Cold and rain again and again – the outdoor pool season has not really got going in Bavaria so far. Because of the mixed weather and lack of staff, some pools were even temporarily closed, as a survey by the German press agency in large cities in the Free State. The municipalities are now hoping that real summer weather will return from next week. In any case, the German weather service gives some hope in this regard: temperatures are expected to exceed 25 degrees again in the new week, while the amount of rain is expected to decrease significantly.
Nuremberg had massively reduced the opening hours in the Stadionbad this week – just in time for the start of the long school holidays. It was already over at 2 p.m., six hours earlier than normal. The Nuremberg natural garden pool was even completely closed due to the weather. As an alternative, however, the indoor swimming pool in the north-east was also opened in the afternoon. “As soon as the temperatures reach summer values again, the outdoor pools should return to the usual opening times daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.,” announced Nuremberg city spokesman Andreas Franke.
In the state capital, the opening time of the outdoor pools is limited to 7 p.m. when the daily maximum temperature is below 25 degrees, otherwise the pools are open an hour longer in August when it is hot. As a spokeswoman for Stadtwerke München explained, the gates can sometimes be closed late in the afternoon if a thunderstorm is brewing. In Augsburg, too, so far this season, the number of visitors to the outdoor pools has “not really got going,” with the exception of a few days, reported the local sports and pool authority. The outdoor pool in the Lechhausen district therefore remains closed on cool and rainy days, while the three larger open-air pools are open. For the time being there is no way for swimming fans in Bavaria’s third largest city to switch to other pools. “All indoor pools are currently being revised in order to be able to open punctually for the start of school,” the office said.
In Regensburg, the effects of the weather at the Wöhrdbad could be observed well. On hot summer days, up to 2500 visitors cavort there. In the end, only the athletes came to do their laps, reported the spokesman for the Regensburg municipal utility, Martin Gottschalk. “Accordingly, the number of visitors then drops into the low three-digit range.” The calm is also noticeable in Regensburg’s Westbad, a combined indoor and outdoor pool. Instead of 4,500 people, only about 1,000 were counted a day, says Gottschalk. However, the people of Regensburg see a positive trend in the forecasts: “From next week the weather should get better again and accordingly we are assuming that the outdoor pool areas will be used more frequently.”
In Würzburg, too, the Dallenbergbad was largely closed in the first week of vacation, and not just because of the weather. The reason for this was mainly staff shortages caused by illness, said a spokeswoman. According to her, there has recently been a significantly increased influx in the Nautiland indoor pool. Since there is also a smaller outdoor area with an outdoor pool and sunbathing area, bathers can choose between indoors and outdoors. In Ingolstadt, the opening hours of the outdoor pool are not adjusted even in bad weather. The two indoor pools are currently not an alternative in the Upper Bavarian city either. Both are currently closed for maintenance work, reported operations manager Roland Regulator.