Closing Bell: Brooklyn Pools Opening Tomorrow

The city’s outdoor pools open for the season tomorrow, bringing back for another year a Brooklyn summer tradition that ranks right up there with outdoor movies and trips to Coney Island.

Brooklyn is home to over a dozen, from a handful of mini-pools to the massive ones in Red Hook (pictured above), Sunset Park, Bed Stuy (the Kosciuszko Pool), Brownsville’s Betsy Head Park, and Williamsburg’s McCarren Park. The latter’s been a crowd magnet since it reopened in 2012 after a major renovation — lines are common. For a complete list, click here.

As in past years, hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., with a break for cleaning between 3 and 4. For the uninitiated, there are a lot of rules: You need a swimsuit to enter (men’s suits need a lining, and yes, they’re known to check), the only permitted cover-up is a plain white T-shirt. Food, glass bottles, electronic devices, and newspapers aren’t allowed.

Among the pools opening this weekend is the hugely popular pop-up pool at Brooklyn Bridge Park. With a 60-person capacity, that one operates by its own rules: there are 45 minute sessions that start on the hour, with wristbands handed out a half-hour before the start of the session. More info here.

Photo by NYC Parks