Great place to take the kids to spend a hot, summer afternoon. My six and nine-year-old girls had a…read moregreat time (well, except for adult swim - but I loved that!). The slides were fun and well-monitored. Lines weren't excessively long. They enjoyed the diving board and chute slide, too, and did plenty of laps in the lazy river. Water temperature was very nice. Seems like the guards, for the most part, were on top of any rowdiness or misbehavior. Snack bar was nice - one of the friendly teens even tracked down my young daughter when she forgot to claim her fifty cents in change. We had a fun time!

I got there with my children at 4 just to hear it announced they were closing in an hour for to low…read moreattendance. There were many people in the pool enjoying themselves, kids doing the dining board, people eating at the concession. It's the end of summer, of course attendance will be lower, but we all pay alot of money for a pass and should be able to use the facility until the season ends. We saw a Mom with her kids walking up as we were getting out things to leave. With kids starting school, we should still have the option of coming later to use the facility. That's what we paid for. As well the ice cream shack we always buy from and advertised as part of what we're getting was closed everytime we came there.

My 3 children took swim lessons…read more Pros: the teachers and staff are all very nice and relate to kids well. They have a nice area where the kids can play/relax after class for a few minutes. They use the whole lane of the pool to teach which maximizes swim time. The teachers sometimes have them "group swim" instead of ONLY individual swim which maximizes swim time. They also are very prompt with starting and ending on time. Cons: the teachers they have are not consistent, and so they don't know your child's swim level, and the skills worked on that week is random (whatever the teacher wants to do), so there is a lack on consistency. I also wish there was an option for parents to sit inside the pool area instead of only the option to sit outside of the glass. Overall, I would go for another lesson, but wish for more consistency in skills learned each week.

Been taking my daughter to swim classes here for a couple of years. We were excited to graduate…read morefrom the baby classes, which is 30 minutes of just getting the kids used to being in water and most of the instructors we had did not seem too engaged in the class. Once we got to the 3-5 classes, the instructors were great and my kids loved it. However, we had 2 weeks in a row where, first, my 3-year-old fell in the water and was picked up by another instructor who was walking around the pool. Then the next week, during the last 5 minutes of "play time," my 4-year-old slipped off the wall and was fully submerged and flailing in the water. The teacher (who is great) was with another child. I don't know how long my daughter was under water (it felt like forever), but it was long enough for all five parents watching to bang repeatedly on the class and yell for someone's attention, since the door to the pool is locked and we couldn't get in. Finally, an instructor walking around the pool noticed and grabbed my daughter. During both incidents, the "lifeguard" did not notice either girl and made no move to help either time. After the second incident, we removed my daughter's from the class. I spoke with the manager, Jackie, who was great, discussed how there is no way that should be happening, and offered a full refund. Then she had the supervisor, Marty, call me. He made the situation much worse by repeatedly discussing how young children don't listen by the pool and it causes unsafe situations. I agreed with him, acknowledging that my 3-year-old fell in due to not listening. But my 4-year-old is very nervous by the water and tends to be a very good listener. Despite mentioning this, Marty again discussed how children don't listen and cause an unsafe situation by continually jumping in the pool on the own. Even if my daughter was not listening, there should be no reason a child is fully submerged under the water with no one (especially the lifeguard) noticing until parents finally get their attention by banging on windows and yelling. Marty made the whole experience worse by his attempts to explain why the situation occurred and helped me feel more confident in my decision to transfer the girls to the new Foss swim school (which is also much bigger and cleaner).

I don't live in the suburbs, and I don't even wish I did, but every so often you discover one of…read morethese amazing places . . . The Cermak Family Aquatic Center is awesome. A holy-grail destination for summer days with kids. They have a lazy river full of innertubes, and giant 2.5 foot deep pool with a play structure and various splashing items, plus a splash pad, and a junk food concession. It is neither a real swimming pool nor a water park. Not a real swimming pool because the deepest part of the pool is 2.5 feet deep. Not a water park because there's no actual waterslide, though there is a slide ... into the water -- if you grasp the distinction I'm making. But as a consequence this means that you can feel much more comfortable giving even young kids a decent amount of freedom (obviously not too much! be safe!) and generating the kind of wet, chlorinated, hot, happy, exhausted summer day that you may have grown up with as a kid. Chicago is a big city of rich amenities, so there are not a ton of things that I say are clearly worth a 45 minute drive from my house, but this is one of them.

