Knaresborough Leisure and Wellness Centre

Positive experience: Grandchildren enjoyed play area..

Fantastic experience: The people of Knaresborough are so lucky.This pool is warm, spotlessly clean, the staff are nice and you can swim in peace as they don't play crappy music. There are hot, powerful, private showers. I wish we all had such fabulous facilities!

Fantastic experience: Clean, spacious, great for anybody, still has a slide which my 4yr old loved.

Fantastic experience: Very pleasant open hall with swimming pool and other facilities.

Fantastic experience: Great pool now. The staff are so helpful and kind. Excellent

Positive experience: Well equipped clean local gym. Only real downside is how busy the car park can get.

Fantastic experience: Great facilities, good staff and I feel lucky that I live close by. Parking can get busy however there is the main Town park (York Road) within 5 minutes walk

Positive experience: Parking a nightmare but all staff very helpful

Fantastic experience: Great pool,and fantastic cafe

Fantastic experience: Good swimming pooll and changing facilities. Recommended

Positive experience: fun place, been multiple times except some things could be changed: slide length- there is a small spiral waterslide that doesn't end in the pool, instead it has its own landing area which makes it less enjoyable but still good fun i guess. also, the water that flows u down the slide is so warm which is a good thing except when u get back in the pool u forget u have been in hot tub water, which, if i remember rightly, was the same for the previous swimming pool with the hot tub, couldnt get back in normal pool without preparing myself.. after session is over, i put my shoes on whilst i was in the changing rooms but then got told i had to take them off and place back on when i leave, this happened the first time at the new one but the second time a shoe and sock bench with a mad had been installed which was good, i am also one of them people who put their socks on in the cubicle then walk through the soaking floor which is my fault

Positive experience: Modern facilities, but not that big. We went to a 'Fun Session' that includes a long inflatable in the pool. Before booking I saw on the website that children had to be capable of swimming 25m to use the inflatable. No signs suggesting this within the pool area however. My two queued up to use the inflatable only to be told they needed a green wristband first, and to do this they had to swim 25m (one length). They did this but then didn't know where to get wristbands. After asking another lifeguard I was pointed to the lifeguard in the high seat. I went to her and asked if my two could have their wristbands. She said my kids need to be watched doing the 25m, to which I replied that the girl running the inflatable watched them. She seemed unsure what to do but happily did give them the wristbands. The smaller pool requires a yellow wristband to enter. There's a bucket of these by the pool with a limited supply to control numbers, and it's first come first served. We waited in the cold for quite a while but no one got out so we gave up. We then went back in the big pool and saw a few adults still wearing yellow wristbands, so they hadn't put them back and none of the staff had said anything, limiting those who could use the small pool. It's a reasonable facility, but both the processes and staff awareness need to be improved. We found it to be quite frustrating.

Fantastic experience: Great kids swimming

Positive experience: Excellent leisure centre with great staff, let down only by poorly designed car park that’s almost always full.

Positive experience: Good bits: It’s a great facility and looks the part! The main pool is a good size and a sensible temperature. The kids pool is great for our youngest. And I’m glad they installed a slide! The EV charging points are sensibly placed so you can park either side of the car park and use them. Frustrating bits: They don’t take cash but you need a pound coin for the lockers... There are bits of the pool tiling already going green because of standing water with no run off. It’s not nice. The car park has been designed by someone who hates people almost as much as they hate cars. The playground is a bog in anything but perfect weather and equipment is already breaking.

Negative experience: The cleanliness is not good. For a new facility the maintenance of the pool area is slipping. Green sludge on the tiles around the children’s pool. Floating dirt and plastic and plasters in the main pool. Lots of unknown dirt gathered at the bottom of the deep end. Mildew on the tiles in the showering off area. Please take some pride and be more meticulous with the cleaning regime.

Fantastic experience: Pool was beautiful, changing rooms clean and easy to use, staff kind and helpful.

