Lap Swimming At Apartment Building Pools?

[CaptHaddock]

We'll be looking for an apartment in Bangkok this summer to stay for a year. Since my wife and I like to swim regularly I am wondering if it is reasonable to expect to be able to do laps in a pool in our building. Some questions:

Are such pools set up for lap swimming, with marked lanes? Are the other pool users co-operative with lap swimmers? Anyone doing this?

What are water temperatures typically? I gather that heated, indoor pools are scarce. The outdoor pools must depend on heating by the sun. Are they usable during the winter and in the morning?

I realize that there are other alternatives such as joining a club, but if that is the way we should go then it will affect our choice of an apartment building.

[mallyrd]

Finding such a pool within the BKK condo and/or apartment environs is about as rare as rocking horse sh-t. Most pools in these environs are free form and there is no consideration what-so-ever for other users. You might be better off looking for a place to stay that is close to a sports club that has pool facilities that allow lane swimming.

[pomchop]

Saranjai Mansion on Soi 6 sukhumvit has one of the largest pools I have seen in the area. No lanes marked but swimming laps is pretty easy especially weekdays/off hours as not a lot of people there. If you swim in the morning you typically have the entire pool to yourself.

[Metapod]

There is one called "The Jims Place" out near ramkenghaeng with a 50m pool. I can get the address or pics if you like.

There is also another one in lad prao with a 25m pool but shit quality rooms and a fair way down the sois to the main road.

I'm sure they are out there. It is just a matter of finding them.

[pomchop]

Saranjai Mansion on Soi 6 sukhumvit has one of the largest pools I have seen in the area. No lanes marked but swimming laps is pretty easy especially weekdays/off hours as not a lot of people there. If you swim in the morning you typically have the entire pool to yourself.

Correction: I just looked at an old pic of Saranjai pool and there are lanes marked. The pool is 25 meters long. You have the main pool and then a semi separate kiddie pool. I used to swim quite a few laps in the main pool and never had much if any problems with other pool users.

[CaptHaddock]

Saranjai Mansion on Soi 6 sukhumvit has one of the largest pools I have seen in the area. No lanes marked but swimming laps is pretty easy especially weekdays/off hours as not a lot of people there. If you swim in the morning you typically have the entire pool to yourself.

Correction: I just looked at an old pic of Saranjai pool and there are lanes marked. The pool is 25 meters long. You have the main pool and then a semi separate kiddie pool. I used to swim quite a few laps in the main pool and never had much if any problems with other pool users.

That's the sort of thing I am looking for. How was the building and neighborhood otherwise?

Edited May 26, 2011 by CaptHaddock

[pomchop]

Saranjai Mansion on Soi 6 sukhumvit has one of the largest pools I have seen in the area. No lanes marked but swimming laps is pretty easy especially weekdays/off hours as not a lot of people there. If you swim in the morning you typically have the entire pool to yourself.

Correction: I just looked at an old pic of Saranjai pool and there are lanes marked. The pool is 25 meters long. You have the main pool and then a semi separate kiddie pool. I used to swim quite a few laps in the main pool and never had much if any problems with other pool users.

That's the sort of thing I am looking for. How was the building and neighborhood otherwise?

I lived at Saranjai for six months and liked it fine. It is a large complex with two big buildings with a wide variety of condos from studios to big 3 brms. All condos are individually owned and so all decorated/upgraded differently. Some are very nice and some not so nice. There is a rental office on the second floor of the back tower run by a nice thai man named somwong....he has a bunch of units that he manages and can show you around. Prices seem to be good value with min rental time about 3 monthts i think... The soi 6 neighborhood is right in the middle of lots of bars and naughty nightlife so if that bothers you better look elsewhere. Saranjai is only about 6 minute walk to Nana BTS station and right next door to the Grand Sofitel on soi 6 so busy area.

[ukrules]

I heard the apartments are very expensive around that area. A friend used to have one in IS Mansion, $2000 per month, nothing special. At the time I heard that was cheap compared to the others nearby.

[pomchop]

I heard the apartments are very expensive around that area. A friend used to have one in IS Mansion, $2000 per month, nothing special. At the time I heard that was cheap compared to the others nearby.

simply not true. there are a zillion choices of apts for way way less than 2000 usd a month in this area and all over bangkok....google it.

[wordchild]

president place , behind the intercon hotel has a great 25 meter pool hardly ever used. Also i believe there is a good pool in Benjasiri park next to the emporium which is also hardly used , you need to be a member but the cost is next to nothing.

