formby~45 min

★★★★★4.9(46)

Huge sand dunes, a proper beach and red squirrels in the pinewoods behind it. The dunes alone will occupy them for an hour. Free entry if you have National Trust membership.

Parking chargeAges 4-11

Anderton Boat Lift

Northwich~30 min

★★★★★4.5(3,464)

A Victorian lift that hoists whole canal boats fifty feet in the air, and you can ride it. Genuinely impressive to a small child, with a visitor centre and café on site.

Visitor centre / boat tripIndoorsAges 4-11

Sea Life Manchester

Trafford~25 min

★★★★☆4.0(5,173)

Ocean tunnel, rays, seahorses and rockpool touch sessions, sized for smaller legs - you can do the whole thing in a morning and pair it with Legoland next door.

Book online - walk-up costs moreIndoorsAges 4-9

Sandcastle Waterpark

Blackpool~1 hr

★★★★☆4.3(8,767)

The UK's biggest indoor waterpark, kept at tropical temperature: proper toddler pools and mini slides at one end, big flumes at the other. Rainy-day Blackpool solved.

Book online - cheaperIndoorsAges 4-11

Sea Life Blackpool

Blackpool~1 hr

★★★★☆4.4(11,062)

A solid seafront aquarium with an ocean tunnel and rockpool sessions - the reliable wet-weather hour when the beach plan falls apart.

Book online - cheaperIndoorsAges 4-9