Dirty facilities, always crowded and the staf seem to hate the people who go there. I don't know…read morewhy they don't try harder but I'm sure this place would be absolutely brilliant with just a little TLC. I know it frustrates some of the trainers.

Excellent facilities, but the studio classes work to music tracks that are well over 90dbA and this…read morelevel is dangerous as it can damage hearing. The staff are friendly and apart from thiis disregard of safety levels I rate this centre very highly.

So this is where it all started...the beginning of a rather bizarre love with swimming pools as a…read moreplace for fun - the memories of youth - I remember the excitement when this leisure pool originally opened in 1976 - it wasn't a rectangle it was round! What was this madness? Half the pool was too shallow to actually swim in and it had waves. This was the very first time I had encountered a "leisure" pool - oh trend setting, thoroughly modern Swindon you have so much to answer for - (along with the famed "magic roundabout"). I still return here with the kids every time we jump on a train to visit my wife's family. It is a great pool but looking distinctly tatty round the edges now. The domed roof desperately needs renewing - it looked spectacular 30 years ago but putting that aside its still super fun. The pool itself is beach style with a separate small kids pool. Good kids pool with 3 slides plus pirate ship.... The main pool has a steep three lane multislide and a new long slide circles inside the building (77m long). But really it is the flumes here that count and these are top. The Domebusters have a had a refurb this year and one of them has been replaced. All are approx 100m in length.So first off The Sidewinder A fairly gentle, spiralling flume aimed at younger children and parents. You can sit or go head first. The Great White My favourite - heads first ONLY never seen that on any other slide! Normally feet first everywhere.... A fast ride with two small vertical drops and several twists and turns. The Storm The new this year straight fast flume - small circumference with a striped lighting effect and sounds.. Didn't get to try this out this time - but will be back to do so....busy with an under 5... The session time was only an hour - which is really not long enough and it is fairly expensive considering the stingy hour. There are not many reasons to visit Swindon but this is definitely one if you are a water slide fan or the kids love to swim. . --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Update So I came back to try out the new flume which I hadn't managed to try out last time. Managed to slip away from a family visit for a couple of hours with my teenagers. Interestingly GLL have taken over the management of the leisure centre since we were here in 2012 (they run most of the pools we visit in London). It had been spruced up a bit with the new corporate livery...but still the stingy session times. We took no notice of the session times and made good use of the domebuster slides. So The Storm was the main attraction - small tube, dark, with striped lightning and fast with the descent as a helix. A big thumbs up from the family - a great slide but not in our top 5 slides. The Great White remains the favourite - head first you can pick up some proper speed and fly over the steepest vertical drops... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oasis is a great place to take the family swimming! They have a huge laguna pool that boasts water…read moreslides, a wave machine, a smaller pool for the children and a big water sprayer. They do a range of different classes such as mother and baby Swimming, OAP Swimming and also offer swimming lessons. They have also just started doing gigs with people such as 'The Sugababes' 'Cascada' and 'Shayne Ward' perfoming there.

This was such a fun experience! It was challenging & engaging! It'd be a great activity for family…read more& friends

From the owner: With BeatOrbit's immersive, full-body experience everyone can use the power of drums and music to…read moreswitch off and escape from the everyday rush. So, what is BeatOrbit? Some say it's social drumming, some say interactive cinema or drum karaoke. What we know for sure: BeatOrbit is an innovative and unique form of recreation where you can playfully release stress. In other words: you recharge via making music. Not faking music. Making music!

Westminster Sports Centre is open to everyone - not just students from brookes! Also its not one of…read morethose gyms that is only open to members - you can buy a single swim or gym session without signing up to a membership! Its one of the cheapest gyms i've been to and the by far the friendliest. It has a number of facilities, including a 25m swimming pool, a 55 station gym, two squash courts, a large meeting/training room, badminton facilities, basket ball facilities, a number of tennis courts, 6 outdoor pitches and an 18 hole golf course. The pricing of the memberships are very competitive. Don't expect to pay more than about £25 per month for most if not all of the facilities. Locals get discounts (as well as service men & women) and can knock up to a quarter of the price. Prices range from £16 to £48 per moth depending on the degree to which you wish to use the facilities. Phone up to check availability. The swimming pool is kept to about 30.5 degrees centigrade. The gym is large and spacious and airy. It can get a little hot later into the evening but there is air conditioning (which i've been told is being improved). The squash courts are the best i've played in. The centre offers a number of classes that can be found on their website, including spinning which is well run and is usually in the air-conditioned training room. The staff are friendly and are always up for a good chat! Its always nice to come in from a long day at work and see a smiling happy manager behind reception. The place is kept clean and tidy by a team of dedicated lifeguards and cleaners who if asked will always help you out. There are only a few negatives: the car park at the moment is a hassle - as i gather it, the university don't like people parking and have a barrier system in place. The bad side of this deter ant on us as customers is that we have to get a token from reception, for every time you use the facilities. This is a hassle to begin with but you get used to it. If you don't think you'd like this then you can always ride your bike/moped/push bike to the centre; which provides bike storage by the barrier to the car park. Or alternatively you could catch the U1, which stops on the campus by the teaching facilities. The other negative is that sometimes its frustrating to see managers or reception staff sat behind reception doing nothing (browsing facebook/ playing games/ texting) whilst the cleaners are in the gym, and the lifeguards on poolside. Admittedly the centre is never that busy, but its plain to see there are jobs to be done to tidy the place up a bit. If not just in the reception area? Anyway over all its a great little centre that not that many people know about and really has a family/friendly feel to it. I would definitely recommend it and its always there to try.

