Tinside Lido
Local highlightSemicircular and Art Deco, the 1930s seawater lido on the rocks below Plymouth Hoe, with three fountains and the Sound beyond
Open to visitorsopen late May to mid-September; book online or on the day — check times before you go
Down on the rocks below Smeaton’s Tower, the red-and-white striped lighthouse on Plymouth Hoe, Tinside Lido opened on 2 October 1935. The city engineer, John Wibberley, gave the pool a semicircular shape about 55 m across, set out towards Plymouth Sound, with three fountains in the water. Tinside closed in 1992 and stood empty for over a decade, though Historic England listed it at Grade II in 1998, and swimmers came back in 2005 after a £3.4 million restoration.
More recently the lido has been restored again with National Lottery Heritage Fund money as part of Plymouth Sound National Marine Park, the first national marine park in the UK. Plymouth Active Leisure has run the pool for the city council since 2022. The water is filtered sea water, and the season runs from late May to mid-September; you can book online or turn up on the day. The Royal Citadel, the 17th-century fortress at the east end of the Hoe, is a few minutes away on foot. Plymouth station is about 1.5km north.
