A swim is the best part of a boat day, and Sydney Harbour is generous with places to have one — if you know where to look and what to avoid. This is our working list for a three-hour hire from Lilyfield. Everything here sits inside Capri’s hire area: Gladesville Bridge in the west, Bradleys Head and Point Piper in the east.
The rules that apply everywhere
- Swim from a stationary boat with the engine off and someone staying on board.
- Kids under 12 keep their lifejackets on, in the water and out of it.
- Stay well clear of ferry routes, channels and anyone fishing.
- Netted pools are the safest option; open coves are for confident swimmers on calm days.
- Read our post on sharks before you decide — the numbers are reassuring and the advice is simple.
Dawn Fraser Baths, Balmain
The closest netted pool to the wharf, tucked into Elkington Park on the Iron Cove side of Balmain. A heritage tidal pool with a shark net and change rooms; land access has a small entry fee (TBC). From the water you stop nearby rather than in the baths themselves — we show you where on the map. Calm, shaded by the park in the afternoon, and minutes from the wharf: the natural first stop on the Swim & sun route.
Cockatoo Island
Not a swimming spot in itself, but the toilet and leg-stretch stop that makes a swim day work with kids. Tie up at the public wharf, wander the old shipyards, then carry on to the water. Iron Cove around the island is the calmest water in the hire area on a breezy day.
Chiswick Baths
Netted baths on the Parramatta River side, near the western limit at Gladesville Bridge. Quiet on weekdays, sheltered from the nor’-easter, and a long way from ferry traffic. It is about as far west as you will want to go on a three-hour hire. Access from the water TBC.
Greenwich Baths
On the north shore opposite Balmain, a netted enclosure with a small beach and shade. Reaching it means crossing the main harbour from the Balmain side, so save it for a calm morning, and check the map for the Balls Head exclusion zone nearby.
MacCallum Pool, Cremorne Point
A small harbourside pool on Cremorne Point with the Bridge in the view — one of the best-looking swims in Sydney. It sits at the eastern edge of the hire area, so it suits a four-hour day with the icons on the way. Mooring options nearby TBC.
Murray Rose Pool, Double Bay
Redleaf, to locals: a netted pool with a boardwalk, a pontoon and a beach, right on the Point Piper limit of the hire area. Worth it on a hot day with an extra hour added, and busy on weekends. Check the limit line on your map before you head that far east.
Quiet coves
On a still day, a sheltered cove off the Balmain or Birchgrove shoreline with clear green water is the swim most people remember. The rule is simple: engine off, someone on board, everyone in sight, nobody swimming toward the channel. Our reel of the green-water swim stop was filmed in one of these.
What to bring
Towels, a hat for after, sunscreen and water. Dry off on the trampoline — that is what it is for. The canopy shades the deck, not the trampoline, so the sun does the drying. If you want the full list, we have written one.
Planning the day
Three hours fits the icons plus one swim, or the slow loop plus a long one. Four hours fits both. Book the extra hour up front or text us from the water — $100 if the boat is free afterwards.