When in Rome..

I'm in Rome right now, leaving tomorrow night for Paris. I've been swimming for the past month and a half at Centro Sportivo Santa Maria on Via Matteo Boiardo, which is near the Lateran Palace. My report on swimming here is near the end of this thread: forums.usms.org/showthread.php It is not easy to just go swimming in Rome, as there is really no such thing as a "public" pool as we know it. It can be very expensive, e.g., if you just want to swim once or twice in a hotel pool. The other pools usually require a membership, plus a daily/monthly/quarterly/annual fee. The longer you stay, the cheaper it is. Anyway, the Centro Sportivo Santa Maria charges an annual membership fee of 80 euros. Then there are several different monthly plans available. The cheapest, which is what I pay, is 72 euros a month to swim at lunchtimes, 12:30 to 3:30, Monday through Friday. You can also buy all day and 7 days a week passes for more money. These charges cover not only the pool, but also the gym. There is also a day fee of 18 euros for non-members and 12 euros for members. The 18 euro fee might be the cheapest if you're only here for a week or so. You must present a doctor's certificate in order to swim at most pools in Rome. Mine, which I got from my doc at home, simply said "Mr. C. is fit to swim as much as he likes." When I presented it, they asked me to provide a translation, which I did, and that was fine. If you go to a doctor here for a certificate, it will cost you upwards of 150 euros, and they will do an EKG, a stress test, and various other tests, which you may or may not need. Other things to keep in mind: you must wear a "cuffia," or swim cap, which costs around 10 euros over here (there's a strange cloth one available for 5 euros at the Nike store in the Termini train station). You should also bring flip flops, which everybody uses to get back and forth from the locker room. Bring you own soap and towel and a lock. And if you really want to fit in, you'll need a heavy terry-towel dressing gown, also for moving back and forth between the locker room and the pool (I didn't bother). Also, almost everybody wears briefs, not jammers or board shorts (in France, apparently, you must wear briefs). I highly recommend the Centro Sportivo Santa Maria. The pool is set up for lap swimming with 9 lanes (25 m.). The water is not overly chlorinated. Staff are very friendly and helpful. The only drawback, and this is true everywhere in Rome, I think, is that the lanes are not differentiated for speed, so every lane is only as fast as the slowest swimmer, and there's usually a slower swimmer in every lane! But usually there are not more than 2 or 3 people in a lane, so it's not hard to pass. There is a metro stop nearby, but often the buses will get you there easier, depending on where you're staying. Feel free to PM me or post again if you have any questions. Best of luck, John

That's terrific information. Thank you so much. So - how much is it for a day pass - say to swim 1.6 hours or so? I'd like to fit in 3 times/week.

Well, at CS Santa Maria, you'd pay 18 euros a time. Here's their website (in Italian): http://www.sportsantamaria.it/ Look at "Orari" in the top bar for their hours of operation. Lap swimming is "nuoto libero assistito." (The "assistito" seems to mean that lifeguards/trainers are available to give advice if requested.) I don't know that you will find anywhere else in Rome that is cheaper for one day at a time drop-ins (unless you find a hotel with an indoor pool to stay at). Make sure you bring that note from your doctor — if you need one and don't have it, it will be expensive to get here. It's my last swim at noon today. Then I'm off to Paris, where I believe I've found a halfway decent pool in the Latin Quarter near our apartment. (At least the French don't require a membership or a medical certificate!) Cheers, John

I want to also thank you for the Rome info. I will be in town for Christmas. John

Just a minor update: On my last day at CS Santa Maria, there was a young Canadian traveler in my lane, so I asked him how much he paid and whether he needed a medical certificate. He did in fact pay 18 euros, but they didn't require a certificate (I'd try to get one in any case if you're seeing your doc before you go.) Good luck, John P.S. I had my first swim in the Piscine Pontoise here in Paris this morning. It comes with its own set of limitations (at least to anyone used to swimming in the U.S.), but it cost only 4.5 euros, with no questions asked! My first time in a 33 meter pool. I swam in one of three designated lap lanes, this one marked "no *** stroke," so I assumed it was intended to be for reasonably fast swimmers. No such luck — it soon filled with leisurely backstrokers and others who seemed to merely float without moving, despite being heavily equipped with fins and webbed gloves. At least there was room to pass!