Swimming Club Near Me in Pasadena: Rose Bowl Aquatics Center Masters

Two outdoor Olympic-size pools sit just south of the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena's Brookside Park, at 360 N Arroyo Blvd. The Rose Bowl Aquatics Center is a nonprofit on city land, and you do not need a membership to swim here: an adult day pass costs $22 at the front desk. Its masters team runs about fifteen coached workouts a week. If you want a swimming club near me with long-course water this fall, go soon, because the center hands its pools to LA28 diving prep on April 1, 2027.

The center opened in 1990 on the site of the old Brookside Plunge. Wikipedia says it was paid for with a $4.5 million city loan and $2 million in private donations, including a major gift from Eugene Scott. It now counts more than 400,000 visits a year, and the U.S. Olympic swim team trained here before leaving for the 2000 Sydney Games.

Diana Nyad trained here for her Cuba-to-Florida swim and told Pasadena Magazine in 2016 that it was a pool where she could train in peace. Wikipedia also credits the deck with the photo shoot for Nirvana's Nevermind cover. In July 2028 the same pools host Olympic diving, which the Los Angeles City Council approved in September 2025.

Both main pools measure 50 meters by 25 yards and reach 17 feet at the deep end. The West pool, called the Competition Pool, is kept around 79 degrees. It runs short course most days and switches to 50-meter long course on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The East or Recreation Pool always runs across its 25-yard width and sits at a warmer 86 degrees.

A separate 55,000-gallon therapy pool runs at 91 degrees and needs its own pass. The springboards still work, but the 5, 7 and 10-meter platforms are marked closed. Spas hold up to eight people for 15 minutes at a time. On the deck you will find Dave's Chillin N Grillin for food and The Swim Guy pro shop, open 10 AM to 5 PM.

Rose Bowl Masters is led by head coach Chad Durieux, with Cheryl Simmons, Nicole Cienega, Julia Stengel and Dawn Heckman also on the coaching list. Weekday workouts start at 5:30, 6:30 and 7:30 AM, then 11:30 AM and 12:30 PM, and again at 7 PM. Saturday has 5:30 and 6:30 AM sessions. Each workout lasts about an hour.

The team describes its swimmers as ranging from novice competitors to former Olympians, and many also train for triathlon and open water. About 70 people swim the mornings, 40 the middays and 15 the evening session, so the 7 PM group is the quiet choice for a first visit. Email the coach at cdurieux@rosebowlaquatics.org before you drop in, which the team asks every newcomer to do.

Adult lap swim is $22 for a day, $52 for a week or $100 for a month, with quarterly and six-month passes also on sale. Swimmers 17 and under and those 55 and over pay $19 a day or $79 a month. There is no annual pass. Day passes are sold only in person, while monthly and longer passes can be bought online.

Masters is priced separately in the main fee block at $22 per drop-in, $135 a month or $375 a quarter, and competitive team members pay through autopay. You will also need U.S. Masters Swimming registration. Family recreation swim is a bargain at $2 for adults and $1 for kids, with wristbands sold 15 minutes before each session.

Beyond masters, the center runs a USA Swimming club whose Rose Buds intro group starts at age 5, and Olympic champion Jason Lezak came through the program. The water polo club has won six national championships. Its Splashball classes for ages 4 to 8 cost $250 for eight sessions, and diving offers one-day Learn to Dive sessions for ages 6 to 12.

There are no lane reservations. One or two swimmers can split a lane, and three or more circle swim counter-clockwise, with the newcomer telling the others before starting. Staff can move lanes for programs up to 20 minutes before they begin. The minimum age for lap swim is 8, and anyone under 14 needs adult supervision.

Rinse at the deck shower before you get in, and save the full shower for the locker room afterward. Bring your own lock. Traditional swimwear, rash guards and wetsuits are fine, but cotton, T-shirts and noodles are not. Breath-holding and hypoxic sets are banned. Rain does not close the pools, while thunder or lightning clears the deck for 30 minutes.

The center says lane space gets tight from 3 to 9 PM on weekdays. Early morning and midday are easier, though those are also the busiest masters slots. Summer brings camp groups, and fall through spring is calmer. The website links a live deck camera so you can see how full the pools are before you leave home.

Hours are 5:30 AM to 9 PM on weekdays, 5:30 AM to 5 PM on Saturday and 8 AM to 5 PM on Sunday. Stadium events shorten them: on October 17 the center closed at 12:30 PM.

A letter from executive director Melanie Sauer and board chair John Mothershead says that from April 1, 2027 the center will move its programs and operations to other pools while the site is prepared for LA28 diving, with a planned return in fall 2028. The center will run fully through 2026. Masters has already added workouts at Occidental College, which will be useful once the move starts.

Parking is free in Lot I, directly in front of the center. Without a car, take the Metro A Line to Memorial Park station, then Pasadena Transit route 51 or 52 toward the Rose Bowl, Monday through Saturday, or walk 1.5 miles along the Arroyo Seco trail. Families can pair a swim with Kidspace Children's Museum next door at 480 N Arroyo Blvd.