Insider's Guide to the Bronte Ocean Pool
By Visit Bondi Beach Editorial Team ·
Part of our Swim guide.
Bondi's Icebergs gets all the postcards, but if you ask me, Bronte Baths just down the coast is the more soulful swim. It's a free saltwater pool cut straight into the sandstone at the southern end of Bronte Beach - unpretentious, and my favourite place for an early lap when I want to skip the crowds. Come at dawn, before the cafés on the parkfront fill up, and you'll often have a lane to yourself.
- Where
- South headland of Bronte Beach
- Cost
- Free
- Pool
- 30m ocean (saltwater) pool
- Opened
- 1887
- On
- Bondi to Coogee coastal walk
One of Sydney's oldest swims
Bronte Baths first opened in 1887, which makes it one of the oldest ocean pools in Sydney - you're swimming in a spot people have been diving into for well over a century. The 30-metre pool is carved into the rock shelf and washed clean by the swell, so you're really in the sea, just with a wall between you and the surf. Right beside it, tucked into the rocks, is the little natural pool locals call the Bogey Hole (from an Aboriginal word for a bathing place) - shallower and gentler, the spot I point kids and nervous swimmers towards. The winter regulars here, the Bronte Splashers, have been meeting to swim through the cold months since the 1920s.
Getting there
- On foot - it's right on the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk, and arriving over the clifftops is half the pleasure.
- Public transport - train to Bondi Junction, then the 379 bus straight down to the Bronte Beach terminus. Easy, and it skips the parking headache entirely.
- By car - there's limited parking around Bronte Road and the park, but it fills fast on any decent day, so come early or don't bother.
Frequently asked questions
Is Bronte Ocean Pool free?
Yes - Bronte Baths is completely free and open to the public, with no entry fee. Showers and changing facilities are nearby.
Where is the Bronte Ocean Pool?
It's carved into the rock at the southern headland of Bronte Beach, in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, right on the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk. From Bondi Junction, the 379 bus runs to the Bronte Beach terminus.
Is the Bronte pool open all year?
It's generally open year-round in daylight hours, but it closes periodically for cleaning and has had staged upgrade works, mainly in winter. Check Waverley Council's ocean-pool status before a special trip.
Pack your bathers, walk a stretch of the coast to get there, and have a dip in one of Sydney's oldest and loveliest ocean pools. Bronte doesn't shout about itself - which is exactly why I love it.