Fantastic experience: We used to go to the old Knaresborough pool regularly but today was the first time to go to the new one. I was a little apprehensive to be honest after reading some of these reviews, but perhaps some of the concerns others have raised have been ironed out in the months since it was reopened. We had a good time. We went as a family of 5 (kids aged 15,12,10) and booked a fun swim online. Things I liked: - Pool was fine. The small pool and the large pool are no longer connected, which is a shame, and the shallow end feels (to me) like it's at the "wrong end" (the opposite of where it used to be). But it was warm and (just about) big enough for the 120 who were there. 120 was the cap for the session. - Changing facilities were great. We got a great big family changing room (they were all free when we arrived) and everything is really nice and new. Loads of lockers (£1 coin needed, returned when you're finished), it felt very clean and pleasant. It all looks great and definitely enhanced the experience. - The slide was fine. No longer goes straight into the pool and it's short and sweet, but for a local pool like Knaresborough, it's absolutely fine. - The cafe looked good and prices seemed reasonable (£2 coffee, £3.50 wrap/sandwich, £4.50 panini) although we didn't eat there today. - They still have a play area outside, which is nice, although it was really busy straight after the fun swim ended, which should probably be expected. - Booking online for the fun swim was easy enough. I did have to sign up but you don't have to be a paid member to go or anything, you can just pay and go. Booking online meant we could just go straight to the changing room and give our name there rather than queue at reception, which was more efficient. We didn't queue at any time during our visit and we arrived just before the fun swim started at 1pm on a Thursday in the summer holidays. - Kids enjoyed the inflatable, the floats and the slide. Quite often in fun swims, some kids can get quite boisterous but today it felt fun and the atmosphere was great. Things I didn't really like but I can understand: - Parking wasn't great but we got a spot. The car park was very full and there were people parking on the street outside. The exit barrier was broken, meaning you have to exit via the entrance. The only signs for this were inside the building, meaning some people entered, couldn't find a space and then were trapped. Worked out in the end for us because it made us go round again and we got a spot second time around! - Pricing has increased, but given inflation, the cost of living etc. I suppose it was inevitable. About £26 for the 5 of us. Reasonable enough. - Fun swim is much more about "fun" and not "swim" - there's no space for adults to swim. Again, to be expected. If you want to be able to do lengths, you'll have to go to a general swim or lane swim. Things I would have preferred to stay the same: - The jacuzzi is gone :( - The cafe is now completely separate from the swimming area. It is different from the old pool. Nobody likes change, but it was a pleasant experience today and we'll be going back.

Fantastic experience: A wonderful local resource. How lucky to have this new facility on our doorstep.

Positive experience: Pool and changing facilities are all fantastic. Bizarre to close the cafe just as a family fun swim was ending. Then when we'd started buying stuff from the extortionate vending machines someone started serving at the cafe.

Fantastic experience: Great place for people with physical disabilities and wheelchair users. They have a well-equipped changing room, with a hoist and changing table, and a lift into the pool.

Fantastic experience: Very nice place for everyday leisure.

Fantastic experience: Abousolotly amazing the pool isn't to cold staff are kind gym has good equipment and the park is very good for kids and is affordable

Positive experience: My local pool, gets a bit dirty. Really could have a little more going on or at least less people. Have to stand and wait to access the little pool sometimes. Less pubes please

Fantastic experience: Very friendly and professional staff, lovely cafe and good, clean facilities. Keep it up! Some classes very popular though and it's difficult to book.

Fantastic experience: Great gym and lovely pool. And I keep trying new things...weight training and The Trip ...WOW! Whatever next? (New challenges for 70-something OAP! Bring it on!!)

Fantastic experience: Fantastic new pool which me and the kids love! Would highly recommend

Fantastic experience: Fantastic facility. Warm pools. Big pool and a nice baby pool which is surrounded by super high windows and the sun shines onto you all and it feels like summer all year round! Lovely changing facilities too

Negative experience: Not enought parking spaces for the size of community it is serving.

