Moscow is experiencing an abnormal heatwave, with temperatures expected to reach +30…+35°C until July 14th. Here`s how to find places to cool off and swim in the capital.
The Bassein at Sokolniki Park offers visitors a beach, restaurant, bar, bungalows, and even beds. Prices for beds range from 10,000 to 16,000 rubles per session or 20,000 for a full day. A bungalow for four costs 50,000 for the day, and a jacuzzi is 25,000. However, more affordable options are available, with prices remaining the same on weekdays and weekends. There are three four-hour sessions, with the first starting at 9:00 AM and the last ending at 9:45 PM, as explained by The Bassein administrator:
“There are standard and VIP sun loungers, differing by the presence of a mattress and proximity to the pool. A standard one is 1,500 rubles, VIP is 2,000 rubles per person. Children under two are free. Children under 12 can enter without a sun lounger for 1,000 rubles per session. There`s a large flow of people on weekdays and weekends for the second session, which runs from 1 PM to 3:45 PM. People come with children during lunch to swim and then leave.”
A stricter option is `Akvatoria ZIL`, one of Moscow`s four outdoor 50-meter pools. Located in the ZIL area, it`s primarily a sports pool, only allowing children over seven. A medical certificate and swimming cap are mandatory. Remember to bring your towel, flip-flops, and shower gel. It`s open from 7 AM to 11 PM, with food available only outside the pool area. For the summer, they`ve added sun loungers and adjusted the schedule, an operator explains:
— For the summer period, our schedule has slightly changed. For a simple 45-minute swim, you can come at 7:00 AM, 7:45 AM, then only at 8:30 PM. The cost is 700 rubles per session. In between, there are three-hour sets for 1,500 rubles. The first starts at 9:00 AM, you stay until 12:15 PM. The second is from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. And then at 4:45 PM.
— Are the prices the same on weekdays and weekends?
— On weekends, the three-hour set is 1,800 rubles. The shorter 700-ruble sessions don`t change price.
As part of the `Summer in Moscow` project, over 30 outdoor heated pools are available at `Moscow Seasons` festival venues and parks. Advance booking on mos.ru is required. Prices vary by time and day, being more expensive on weekends. Sun loungers and umbrellas are included. The water temperature is around 27 degrees Celsius, an operator informed:
“Swimming is by session. The first session is shortened: from 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM. On weekdays, the adult price is 400 rubles, on weekends – 750 rubles. All subsequent sessions are three hours long. The price for an adult on weekdays is 800 rubles, on weekends – 1,500. There`s a discount for children under 12: the price for the first session on weekdays is 200 rubles, on weekends – 350 rubles, all subsequent three-hour sessions are 400 rubles, on weekends – 700. You can bring your own towel and change of shoes or rent them. Towel rental is 100 rubles per session, with a 1000 ruble deposit. Armbands for children and disposable flip-flops are also available for purchase at 50 rubles.”
The swimming season is also open at city reservoirs. Rospotrebnadzor has deemed four out of 14 recreation zones suitable for swimming: Lake Beloye in Kosino, Meshcherskoye near Skolkovo, Pioneer Pond in Gorky Park, and Troparevo. Four other zones – `Levoberezhye`, `Dynamo` beach, Golovinskiye Ponds, and Bolshoy Sadovy Pond – are open but not for swimming due to water and sand quality issues. However, the agency noted that swimming will be permitted after satisfactory water quality results are obtained.
Rupert Blackwood 
Clement Ashworth