Located inside Forest Preserve District of Cook County; Cermak Woods. Free parking for customers…read more Wonderful recreational area to enjoy with your family and friends. This is a well designed water recreational area. It has been changed, upgraded and redesigned throughout the years, but still here providing a great relaxing service to this community and visitors. You can grab a towel at the nearby Marshalls, and sunscreen as well. Plenty of grocery stores and restaurants nearby if you would like to enjoy a picnic with your family as well. Enjoy this wonderful experience.

This is another Wheaton Park District facility and it's located at Northside Park. It's at the end…read moreof West Street and to the east. This is an older pool, so it's not as glitzy as some of the other pools in the area. They have 1 water slide, a diving board, a sand pit and a great toddler area. The toddler area here is fenced in and has it's own pool which is 0 dept to 2 feet or so. There are lots of chairs here for moms to sit poolside. Off of the toddler pool is the sand area. I've spent lots of time here and there are always extra chairs and some benches. There are toys available here, I wouldn't bring your own because you will get a headache trying to keep an eye on them. Pricewise, this pool has a cheaper admission rate for non residents. It's $11.75 for an adult and $7.00 for a child. Sometimes the pool closes early due to swim meets and this pool opens later that Rice Pool due to swim lessons. Another important thing to know is that the kids in the daycamps at Northside Park, swim at this pool from 1-3 or so. This summer (2010) the camps are relocated due to work at the park, but they will be back next year. This pool is a great one to hang out with your little ones. If you have older kids, the slides at Rice Pool are a better source of entertainment.

Amazing place with impeccable lifeguards. Very clean bathrooms and also have toilet paper in the…read morebathroom. (It's awesome trust me) this pool is One of the Ellis's lifeguard training facility and has made outstanding guards who always know how to keep the pool a safe environment. A great place for family or birthday party. They have adult lap swim at 12-1 and 5:30-6:30 every. and test the water every 2 hours so it's always safe. However a simple pool they have all of the pizzazz and the new pools. They have great music always, a slide AND diving board. Kiddy pool AND sand box. The sand box is the original mine craft as the kids make rivers and lakes in the sand. Get your kids out of the house and have a unforgettable time here. Don't sleep on this pool, defiantly better than Rice pool on the south side (Northside is more of a family aspect.) stay woke.

THIS PLACE IS A LOCAL GEM!!!! As someone who is here in Illinois for vacation and lives in…read moreCalifornia, this pool is all you will need!! The pools in Cali are so much worse!!! While today was a bit chaotic, the staff was still extremely respectful and mindful, whether there was vomit in the pool or a fire drill. The slides and activities definitely make up for it. Turtle Splash was definitely designed for babies and young children!!! whether it was the playground that comes with the pool or the small slide where your child can enjoy a quick slide into the water The food situation is a bit strict... They are quite stern on the no food allowed, all food that you buy in the food court must be eaten there, and no outside food allowed in at all (you can come in and out of the pool as you please to eat your food from home!!) We tried the food at the restaurant,t and while you can definitely tell it's just frozen food, it's probably the best frozen food there is!!! (slightly overpriced though...) My 2 children and I all had the corn dog, and we all liked it, and I tried the smoothie, and it was not good at all... But the ice cream selection is quite good!! The changing rooms are a bit bare-bones, and there are lockers that I believe you can rent at the front of the pool, but we just took our stuff with us. CAUTION!!! IT GETS EXTREMELY SLIPPERY IN THERE, SO WALK WITH CAUTION!!! They weren't the most sanitary, and there was trash on the floor, but it wasn't terrible. The staff was OK; some lifeguards cared about their jobs, and some didn't give a sh-, with any pool, it was run by high schoolers, but they were all mostly respectful. There was a supervisor named Bill who asked my children if they were having fun, and Bill was one of the few who cared for his job, he was the only staff memeber that was over the age of 30, lol, there was also this lifeguard, if i remember his name correctly his name was Peter, he was at the bottem of the slides and he always asked me and my kids if we were OK after going down. One time on the Tube Slide me and my 4 year old daughter flipped, and he wasted no time grabbing my daughter ASAP so she wouldn't go under (the current is EXTREMELY STRONG). But some lifeguards just stand there like a post and don't move. Shame on them!! It was very packed today, and we still managed to have a lot of fun! There aren't a lot of lawn chairs, and of those, very few are shaded,d but there is a big spot of grass with umbrellas and trees where you can set up base! You can't bring your own chairs or chairs from the pool,l but a blanket is fair game! Pack one just in case their isnt any seats!! Overall, if I lived in the West Chicago Area, I would be a regular at this pool!!! If anyone is on the fence about going to this pool, I highly suggest going!!

