Once allowed, swimming in the rivers of Lyon had faded into the sepia memories of our ancestors. But with increasingly frequent heatwaves and a glaring lack of public swimming pools, the Metropolis decided to dust off the file, with a simple idea: make the Saône swimmable, without risking health. The result: a large "swimmability" study was launched, examining 21 spots in Lyon, before selecting five with great potential. And the one that’s causing the most buzz is, unsurprisingly, the Darse de Confluence.
© Métropole de Lyon - Collection Jean-Paul Tabey
Two giant floating pools set to open in the summer of 2027
Imagine this: the gentle sound of water, stylish buildings in the background, a quick dip between shopping sprees, or a sunny snooze... This dreamy scene is on its way to becoming a reality. Two floating pools, accommodating up to 800 people, are planned to be installed starting in the summer of 2027, with the watchful eyes of lifeguards and the Regional Health Agency ensuring the water quality is just right. It's an urban, controlled version of open-water swimming, designed to meet today's ecological and social expectations.
The entry ticket? Not free, but priced like that of the municipal pools. And while the total cost is around two million euros for the installation, the City and the Metropolis see it as an investment in the well-being and climate adaptation of Lyon. So yes, in three years, we might finally say “Come on, let’s take a dip at Confluence” without sounding like a dreamer.
