Zatzman Sportsplex — Attraction in Dartmouth

We went to the open swim here on Good Friday. The renovations are very nice. Everything is bright and clean. The new locker rooms that connect to the pool are especially nice, I definitely appreciate the addition of the swimsuit spinner so that our wet suits aren't so soaked when leaving. I originally gave 5 stars, but have updated to 4 for the following:

1. while the facilities have been upgraded, the pool layouts remain the same, with the upgrades being the pool deck, splash pad, new slides, climbing wall . Both the kiddie and the larger pool are the same size as they were before.
2. because of them having the climbing wall, and rope swing open, there were literally only 2 lanes to swim in, which you could really only float around in due to the amount of people. So occupancy levels should probably be adjusted as it's not worth the money if one cannot move in the pool because of how crowded it is .
3. while the staff were friendly, both at the desk and at the pool, it did seem like they didn't really have a good grasp of what was going on in relation to how many people had already been admitted to the pool, or what the charge for the swim should be. I don't know if this due to them just having reopened, but a simple clicker counter would remedy the issue, rather than the desk trying to page staff in the pool area to eyeball if there were too many people or not . While it is nice, we probably won't be coming here regularly, as we prefer the size and layout of both Cole Harbour Place and the Canada Games...

Great facility, questionable staff.

I go here regularly in the mornings to swim. The facility is fantastic, the renovations are clearly well done. The lifeguard staff, however, are lazy at best and downright incompetent at worst. Watched the lifeguard this morning spend 10 minutes chatting with some boy, who was texting on his cell phone, as opposed to scanning the pool. Even caught her posing for a picture at one point. Sometimes the lifeguards aren't even in a guard uniform, just general facility uniforms, which makes it really difficult to easily spot the lifeguard. (Not to mention anyone in full length pants, a sweater, and sneakers will be significantly encumbered during a rescue). I made a complaint to front desk once about no visible lifeguard, and no one watching the pool. Despite leaving a number for them to "call me to discuss the issue", no one ever followed up.

The couple times I've been in the evenings (when the pool is busier) the staff have seemed fine. Unnerving that the staff seems to feel they can get away with not doing their job just because it's quiet/the morning.

At this point, I don't trust the lifeguards there to notice I needed help, or be able to help me when they did. Lifeguarding is a serious job. You're responsible for people's safety. Any lifeguard who doesn't take their job seriously all the time (regardless of time of day, or number of patrons) shouldn't be...

It's overcrowded, it's PRICEY ( $20 for 1 adukt, 1 child). They have 2 big slides fir the deep pool, a wheelchair lift into the water, a shallow pool for kids, sprinklers on the deck, a rope to swing on, hot tub, and a climbing rock wall ( the rock walls have loose grabbing "mounts", the things you grab or step on, that wiggle abd turn so it makes it impossible to climb the wall. I pointed this out to a staff but they just aaid " ya, they go loose all the time"). The lanes are always out in the deep pool so you can't just swim wherever. There's a gym, a rink, a walking track, racketball room, event/classes room.

I WILL say my daughter goes here for swim lessons but... not only is it pricey for a membership or for lessons, she has ADHD and the class is big so she doesn't get the attention she needs to stay on track/learn as the very young instructors aren't equipped to handle a cild like that.

There are cheaper pools that are just way better like Cole Harbour place or the Canada Games Centre when they have their...