Negative experience: Rude inexperienced staff controlling the kids areas, no option to book so you need to qué for 40 minutes to make sure you get in, poor pool and expensive

Negative experience: Very, very disappointed. Took both my kids to the new pool since it has been built and got told we had to wait 45 mins as the pool was too full. The new leisure pool is absolutely tiny, and without any kind of correct booking system to ensure fair use of the pool, a lot of people including ourselves were turned away. This used to be a fantastic place we loved to take the kids, the pools were well heated, brilliant slide, lots of space and enough room for everyone. What an absolute shame that it does not even come close to representing the place it once was. Upon reading other reviews it seems the new slide doesn't even go into the pool anymore? And that people are turned away due to it being full on a regular basis. Very disappointing. We will not be returning.

Fantastic experience: Really great facility and so local, can't not take advantage!

Fantastic experience: Love this place pool is bigger lovely coffee afterwards staff really pleasant best thing they built

Negative experience: The pool and the changing rooms are ok. But the actual running of it is appalling. The system of set hour long sessions. This means everyone is getting out of the pool and arriving for the next session at the same time (they allow a 5 minute gap!!) . The changing rooms if you can get one are rammed and you're likely not going to get a shower afterwards. If you arrive on the hour then you have to join a massive queue and if you arrive after the hour you run the risk of not getting in but also your hour long session is less than an hour. Or you can wait 45 - 50 mins for the next session and wait for the next round of chaos. All of this is utter madness. Not to mention the parking carnage. Whoever thinks this system works needs to be reassigned. The whole debacle is such a nightmare. All sessions should be staggered. Even every 15 minutes allowing a steady flow in and out of the pool. If you would like to see a great system of how this works then go to Calypso Cove in Barnsley. There is a flow of people in and out at all times and you can always get a changing room and a shower. The system at Knaresborough pool is horrendous to the point where we wont' go again. Kids crying, people rushing through into the changing area with muddy shoes on to avoid losing time. All in all horrendous. We have one very upset child.

Positive experience: Lovely excerise studio. View fantastic....not sure about virtual class....would have preferred an instructor to check i was in the right position.

Negative experience: Pool is tiny, no room to swim. Lots of families being turned away.

Fantastic experience: Brilliant we all loved it..

Fantastic experience: It's great, and its just up the road, so I can walk to it. Nice and clean and fresh inside. Friendly staff.

Negative experience: Another Brimhams fail….. Far too small for a rebuilt pool!!! What a waste of money for half the community to be turned away. Some children were leaving crying - hoping then to play on the park outside - which isn’t open yet….

Negative experience: Used to travel 30 minutes from home for this pool. It was our favourite. Unfortunately we won't be returning. They have ripped the heart out of what was our favourite leisure centre. Such a shame that they have removed the jacuzzi and not made the slide go into the pool like it used to. We have far superior facilities closer to home. It was clean but the smaller pool was tiny. Too full of people to do any swimming with our 8 year old. We didn't enjoy our experience and won't be returning.

Negative experience: Sorry but it's just not as nice as the pool it replaced. Leisure pool is tiny and very very shallow and fills up very quickly so you can't actually swim anywhere. The slide isn't as good as the old one, no jacuzzi like before. What a shame. On a positive note the facilities were clean and tidy, staff were friendly, nice cafe. Pool and changing area was warm.

Negative experience: Freezing cold just as it was before they refurbed it! Lil boys lips turned blue! Lack of space, arrived with children and told the childrens pool was full! Lots of families queuing. They have lost a lot of space and list the showers! Honestly what a horrible change and very disappointing

Fantastic experience: Amazing facility with a wide range of activities (pool, gym, studios, cafe). You've got to see the immersive cycling studio. Very friendly staff.

Negative experience: Went to have a coffee and was told he was to busy making sandwich’s to make me a coffee at the cafe ?

Positive experience: Fabulous pool. I was surprised that ball games were allowed.

Positive experience: Brand new facility replaces the old swimming pool

Positive experience: Sadly very poorly managed, it feels like feedback is ignored as when it opened there was a lack of rope attachment among many other pieces of equipment, still to this day they have not got one (just the one that I brought in which is now falling to bits). Staff on reception made me feel uncomfortable and trying to rejoin took far too long, a process which you should be able to do online without having to wait weeks for a reply from membership services.

