Gisborne Aquatic Centre

Very clean and lovely Aquatic centre. Some staff are amazing and lovely and some are just plain rude, I guess you can get that anywhere.

Fails need to meet the needs of the children of Gisborne. Very poor council service. Waiting list for a lesson is about 600. Once you are able to secure a place the quality of instruction is poor, often with 1/2 of the lesson spent waiting while teachers work with children one at a time. Even though they are proficient enough to all be engaged in a task at the same time. Only one single lane is available for free play. Often there will be 20 people all sharing this small space while 3 lap lanes sit empty or with a single lap swimmer using each lane. When a group exercise class is on they will have no free play area available to the public at all and tell people to use the toddler or small children's pool. A number of staff are rude as has been mentioned in other reviews. Unfortunately there is no other local option.

Family friendly. Great for swimming lessons. Staff friendly but not over the top. Pool could be warmer but the kids don’t mind.

Had issues registering my child for swim squad. Had an impression that this place was not very organised and communication between staff and staff/customers wasn't great. However, I asked for a help and the admin staff fixed the issues for us. My child was very happy after her first lesson yesterday, telling me how great the coach was and she loved swimming at this centre.

-Original review-
Very disappointed! Waited for months for my daughter's squad assessment. After they finally scheduled an assessment and we took time to attend, it turned out that she had accidentally been assessed for normal swimming lessons (not squad), and got told that there's no spot available anyway as they didn't keep a record of her on their system and it was all booked out by the time I tried contacting them after they didn't get back to us like they promised.
Not happy that there was not good enough explanation as to why all these mistakes had happened, although the lady who happened to take a call from me was apologetic and ended up offering a spot for a normal swimming lesson which I believe was not suitable for my daughter anyway.
Feels that we wasted time for nothing especially when there are not many pools in the area and they are fully booked out.

Lovely staff, welcoming place & clean. Kids had an absolute ball in the different pool depths. The water aerobics looked energetic & fun. Keep your phone in your bag & watch your kids as you will be kept in check.

I would like to congratulate the Gisborne Aquatic Centre for making a great day for myself and my grandson on 12/4/22.
I took my 5 year old grandson there over the school holidays to have fun on the water slide as well as a bit of swimming.
From the moment we entered the facility the staff on the desk were so friendly showing exemplary customer service skills.
We then went to the water slide and the lifesaver on duty suggested that my grandson should be wearing a life jacket before using the water slide, which I thought was an excellent suggestion as he was only young.
I noticed that the lifeguards were always looking out for the children and adults alike. I felt that my grandson was in an extremely safe environment.
I highly recommend the Gisborne Aquatic Centre.

A good pool. Go there quite a bit. Staff are friendly, nice relaxing in the warm water pool, usually good availability in the lap lanes. Can't really fault it. Always good.

The facilities are well kept and great for all purposes, however the staff are extremely rude and dismissive. Our family does not feel comfortable there anymore.

Been taking the kids here for lessons for years. Seems well run, friendly staff, kids seem to be becoming good swimmers and the centre communicates well. Would be nice if it was bigger but they do well with what they have I think. Can't fault them.

Good spot to learn to swim. Pools sometimes a bit dirty and on one occasion I found a used band aid in a pool. Change areas need to be cleaned more often.

I found the pool to be quite wet. The water has become slower since I last swam before the covid lockdowns. When I got in the water level rose more than it used. Be very careful.

Main pool temperature is often too hot - it’s coupled with the warm water pool so difficult to temperature regulate. Kyneton far better on this and water quality and lap lane availability. Both suffer from MRSC never updating their lap lane availability properly, but with fewer lanes and more lessons at Gisborne, it’s a massive problem here even outside of peak - I don’t even bother trying to attend in or shouldering peak. Short of COVID restrictions ironically creating more lap lane capacity, I estimate 25% of the time I turn up I have to leave as the published lap lane availability isn’t what’s actually happening. And they shoulder the lap lane availability too so you miss out on stuff that borders lessons too. Consistently disappointing management response to these issues. Pool itself is OK - better than many 25s with better airflow especially. But too hot and occasional water quality issues after lessons and on weekends. Not consistently bad though, so may be a pool management issue.

Started swimming lessons for my 2 kids. The centre and change rooms are clean and staff very friendly. Looking forward to spending time here each week.

Convenient 2 hour parking right outside the centre and the pools are clean and a lifeguard is always present and constantly watching. The swimming lessons are in small groups and the kids get a lot of attention. I am surprised how quickly the children progress in their abilities during these lessons. Staff there are efficient. There are dedicated swimming areas for lessons, hydro, toddlers pool and a lane pool with slow and fast lanes. Lots of benches to sit and watch too. Drinks and snacks are also available at reception. Entry isn't expensive and there are change rooms which are clean and have private shower stalls.

Mary is amazing my son goes to the swimming pool every Thursday with his school. But we as a family love this pool

Tried so many places for lessons for my girls and you can’t beat this place for teachers who genuinely 100% care about what they are doing. Massive improvement every single week for my kids. Highly recommend.

I have been coming to Gisborne Aquadic Centre for Hydro therapy after fracturing my femur and also requirng a full knee replacement. The warm water exercise pool if magnificent.

As for the family there is so much for the kids to do. With 3 other pools it supports all age groups with inflatable slides etc to keep them intertained during the holiday period.

And no one could complain about the staff here. They are all so friendly and there to assist you where ever they can. Front desk always greet you with a smile