Swimming Club Near Me by the Ferry Building: Bay Club Gateway Pools

Bay Club Gateway describes itself as the only outdoor aquatic center in downtown San Francisco, and it backs that up with two heated pools on the north side of Washington Street, between The Embarcadero and Drumm Street. The address is 370 Drumm Street, two blocks from the Ferry Building. Masters Swim meets eight times a week in the 25-yard lap pool, but only members and their guests get in, and a guest pays $50. For a swimming club near me with open sky overhead in the Financial District, this is the one.

The club opened in 1968 as the Golden Gateway Tennis and Swim Club, part of the redevelopment that built Golden Gateway Center next door. Tennis director Alan Skelton, hired that September, started with five courts. In the early 1970s the club drew some of the world's best players, Inside Tennis recalled in 2009. Pools and a fitness center were added over the following decades.

In 2013 the club nearly disappeared. A plan for luxury condominiums at 8 Washington Street would have razed it, and the No Wall on the Waterfront ballot campaign voted the project down. Back in 2011 the club, then run by Western Athletic Clubs, the company now called Bay Club, counted about 1,713 memberships. Today the club has six lit tennis courts, and some old court space now hosts pickleball.

The club's two heated outdoor pools are listed in its schedule as the Lap Pool and the Rec Pool. A 2011 city environmental report measured the lap pool at about 40 by 75 feet with six lanes, 25 yards long, and the recreation pool at 19 yards. That same report described a sundeck and an in-ground spa. The views run to the skyline and the Bay Bridge.

Do not expect a sealed indoor natatorium. These pools sit outside, a few hundred feet from the bay, so the air temperature on deck is whatever the city is doing that morning. The water is heated, but the walk from the locker room is not. Bring a warm layer for the deck. Outdoor showers stand beside the pools, and the rules require a shower before you enter any pool.

Masters runs in the lap pool on Monday and Wednesday from 7 to 8 AM, on Tuesday and Thursday at 12:30 PM and again at 5:30 PM, on Friday from 7 to 8:15 AM and on Saturday from 9:30 to 10:30 AM. There is no Sunday practice. The class description promises coached workouts in a fun group setting, led by an experienced swim instructor, though no coach is named on the schedule.

The entry bar is stated plainly: you should know interval training and be able to swim 5 x 100 yards on a 2:00 interval at least. If that sounds hard, start with lap swimming on your own until you can hold the set. The Tuesday and Thursday 12:30 PM slots suit people working downtown, and questions go to the San Francisco campus aquatics team at aquatics.sfcampus@bayclubs.com.

There is no lane booking system. When every lane is in use, the club asks swimmers to share and to limit their swim to 30 minutes, so arrive outside the Masters hours if you want a long set to yourself. Deck changing is not allowed, and appropriate clothing is expected on the pool deck. Hard balls such as tennis balls, and Frisbees, are banned around the pools, a rule that makes sense next to the courts.

Children under 13 must pass a swim test, one unassisted 25-yard lap without goggles and 60 seconds of treading water, to earn a wristband. Without one, a parent has to stay in the water within arm's reach. During busy times a 10-minute Children's Pool Break clears everyone under 16 from the water. Towels are supplied, two per visit, and day lockers are emptied every night.

Members who prefer a class to laps can use AquaFit in the Rec Pool, a low-impact workout with light weights, core and balance work. The fall schedule runs it at 8 and 9 AM on Sunday and Tuesday and at 7:30 and 8:30 AM on Wednesday. Romina Tiberia teaches the weekday sessions. Because AquaFit uses the second pool, the lap pool stays free for swimmers during those classes.

Lessons follow Bay Club's company-wide program, which covers adult swim, parent-and-tot classes, youth lessons, swim school and youth teams for ages 5 to 18. Only active members can book lessons, and the club does not publish a lesson schedule for the Gateway online. Ask at the front desk or email aquatics before a first session.

There is no day pass. A guest must arrive with a member, sign a waiver at the digital kiosk, show ID if adult, and pay the guest fee, $50 for adults and $25 for anyone 20 or under, plus tax, on the sheet revised October 2026. Each guest can visit at most twice a month, whichever member brings them. Eligible members also receive two guest passes four times a year, and since August 1, 2026 those passes expire after 90 days.

Membership prices for the Gateway are not printed. The only figure on the Bay Club site, $350 a month, is for a North Bay Executive Club membership, and initiation fees vary by level. Weekday hours are 6 AM to 9 PM, and weekends run 7 AM to 8 PM.

Embarcadero station, under Market Street between Drumm and Beale, is the nearest stop for BART's Blue, Green, Red and Yellow lines and for Muni's J, K, L, M, N and S. Walk north on Drumm Street, past Embarcadero Plaza, to Washington Street, a few short blocks. The F-Market streetcar stops at Market and Drumm, and the California Street cable car ends at the same corner.

Commuters from Marin, the East Bay or Treasure Island can come by water. Golden Gate Ferry and San Francisco Bay Ferry boats dock at the Ferry Building, and a 7 AM Masters session on Monday or Wednesday still leaves time to reach an office downtown. Sue Bierman Park sits across Washington Street from the club if you need a place to wait for a friend.

Time a Saturday visit for the 9:30 AM Masters session, then walk two blocks south to the Ferry Building, open daily from 6 AM to 10 PM. Its farmers market runs Saturday from 8 AM to 2 PM, plus Tuesday and Thursday from 10 AM to 2 PM. Skip the Sunday trip if Masters is your reason to come, because the team does not practice that day.