Negative experience: Took my boy for the fun family swim but was unaware that in order to participate on the inflatable, you have to be able to swim a length unaided. I do get why they do this but I think they need to be more clear in displaying this (maybe something in red or bold highlighted) otherwise there will be a lot of disappointed children, fortunately there was a tunnel slide to save the day otherwise it would have been swimming in a normal pool and not what he was promised.

Positive experience: Excellent facilities and training for children but not surprisingly hot and noisy for spectators. A regular visit.

Positive experience: The staff were amazing when too many people turned up for the fun swim on a very wet and stormy North Yorkshire day. The closure of Harrogate Hydro pool for refurbishment during the summer holidays has had a knock on effect on the other pools. Can't wait to visit the new Knaresborough pool that's nearly completed.

Positive experience: As it's the only pool available in close proximity at the moment it's the best....

Positive experience: Not the warmest pool for little ones but still a good option. The place does get very busy and can be overwhelming for some but it's main benefits over local baths is that it has more open hours for family swimming and you don't have to worry about it getting full or running out of time (starbeck has this problem). Friendly staff and good changing facilities for families.

Fantastic experience: If you want a swim for fitness the hydro is probably a better bet but for everything else the new centre is fantastic. Gym, staff, cleanliness which if not perfect is good and steam / sauna are all wonderful. Wonderful addition to the town.

Negative experience: The facilities are brilliant, especially for kids, but the changing areas are absolutely revolting. There's always surface water and clumps of hair, food, wrappers, everything - they need to clean during sessions as it's getting beyond a joke now

Fantastic experience: Took part in Swimathon on Saturday 13th May. The staff were fantastic. Centre manager was fabulously organised and the staff were friendly throughout. Great session for my team who all thought the venue was great. Well done

Positive experience: Looks nice for young Children, has a water slide and separate pool areas. Was very busy with after school lessons going on, when I took my young Daughter.

Fantastic experience: Party for our youngest. Really enjoyed it. Easy to organise and they had staffing issues but managed really well.

Positive experience: Tired but soon to be replaced!

Fantastic experience: I had my daughter's Bday here. They make it a private event, is great they have plenty of life guards a slide and an inflatable in the middle of the pool. Sucks that there's no after room for cake but love the quick in and out

Negative experience: Paid for a course, then had to pay for badges/certificates at the end of the course, wouldn’t mind if the certificate was actually filled in and not just a blank one handed over for us to do at home.. kinda takes away the Merritt of it Biggest complaint is back to back classes with inadequate seating area for parents to pick up and drop off safely without being a germ fest.. should be a 5-10 minutes changeover to allow the premises to be Cleared better..

Fantastic experience: Been going to this swimming pool for years now and it’s stayed amazing the whole time. Not one bad experience that I can remember. A slide, jacuzzi, and a nice atmosphere. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a nice family swim. It’s also very near the knaresborough train station which makes it easy to get to. I think the only bad thing it that it always has a lot of people there.

Fantastic experience: Car park is currently closed, but the pay and display opposite is refunded when you enter.

Positive experience: Good facilities and pools for learning and upwards, water side, and jacuzzi

Fantastic experience: So nice you should go they

Positive experience: Great for swimming lessons but not enough room for parents watching. Hopefully new build will be more accommodating size wise!

Negative experience: I used to love coming here with my eldest, but having arrived today with my youngest, due to the website saying it would be open despite the ongoing work, he was very disappointed to find a building site. I suggest an update of the website.

Positive experience: Busy busy busy with some older kids kicking off at the staff and upsetting the smaller ones, the problem ones had to be ejected. Good in general but packed and needs the refresh that's planned. Can't wait to see what we get.

Positive experience: Had a great swim.Clean and tidy.

Positive experience: Great swim first thing in the morning. Staff lovely . Decent facilities considering its under a massive revamp .

Positive experience: Only small compared to some but still enough to do. A pool to swim, a kids pool with a slide.

Fantastic experience: Went with 4 y/o & 6 y/o grandsons, plus my daughter (their mum). Great time had by us all.