[ChristopherWilliamsBKK]

Saranjai mansion is centrally located but cheap as it's an older building. you are smack bang in the middle of one of the tourist/red light districts. excellent transport links etc.Benjasiri Park - Between Suk sois 22 and 24 has a running track, free gym equipment and a pool 15bt per swim - set in on of Bangkoks best parks. - you could stay in any apartment close by and use the park (open 5am to 9pm) whenever you like.If you dont mind being away from the centre you can rent big cheap townhouses for around the 15k / month in places like prakhanong/pridi where you are close to proper sports centres with olympic sized pools (Pridi 41 - has an excellent centre with pool)

Edited May 27, 2011 by ChristopherWilliamsBKK

[CaptHaddock]

Saranjai mansion is centrally located but cheap as it's an older building. you are smack bang in the middle of one of the tourist/red light districts. excellent transport links etc.Benjasiri Park - Between Suk sois 22 and 24 has a running track, free gym equipment and a pool 15bt per swim - set in on of Bangkoks best parks. - you could stay in any apartment close by and use the park (open 5am to 9pm) whenever you like.If you dont mind being away from the centre you can rent big cheap townhouses for around the 15k / month in places like prakhanong/pridi where you are close to proper sports centres with olympic sized pools (Pridi 41 - has an excellent centre with pool)

We'll keep Benjasiri in mind, but we still hope to find a usable in-building pool, because the convenience factor is so great.

By the way, for anyone else looking for an apartment in BKK, I cameacross an interactive map of apartment buildings maintained by a brokerage. When you click on a color-coded building you usually get photos, rents for apartments by size, list of facilities including pools, etc. Seems like a terrific tool for starting the search.

http://www.kobayashi.co.th/Thaigo/sukhumvit/sukhumvit.htm

[REM]

I live in one of the Life Condos, and it is great. They have a 22 m. swimming pool, and people are very courteous about watching out for others swimming laps. Also, they keep a schedule out in the open for everyone to see when the pool was cleaned, and what the chemical levels are. The pool/gym/sauna are free of charge (some condos charge extra for use of facilities), and there is always a security guard upstairs monitoring everything and enforcing the rules (loosely, but it's better than any other place I've lived here!).

The other nice thing is all Life condos are located right next to a BTS or MRT stops, which makes them extremely convenient to access the city. While prices range from location to location, I am very happy. If you research life condos for rent, you can find one at a very reasonable price. Try TV classifieds, or a google search. Incase the link is deleted, Life Condo by AP will get you there through google.

Here is the link for the website: http://www.ap-thai.com/Life/home.html

[CaptHaddock]

I live in one of the Life Condos, and it is great. They have a 22 m. swimming pool, and people are very courteous about watching out for others swimming laps. Also, they keep a schedule out in the open for everyone to see when the pool was cleaned, and what the chemical levels are. The pool/gym/sauna are free of charge (some condos charge extra for use of facilities), and there is always a security guard upstairs monitoring everything and enforcing the rules (loosely, but it's better than any other place I've lived here!).

The other nice thing is all Life condos are located right next to a BTS or MRT stops, which makes them extremely convenient to access the city. While prices range from location to location, I am very happy. If you research life condos for rent, you can find one at a very reasonable price. Try TV classifieds, or a google search. Incase the link is deleted, Life Condo by AP will get you there through google.

Here is the link for the website: http://www.ap-thai.com/Life/home.html

The pools at the Life Condos do look inviting, but the floor plans seem awfully small. How can a two bedroom fit into 55 or 65 sqm?

[Ninathan]

you can search from this website http://real-estate-th.com/

[ExpatJ]

There are no apartment/condo pools i know of which would allow someone to mark off a lane and swim laps when others are using the pool (plus that's abit of an obnoxious thing to do anyway if there are others using the pool i would have thought..). You would have to swim early morning, late evening when the pools are generally not being used if you want to do laps.

[DP25]

In all the apartment buildings I've stayed in, hardly anyone ever uses the pool and I've usually had it to myself, so no problem doing laps. These were all mainly Thai places though, maybe with more foreigners it will be used more. As for no heating and being too cold to use the pool, that isn't the problem. The problem is that the water is too warm on it's own in my opinion. It's not refreshing enough when it's hot, which is almost every day. It doesn't get cold here and "winter" means it only get up to 80s instead of the 90s. It can on rare occasions get chilly in the morning but not long enough to make the water not warm.

[samran]

President park on Sukhumvit 24 has a pretty good gym and 25m lap pool which I've used many a time.

The weather in BKK means that outdoor pools are much more preferable.

Good pools that I've used not attached to condo's include the 25m salt water pool at the gym at the Pathumwan princess hotel which is attached to MBK.

For those budget minded, the pool at the park next to Emporium is reasonable. Dirt cheap to join, if a little bureaucratic, but opening hours aren't for those who are serious swimmers (ie doesn't open till 10am..)

[CaptHaddock]

In all the apartment buildings I've stayed in, hardly anyone ever uses the pool and I've usually had it to myself, so no problem doing laps. These were all mainly Thai places though, maybe with more foreigners it will be used more. As for no heating and being too cold to use the pool, that isn't the problem. The problem is that the water is too warm on it's own in my opinion. It's not refreshing enough when it's hot, which is almost every day. It doesn't get cold here and "winter" means it only get up to 80s instead of the 90s. It can on rare occasions get chilly in the morning but not long enough to make the water not warm.

That's good info, DP. How was living in a mainly Thai building otherwise? Any problems with conflicting lifestyles? Are Thai buildings noisier? Were the Thais friendly to you?