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You'll need a bike to get out of the city and on to Bygdoy - there is a bus, but it only goes to the museums. Cycling through the royal estate, through hayfields and pine forests, you'll come first to a lovely sandy cove at Paradisbukta, and then to Huk, at the very end of the peninsula, where you can swim clad (near the restaurant) or naked (a little further north). A little touch of wilderness 20 minutes' bike ride from City Hall.
Google map: tinyurl.com/34jxyzy
One of the best self-guided trekking areas in Spain. A place of extinguished volcanoes amongst thick forests, unusually green all year round despite the Mediterranean sun. After exploring Vall d'en Bas valley, eat one of the best meals of your life in Restaurant Arnau, Granollers de Rocacorba, and swim in the pool afterwards.
Half an hour north-west from Girona. Read about Girona town and province:
www.rusticaltravel.com/index.php/Catalunya-Guide.html
This area, just off the Inn Valley, contains a number of lakes, one of which is dedicated to swimming - with changing rooms and showers. Lie back and view the mountains and swim with the huge carp fed from the adjacent hotel! After a swim visit the local Tyrolean Farmstead museum with a collection of traditional buildings saved from development or ruin in the Tyrol.
Walk on the waymarked paths from Kramsach chairlift station, or drive direct to the swimming lake, the Krummsee, afjacent to the Gasthof Krummsee
A great way to break up a bleary stopover at Singapore airport is to take a dip in the rooftop swimming pool. It's 'Balinese style' - more beach lilo than Olympic lanes. It's a much more relaxing way of getting the blood flowing after a long-haul flight than drifting round the duty free shops, especially if you don't have enough time to get into Singapore itself. The humid climate means you can use the pool pretty much all year round. It's open from 7am to 11pm and the small entrance fee includes a hot shower and a free non-alcoholic drink. And there's a poolside bar. Every airport should have one.
The swimming pool is on third level of Terminal 1. If you are in Terminal 2, take the sky train to Terminal 1. Travel time between the two terminals via the sky train is two minutes. The wait for the sky train is about one or two minutes.
A self-catering annexe apartment for two, within easy walking distance of the train. You can take a bike, hire a canoe, or visit the alternative and wacky town of Totnes where Riverford Farm foods originated. Everything is organic and green. Little riverside allows you to go for a wild swim in the river right outside the door! Hire a canoe and go shopping down the river or to the pub. Great cafes and pub grub.
Near the sea and near the moors - fantastic situation for everything. Great carbon-free getaway for two.
www.littleriverside.com
Phone John & Debbie Carnegie on: 01803/866257.
There are so many coves and hidden beaches in Leros that you can swim in private. A nudist beach in in Kryfos on the north side of Alinda bay. In Partheni you can walk further from Blefuti bay, another is at Lakki at the place "Kokina" in the area of Kokali in Gurna and Agios Isidoros. If you want public beaches, try Panteli or Vromolithos beach.
Melenio cafe is a great place in the centre of Oia. It is on a little terrace and has the best views over Santorini. Very different to the rest of the restaurants/cafes in the village, very relaxed with amazing cakes and fresh juices.
Oia hostel is a great, clean and cheap place to stay (and Santorini certainly isn't cheap). It's very un-hostel like in a positive way and in an excellent location.
Ammoudi port is the best place for a swim in Oia; however the climb back up to the village is pure torture. It is a rocky cove with the clearest water I have ever seen, but space is limited so get there early.
Visiting vineyards is a must, especially as most have small restaurants attached.
Also, Atlantis Books is a rare find of a bookshop anywhere in the world. It is in Oia centre and must be visited, international literature, and the shop is a delight.
If you're in Rome make sure you take a day or afternoon trip out to Ostia Antica (30 mins by train). It was the ancient port city of the Roman Empire & when the river silted up it was abandoned and the silt preserved the city beautifully. What's left is a huge ghost-town several miles inland with amphitheatre, apartment blocks, forum, bath houses and villas.
You can enter and walk around most buildings - even go upstairs and walk in gardens - and there are few of the restrictions you'll find in Pompeii. We went on a Sunday afternoon and the place was spookily almost deserted.
