Pick the pool first, then the hotel
Infinity, rooftop, heated, kids' pools and more: hotels with great pools worldwide, compared by pool type and guest rating.
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Adults-only pool
Of 37 hotels in 19 cities that advertise an adults-only pool, I could confirm at eight that the whole hotel has a minimum age, and three have no pool I could find. Five announce the rule in their name: Helnan Palace in Alexandria's Montaza Royal Gardens, Alkistis Beach Hotel and Mykonos Flow on Mykonos, White Garden Hotel in Antalya's Kaleiçi, and The Marni Hotel in Antalya, whose full name adds 12 Plus. Three more publish a minimum age without it in their name, all on Mykonos: Alissachni above Psarou, Oniro Suites and Icon Mykonos. Read the age rule before you book. The Marni takes guests from 13, Alissachni and Oniro Suites from 14, and White Garden Hotel from 16, so a 15-year-old can stay at the first three but not the fourth; Icon admits no one under 19. At The White Orchid on Victoria Island, Lagos, I could not confirm the age rule. The Marni's outdoor pool is seasonal, so a winter stay in Antalya gets you the hotel without its pool. White Garden Hotel has Mermerli beach about 200 metres away, inside the old town. Six of the 37 are on Mykonos, the densest cluster, and the island is where the rule is easiest to check before you book. Alissachni's adults-only infinity pool faces the sea, and Icon, with a seasonal pool, is a short walk from Megali Ammos beach. Oniro Suites sits in Mykonos town. Alkistis Beach Hotel, at Agios Stefanos, has a rooftop pool with sea views and direct access to the beach, and Mykonos Flow stands above Super Paradise beach. In family hotels, the adults-only pool is one pool among several: Hyatt Regency Dongguan has a waterpark-style pool and an adults-only pool on the same property, and Radisson Blu Alexandria has two pools. In Mumbai, Trident Bandra Kurla, The Leela Mumbai and Hotel Bawa Regency Dadar have a pool, but I could not find a published rule keeping it for adults. The same is true of Grand Mercure Agra and Surasena Regal Vista Agra, Mercure Jakarta Cikini and VIP Executive Picoas in Lisbon. Nor could I find such a rule at Sofitel Algiers Hamma Garden, at Hotel Omni Residency and Nascent Gardenia Baridhara in Dhaka, at ECCO Modern Guest House in Addis Ababa, or at Villa Monticello and Covenant Hotel in Accra. The same applies to Hotel Elysian Residency and Scenaria Hotel in Ahmedabad, Cypa Hotel and Roots Hotel Apartments in Abidjan, BELLUSTAR TOKYO, Grand Bohabs in Abuja, Citadines Songshan Lake Dongguan, Divan Adana, Hotel Bosnali in Adana and Henna Hotel Istanbul. I could not find any pool at Hotel Britania Art Deco, Pelican Hotel or Firnic Luxurious Private Hotel. Who it suits: couples and solo travellers who want to swim and read without inflatables or cannonballs, and Mykonos gives them the most choice. Who it does not suit: parents of younger children, who should pick a family hotel with a separate adults' pool rather than one of the eight hotels with a minimum age for the whole property. Before booking a city hotel without a published rule for the sake of a quiet pool, I would ask for the rule in writing. The 37 hotels average 8.7 out of 10 over 25,813 reviews.
Beachfront pool
A beachfront pool is a hotel pool with the sand directly beyond its deck: no road, no car park, no dune path in between. No hotel on this site is confirmed with one today, so this page lists none. Rather than show you pools that only look at the sea, here is how to tell a true beachfront pool from the near misses, with the beach hotels from other pages that come closest. The best match I could confirm is Mykonos Dove Beachfront Hotel on Platis Gialos: its seawater pool has a bar between the pool and the beach, and the stretch of sand in front is kept for guests, with sunbeds and umbrellas. Rixos Marina Abu Dhabi, on the Corniche, has three pools plus a shallow children's pool and a private beach on the Arabian Gulf, though I could not confirm how close the pool decks are to the sand. Two more resorts sit on their own beach. Banyan Tree Dubai at Bluewaters has 500 m of private beach on the Arabian Gulf, outdoor pools and a children's pool, with Ain Dubai in view from the grounds. Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra keeps its own stretch of sand with loungers and umbrellas, alongside two outdoor pools and a children's pool. In both cases I could not confirm a pool deck that opens straight onto the sand. Beachfront in a hotel description often means a seafront road. Windsor Marapendi in Barra da Tijuca, Rio, has its address on Avenida Lúcio Costa, the avenue that runs along Barra beach, with Reserva beach about 300 m away; its outdoor pool faces the ocean, with a poolside bar and a rooftop terrace. A high infinity pool is the other near miss: Vencia Boutique Hotel, about a 10-minute walk from Mykonos Town, looks over the Aegean from above the town, not onto a beach. My verdict: with toddlers, I would only book a pool with only its bar between deck and sand, as at the Dove, because a road to cross turns every trip to the sea into a supervised crossing. A sea-view pool across an avenue, like Windsor Marapendi's, suits couples and older children who want the view and a long beach walk. Before booking, I check three things on the photos and the map: a road between deck and sand, steps or a drop down to the beach, and which way the pool faces at sunset.
Cave Pool
Hotels with dramatic cave-like pools carved into rock or built underground.
Cliff Pool
Spectacular pool hotels perched on cliffs with views to the sea.
Family / kids pool
Shallow ends, splash zones and kids pools the whole family can enjoy.
Floating Pool
Hotels with pools that appear to float above the water or landscape below.