Elm Creek Swimming Pond — Local services in Maple Grove

We love Elm Creek Swim Pond! We bought season passes, which were incredibly reasonable, and it’s been absolutely worth it. The sand-bottom pond is so fun, with a clearly roped-off shallow section where kids can play with floaties (up to 3 feet long, if I remember right) and a deeper section for stronger swimmers.

They do a fantastic job keeping the beach clean and well-maintained. There are also large shade umbrellas you can grab if you get there early — they’re set back a bit from the water’s edge, which is great if you have older kids, but since my children are younger, I usually prefer to stay closer to the shoreline to keep a closer eye on them. Still, the umbrellas are a great option if you can snag one.

We usually go early, and there are no lifeguards on duty first thing — but once they’re on duty, they require kids with any kind of flotation device to stay in the shallow roped-off area, which I think is perfectly reasonable. One day while we were there, a child went missing, and the staff handled it impeccably. They cleared the water, made announcements, and even after the child was found across the pond, they continued checking until everything was 100% verified — so impressive and reassuring.

There’s also a snack stand with ice cream, drinks, soft pretzels with cheese, and other basics, plus a spot to rinse off your sandy feet before you leave. The restrooms have separate boys’ and girls’ sides with changing areas, though they’re pretty open (no curtains, just benches), so nothing super private, but still practical. Just expect the floors to be sandy and wet — sandals are a must!

Overall, this place is awesome. We absolutely love spending summer days here and highly...

I am fascinated that this pond is so highly rated. I didn't hate it, it just seemed pretty ridiculous to my group. It's a medium sanitized sandy water hole surrounded by 5 lifeguards. The safety break others mentioned lasted a solid 15 minutes each of the 3 hours we were there AND before you're allowed to get back in they re-read the rules over the loud speaker every time. So basically you're paying to play for 45 minutes each hour. Kids were getting whistled at for all kinds of things... All 4 of us parents kept laughing that it was like a scene out of a dystopian movie- "don't have too much fun! Don't get too loud! Let's all recite the rules together". It made us all anxious. And to top it off you have to pay to get into what basically feels like an over-guarded giant puddle.

I'll give it two stars because it's nice that they have concessions, the changing rooms were spacious and clean, the wheelchair ramp is a nice feature, and I feel bad for the lifeguards with all the things they had to whistle about.

I consider myself a pretty middle-of-the-road parent, I understand the importance of safety in swimming and I don't do risky things with my kids. But when I think of a swimming area in the middle of a nature park this is Not what I was expecting. We would have had more fun at a splash pad if I wanted something sanitized, and it would have been...

Great place for non-functioning adults who can’t manage their own kids and need to be micromanaged by teens. For $6 youget all day babysitting. I dont know why they waste our time with hourly lectures reminding parents to watch their kids. The reality is if you can't do your job, they'll hold all attendees hostage demanding we look for your kid. Then after finding him nowhere near the water two minutes later we need to interrupt our enjoyment another half hour while they fill out paperwork due to one parent that can’t do their job. These people should be evicted immediately. There are 3 blissful hours in morning before Big Brother descends. I would like to see 7p to 9pm open to adults who dont need a keeper. I was there for an hour today; 40 mins of which were spent on safety breaks and searching for parents’ kids. They should instead have temporary swim breaks where we’re not getting reminded of rules or searching for kids because parents can’t follow them. I went to free kitty pool in North Mpls. Spent rest of day in water. No telling how many search and rescues I...