In the summer, the amphitheatre often hosts open air performances of folk and opera. A real find. Plus you can round off the day with a swim with the surf girls and boys at Rome's funky beach suburb, Ostia, a train stop away at Lido Centro.
Take the (very shabby)overland from Piramide/ Ostiense towards C. Colombo or Lido Centro. Costs about 3 Euros.
There is a walkway to a building with change rooms, lockers, a restaurant, and a gift shop. The pool is open both summer and winter, and is a delightful experience when it is snowing outside!
The parking lot is located close to the Sulphur Mountain Gondola tramway, which whisks tourists up the mountain to a viewpoint and teahouse on the peak.
www.pc.gc.ca/regional/sourcesthermales-hotsprings/itm2-/visit4_e.asp
A small stunning beach in the Arctic fjords. Purest white sand, surrounded by wildflowers and towering islands. The shallow water is crystal clear and warm enough for swimming in summer despite being in the Arctic. Go in June/July for 24 hour sunbathing.
On the E10 west from Svolvaer at the turn off to Henningsvær - the 'Venice of the Lofotens'
Until you've been on a freshwater sea like Lake Michigan you just don't understand. The idea of this unbelievable mass of non-salt-water in the centre of a continent (20% of all the earth's fresh water sits in the Great Lakes system) requires this kind of visual confirmation. And unlike most major cities, Chicago celebrates its waterfront by lining it with parks and beautiful public beaches. Run, walk, play, swim. Free and for the whole family - though that water can be mighty cold most of the year.
It's to the east of the city, wherever you are
This has to be the most picturesque pool to swim in Sydney. Situated on the North shore in Cremorne Point Reserve this 22 metre pool overlooks the Harbour with views across to the CBD and the Bridge. Great for a swim and then following up with a picnic in the park watching the sun go down over the city skyline.
Almost as good as swimming in Sydney Harbour and definitely no sharks. Take a dip in the Domain 50-metre swimming pool, with the Harbour on one side and the Botanic Gardens on the other. If you want to see Sydney's finest preening before heading off to work then turn up at 7am and prepare to learn how swimming can make you REALLY fit.
The Domain is set into the Botanic Gardens at the Woolloomooloo end.
This is a lovely lake, ideal for swimming in the summer and ice-skating, walking or tobogganing in the winter.
Go to S-Bahn Schlachtensee.
For a beautiful way to spend a day, get yourself to Bondi and then start to walk along the cliffs that line the sea. From the right-hand edge of Bondi beach as you look at the sea, you'll find a path that runs past Tamarama, Bronte, and all the way to Coogee. You can stop along the way for a game of footie, a barbie, a beer or two and, of course, a swim. All the best bits of Sydney and some exercise too.
Bus from Bondi Junction to the beach then start walking!
It's a beach near Sant' Angelo on Ischia. Full of cheap pizza huts, good beer, warm seas and clean, crisp volcanic sands. Great to walk from Sant' Angelo or take the bus via Fontana to Barano.
Not far from the villages of Panza, Succhiavo, and Sant Angelo. Avoid the thronging masses of the northern Ischia and you'll find it.
This company takes you out into the bay to swim with dolphins, dropping you in their path. It's deep and cold but incredible. One tip: make as much noise and commotion as you can to keep them interested.
A beautiful, almost tropical, beach in Sydney. Seems to be missed by most visitors, who stop when they get to Manly, but well worth the short walk.
Go to Manly on the ferry. Walk through to the beach and then turn right and walk along the seafront. You will end up at Shelly beach.
Big (and heated) open air swimming pool, opened in 1929. Entry costs £4.60, but the pleasure of floating on your back and gazing at the sky is absolutely worth it. You can also sunbathe by the pool. Fabulous.
20-minute walk from Highgate tube, or Hornsey rail from King's Cross. Then a steep walk.
The lido is Europe's third biggest pool - 92m x 32m - with newly refurbished kiddie pool, cafe and changing facilities. Open all year if you're a member of the south London swimming club, but only swimmable by mere mortals between May and September. Arrive early on a sunny weekend with a copy of the Guardian to read and you're in a small part of heaven.
Tooting Bec Road, London, SW16 1RU; tel: 020 8871 7198; www.wandsworth.gov.uk/Home/LeisureandTourism/Leisurecentres/TootingBecLido.htm
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