Mt Albert Aquatic Centre

I have a confession to make — I once broke the sauna here. Apparently, as it gets close to closing time, they turn off the Sauna mechanism and run it off the heat which is left. I didn’t know anythign about this, so walked in, poured on some water and sat down. The billowing cloud of steam should have been an indication that something was wrong, but as the temperature rose, me and my friend sat there commenting on how hot it was getting. When we burst out of the room, steam/​smoke billowing out behind us, there was consternation on the faces of those outside, and we received a stern telling off from an elderly asian man. We high tailed it out of there, to come back two weeks later and the Sauna was still closed. Sorry to all who I disadvantaged with my silly behavior.
The pools themself are cool as — you have your wave pool, which brings heaps of laughs, the power slide which can bring screams to the mouths of adult men and a normal pool for swimming. But whatever you do, don’t pour water on the sauna when it’s turned off. Learn from my mistakes.

My friend and I used to come and do laps here, but after a while my visits became less frequent and I returned to good old faithful, West Wave. They are similar places and offer the same things, including a wave pool and spas packed with old Asian men. As always the main pool is for the kids, and if you come in on any holiday or the weekend, it will be absolutely packed. The good thing about these pools is that it really is a great lace for kids to hang out with their friends or for parents to bring their children. Swimming is fun and it’s important for kids to learn how to swim from an early age. If I had kids, I would probably bring them here, but as an adult it’s kind of my worst nightmare.

Why are wave pools so fun? These sorts of waves out at the beach are at best a non-​event, at worst a nuisance. But put me in a much smaller body of water with a concrete bottom, turn on the swooshing, and somehow that’s a grand old time. I don’t get it.
The thing is it really is a grand old time. Wave pools are fun, and it doesn’t matter how old you are or if you’ve ever seen what a real wave looks like. There’s a shallow end for the little kids, and a deeper end for everyone else, and this is where the waves are at their best. There’s also a grown-​up pool in the next room (you know, with lanes and a flat surface) that you can swim laps in but to be honest I’ve never felt the need. I’m sure it’s fine though.

I’ve spent way too much time here over the years; it can’t be helped if you have kids. The little ones LOVE it and by little I mean, preschoolers and up to about age 10. There’s a nice warm baby pool and the shallows of the main pool are full of interactive water thingies, and of course a slide. There’s «the lazy river» which is kind of an alternative to a whirlpool but what’s most special about here is the waves, dude.
They don’t turn the waves on all the time mainly I think because they’re bloody dangerous. Hold on tight to your toddler because the floor is really slippery and the force is enough to knock adults over easily, let alone adults holding another small body. Seriously, be careful.
The hydroslide is pretty cool as far as these things go but the up the stairs and the shivering is not for me. Which I’m sure is fine with the kids. My reckoning is that this is Auckland’s busiest pool so if you do have a little one in the big pool it’s incredibly stressful trying to keep track of them. Go when your kids can swim on their own.

I used to come to this pool every single morning to swim laps before I went to work. My absolute favourite thing about this place was the kind of clientele it encased. Rapidly aging Asian men in the most terrific striped speedos imaginable. Pregnant women. Sad people. Lots of sad people. I dunno, it was a good people watching spot. The lane pool was never overly busy and the water was always a nice refreshing temperature. The price was okay. I think pools generally are a bit of a rip off. I probably wouldn’t have gone here if it wasn’t the closest pool to my house. But I did, and I’m perfectly at peace with the time I spent there.
Three stars.