Fantastic experience: Looking forward to the new build.

Fantastic experience: Absolutely brilliant. Went to the Fun Swim. Extremely well organised. 6 lifeguards on duty. They police the pool very professionally to ensure maximum safety

Positive experience: Small busy pool. No car park atm.

Positive experience: Great pool, getting a little worn.

Positive experience: Nice pool friendly staff be aware of different swimming times for adult and general swim

Negative experience: Took my grandchildren today after checking the pool was open, the comment said it wasn't as busy as usual, paid for parking in York Place, went to reception to be told that the pool was closing for two hours for a school session. Why was this not clearly stated on the website, it would have saved a lot of trouble and two disappointed little boys.

Fantastic experience: Found this place by accident. Kids and adults alike loved this pool. Warm and friendly staff, big slide for the kids. Clean and not too busy. Currently undergoing what looks yo be a huge refurbishment. Cannot wait for the improved facilities but honestly don't see much they can improve!

Fantastic experience: Brill great fathers day swimming pool good time with the kids.

Fantastic experience: Bit cold but u get use to it can't wait to see the new one

Fantastic experience: Lovely new building , all clean and shiny . Very light and airy with lots of windows ( can gaze out at the world whilst exercising) !!

Fantastic experience: Kids had grest fun today

Fantastic experience: Fantastic staff, we take an elderly disabled lady weekly and they couldn't be more helpful! Julie's Home Help Ltd

Positive experience: Excellent general swimming pool with a little side pool and a slide. Excellent changing facilities. Also has a little coffee shop. Play park outside and in site parking. Excellent upgrade!

Fantastic experience: The staff doing the ansment where really good and sayed really well I was really impressed

Negative experience: Great pool but male staff have an attitude almost patronising adults. Told a few off then got stared at while swimming. Plus the prices have Increased. Need more professional staff instead they employ staff who have just left school. Doubt I will returning.

Negative experience: Took my young son slide was out of order which was disappointing there was nothing on their website about it but my biggest issue was how cold the entire building was, it was freezing when we got out of the pool my son was shivering. Lovely pool but put some heating on, we probably won't go again just because of that.

Positive experience: The water was a bit cold

Positive experience: Decent pool facilities for a smaller site, kids slide and a shallow pool makes it good for the little ones

Positive experience: Great place to go staff very helpful

Fantastic experience: Fantastic pool and very well managed Bravo.

Fantastic experience: What a brilliant pool! Lovely, friendly, helpful staff at the front desk. Clean changing cubicles and shower area. But the best part was the pool: nice big area of shallow water for youngsters which leads through to the main pool with plenty of space for everyone. Lovely family friendly feeling in the open swim session. A great day out

Fantastic experience: Great pool, nice slide maybe a bit cold.

Positive experience: Went for an adults only swim and it was lovely and quiet around 7:15-8pm on a Tuesday. Good temperature for swimming (probably a bit cold for those just having a splash). Showers could do with a bit of renovation but were clean and warm. Nice friendly staff.

Positive experience: Smallish , but had lots of different things to entertain the kids , all in all a good swim

Positive experience: Little lad loved it. Of to make it a monthly activity

Fantastic experience: Council pool that has a standard swimming pool that leads to a separate shallow pool, which leads to a slide. My 6 year old loved it here. The slide isn't big, but good enough for him. Not sure he'll be so interested in a few years. Staff are always nice, place is clean.

Positive experience: Very noisy for a lane swim as children's area open at the same time .showers cold

Fantastic experience: My son goes for swimming lessons here once a week and his sister goes also. The pool isnt the warmest but it's warm enough. It's clean and the lifeguards and teachers are really friendly and helpful. Class sizes for lessons can be hit and miss on sizes some weeks being full others more one on one time with the teachers. The pool has a slide that's opened at fun sessions which both my 3&4 year old come down confidently alone. The only downside I would say is there's not much changing space. 4 baby changing rooms and a few more singular. A family change room would be helpful.

Positive experience: Very good place for swimming.