Beccles Lido — Attraction in East Suffolk

First time visit today with a large group, travelling from 1 hour+ to swim. Disappointingly, the inflatables had a tear, and the 'fun swim' session was just use of the slide and diving board - which was admittedly fun but some floats and mats wouldn't go amiss, especially when the inflatables are out of action. Wasps spoiled the seating area - perhaps a summer issue - but there wasn't overflowing bins or food waste left around to seem to cause this. A few other odd things: the shade awning was retracted at about 2pm - strange thing to do in the heat of the day's sun; also, more of the changing cubicles were locked, all but a few by the end of the day - strange thing to do when needing to be used as the pool emptied. Final odd thing: the floor of the pool is a different depth at ALL 4 CORNERS! Parking is a real issue: there are about 20 spaces before the barrier for staff only. The free parking 5 minute's walk away is gravel floored so some inconsiderate positioning of vehicles and limited spaces. The only other parking options in town are time-restricted, sadly.

Onto the good things: the pool wasn't overbooked so the pool didn't get too full. There wasn't quite enough seating but there was a bit of a flow of users around the pool and there was some shade from an awning, as mentioned. There was some play gym equipment which the children enjoyed using during the half hour lunchtime break. There was a smaller pool adjacent to the main pool for younger users. The slide and diving board were in good condition and fun for all but the largest of swimmers. The life-guards were plentiful and diligent but not annoyingly so, and helped with first aid when requested. The cubicles for changing were clean - although the toilets were less so - and nicely decorated. Both hot and cold food was purchased by our group and was decent enough - the cheesy chips were a favourite. I also concur that the town of Beccles was very picturesque, like something from a painting. All-in-all I would return, especially for an inflatables session, if that was guaranteed, considering our drive from the west...

We visited in the summer holidays and discovered the family fun sessions to be full for the duration of our stay in Beccles but we did manage to book for a session of lane swimming (£3.50 per person) the day before the session. Bookings need to be done online via the website. My 11 year old was a bit disappointed but still glad to be able to visit. The place was clean and nicely laid out. There was a small queue when we arrived and we were given wristbands, once inside there are a number of sun loungers and seats around the pool, with small changing cubicles on one wall. It had a nice freshly painted bright feel. You can either leave your bags and things on/ under a chair or use the lockers at the back which come in various sizes and take a £1 coin which is returned afterwards. The pool itself is a good size with three sections sectioned off for a slow, medium and fast lane. The water was cool at first and then glorious in the open air sunshine. I was surprised how deep the deep end was (3.7 meters!) but there is a small diving board and slide which is opened up in the family fun sessions. The session lasts 45 minutes in the pool and the staff kindly let us hang around on the sun loungers afterwards. The showers are outdoors open air ones. There is a small cafe selling teas, coffees, ice creams and they also do pot noodles, hotdogs and jacket potatoes with fillings of cheese, beans or Chilli - they also do vegan options such as oat milk and vegan Chilli which was the first place we came across in our Suffolk/ Norfolk stay which did so. The staff were friendly and helpful. We would have loved to come back for the family fun session and if we come back to Beccles will try to remember to book in...

A great family day out. My children, aged 3, 5 and 9 were all equally entertained and had a great day in the double (swim and fun / inflatable) session. Staff were all friendly and vigilant throughout. It was a pleasant surprise that all ages could enjoy the slide (with parents meeting younger ones at the bottom) and that they could all ehave fun in the inflatable too... younger ones were asked to exit via the half way slide where parents could stand in the shallow end of the pool to catch them. There is also a smaller toddler pool and a splash area for tiny tots. My eldest enjoyed using the diving board and was impressed that he managed to complete the whole inflatable obstacle course plunhinh into the deep end from the slide at the end. There is a small playground on site too and lots of benches and tables to be able to sit and enjoy picnics or to feast on the options from the on site cafe. We took a picnic but lots of people here eating chips and ice creams, seemed to be lots of options for delicious food. Changing rooms and toilets were clean and easily accessible. Reasonably priced and lots of fun. Highly recommended. Unfortunately (but understandably) not able to take pictures, so none to add to my review but the pool is clean and well presented. The only thing that let's it down is the lack of parking, it is tricky on a nice day to find free parking close by and can be a challenge to traipse over excited children along the path-less road to get to the pool. Just worth noting if you have...