OH BOY! ANDREW BOY CHARLTON POOL REOPENS

Sydney’s much-loved outdoor saltwater pool, perched right in the heart of the Royal Botanic Gardens, has reopened on the first day of spring following extensive renovations.

The 50m outdoor saltwater pool has been closed for the past 16 months for restoration works, which included laying 47,000 new tiles, installing new decking, shade sails and a lift for accessibility. The pool’s heating has also transitioned, moving from fossil fuel gas to a greener, more efficient electric heating system. 

Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore AO, says these works will mean the Andrew (Boy) Charlton Pool will now be able to be enjoyed for years to come. "This is a harsh marine environment for an outdoor pool and working on a structure suspended above the harbour has been a challenging engineering feat,” the Lord Mayor says. "We’re leading on climate change and, given pools use so much energy, swapping out gas heating systems for more efficient electric heat pumps really shifts the dial and gets us closer to our sustainability goals."

In 1858, the City of Sydney built Sydney’s first free public baths on Woolloomooloo Bay, where Andrew (Boy) Charlton Pool currently stands. Run down bathing structures were demolished in the early 1900s before the new Edwardian-style Domain Baths were built in 1908. In 1968, the Domain Baths were replaced by a pool named in honour of the 1924 Paris Olympics swimming champion Andrew ‘Boy’ Charlton.

Andrew (Boy) Charlton Pool is now open from 6am to 8pm daily, from September through to April.