This waterpark 9/10 The water temperature isn't freezing cold, and this is perfect for little ones…read moreas it includes: Waterpark, splash pad, and park all within the same side. The only downside is you cannot take outside food in. I would love to go next year and many years after.

I loved this place as a kid growing up in town and I returned last summer with my kiddos and it was…read moremaybe even better than I remember? Absolutely great place for kids to swim and play and mom to soak up some vitamin D. I was there with kiddos of all ages and felt like there was something for everyone! My two year old played in the sand (tho there were some hornets to watch out for over there) and went in and out of the zero entry area with his little toy 300 times. My older son (6) went down the water slides also 300 times. Even when they are super busy you can usually find a chair or just put your stuff on the back lawn. If you want a chair make sure to get there early! One annoying thing I will note is that they will close the concession stand early (whatever time they want) if they are "slow" which is kinda BS Since you can't bring in your own food...

Yes I love it here since this is a well organized place and clean the staff very friendly and…read morehelpful the life guards are so well trained and are always looking for safety. I enjoy driving very far just to swim laps and also just to chill out in the summer heat I highly recommend this place for all the family to come and have a good time

Honestly, I don't know why more families in Bolingbrook AND the surrounding suburbs don't go to…read moreBolingbrook Park District for their swim lessons! Not only is Pelican Harbor indoor water park humongous and perfect for all levels of swimming, staff is incredibly friendly and prices are beyond reasonable!!! Even if you're not a Bolingbrook resident, if you sign up early enough, you can get 6-8 swimming lesson sessions for about $8 per lesson. I currently have both my children in Parkie's Starfish Swim School (ages 3-8) and each lesson is 40 minutes long. At private swim schools (Bear Paddle, Goldfish, British Swim School), lessons for that age group are 30 minutes long and almost 3 times as much per lesson! One thing to keep in mind are that many of the instructor are VERY young (probably high school-early college age). One of my kids is a newly minted 3 year old and doesn't listen very well at times (my kid just wants to play around in the water). I think the teacher had a hard time instructing in the beginning, but she doesn't give up and spoke to me about methods to "speed up" the progression as well as boundaries I may have. I appreciated that because I can only imagine how hard it is to teach young children who would rather play than learn. Parkie's Starfish Swim School has several levels starting from White (never having a swim lesson before) and ending in Green (able to swim on side, can freestyle 30 feet with rhythmic breathing). Levels Red-Yellow-Blue are in between. After mastering green, they can move to Parkie's Starfish Stroke School, perfecting all the strokes with longer distances as well as flips and open turns. They also have Parkie's Babies Swim Lesson for babies (ages 3-36 months). Overall I highly recommend Bolingbrook Park District for swim lessons. It's extremely affordable, the indoor swimming facility is very impressive and staff is so nice. I love that I can bring my kids here year-round instead of just summers. I know I'll continue bringing my kids here for years to come!

Had my two sons in their swimming classes and would practice with them after their classes for…read moreabout 15minutes. I have been doing this since last year, then one of the personnel walked up to me last month after their class whiles practicing and asked if I was a member which I answered no. She then said, you can stay if you are a member but if not then get out". I got my kids ready after we were done then asked her what was their policy for after class, she said, you are able to stay till 15 minutes after the swimming class. I called the manager of the place and reported this incidence. Will I take my kids back there? NO!!! Staff should have the respect for people who patronize them and not disrespect them.The staff should have explained their policy because this same staff if there every day I take my kids to this place. She was out right rude and disrespectful! They just lost two customers.

I was here as part of a dance performance. The gym is large but could use some updating. We had…read morethe space reserved for a rehearsal, and the stage had been set up with other equipment, which the staff said HAD to stay there... we just moved it ourselves so we could rehearse! The are under construction so our show was full of false fire alarms going off during dances. A little disappointing, to say the least. But we were able to finish.

I come here for the pool! I live close by and it's a great pool. Clean and totally low key. They…read morealso have a park behind the pool to hang out at.