It's a big shame, but it has been ruined. My children have both used the swimming lessons there for…read moreyears very happily. Unfortunately, there is a new incompetent manager (Stuart McC) there. When my daughter progressed to the end of the swimming lessons with 2 lessons to go, we informed Stuart that we would like the refund for 4 lessons that were still pre paid. He explained that nothing could be done about the 2 lessons that were for the end of the course (fair enough). However, he could refund the remaining 2 lessons....in 57 days time at the earliest because he was 'short staffed'. I have been a manager for years and this does not wash. When produced with a letter he signed himself saying that you could get a refund, I received a nonsense email filled with bluff, jargon and no substance. Still curious as to whether it will take 57 days to get a £16.00 refund. Personally, I wouldn't sign up to any sports membership here whilst this incompetent manager is in charge, unless you want to find yourself in this situation over any membership fees.

Awful, charges money for certain trampolines, food tastes like cardboard and is expensive and does…read morea concept called "teen night" where only teen can jump, even when it it totally empty.

From the owner: Jump In Trampoline Arena provides exhilarating experiences for fun-loving people of all ages. With…read more32,000 sq ft of features, including trampoline dodgeball, foam pits, battle beam, slam dunk, tumble tracks and toddler zone, there's truly something for everyone! Come on, get involved and Jump In! Please book online to avoid disappointment.

This is a really nice sports facility where you get a welcome as soon as you enter. There is ample…read moreparking facilities on site and the opening hours mean you have little excuse not to go and utilise your membership. The reception staff are fantastic, I really feel that nothing appears to be too much trouble for them. The facilities on site are good, occasionally, I have found the water in the pool to be a little cool, but thats maybe me. The changing rooms are always immaculate and they offer good facilities, there are lots of hairdryers and it reminds me of a spa in there. The gym itself is well laid out and is a comfortable temperature for your workout, it has never been too busy and I have never felt that I have been looked down upon for my poor physique - whereas some gyms you feel uncomfortable. The staff are all really friendly and helpful and after your workout there is a really nice restaurant which serves really nice food and really tasty coffee.

Big sports centre with good swimming facilities. There is a flume which is a hit with the kids…read more good value for money too. i play badminton here and there's plenty of sports to try out with classes given for people of all abilities.

Rivermead is a trully exquisite place to go swimming, because of all the great features like the…read moresoothing wave producing machine and slippery water slide, you really would'nt wanna miss out on going swimming their.

Oxford Ice Rink Oxpens Road Outdoor skating may be the cool…read morething to do (couldn't resist the pun) but for real ice and a big space, go to the Oxford Ice rink. The surroundings are rather grotty and can't compare with Somerset House or possibly Oxford or Warwick castles (I've not been to the two latter but I imagine they are scenic) but it is bigger and size does (whatever men say) count. There is enough room to get up a bit of speed or just to get up a bit of confidence. It can get very busy at week ends and during school holidays. The disco music can be too loud for anybody except teenagers. Check with the rink before you go if you don't want to find yourself in the middle of an ice disco. During the week the early evening sessions are much quieter. It is run by the council so it isn't that expensive and you can get a discount card if you are a regualar visitor - you may also get special deals if you have a "Slice" card for the council run sports centres. Non-skaters can pay a pound to accompany their children.

Good old Oxford ice rink. It's a typical ice rink in that it's a bit run-down, a bit dirty and…read morerather ugly from the outside, but hey, you don't go there for the aesthetics. The rink is a fair old size and they run lots of great events such as ice dancing lessons, family discos and ice hockey training. Various teams train regularly there, although often late at night, and it's home to Oxford Alternative Ice Hockey (essentially ice hockey for amateurs, but great fun according to my friend who does it regularly). Entry is pretty cheap, although as others have mentioned, it's best to walk there if you want to avoid the parking charges. There are vending machines and lockers, and the staff are friendly and enthusiastic.

This leisure centre is rather nice I think. We went to book my daughter's swimming lessons when we…read morewere buying a house at Yeovil. I thought it was all rather well laid out with very good access, and very user friendly. The was a cafe near the entrance which I thought was great, a meeting point for parents and offspring. The staff were very friendly too, and when everything fell through they gave me a refund over the phone (well not literally) which I thought was impressive. The whole place seemed pleasing to me, with trees close by and good parking.

Light, bright and clean swimming facilities. Good staff. Pool itself is not particularly big or…read moredeep compared to Strode Pool in Street, but it's a nicer environment. Handily located next to Ninesprings so you can go for a family walk too afterwards.

It can be difficult to find activities that a 2 year old, 5 year old and 8 year old can all enjoy…read moretogether - this place definitely met our diverse needs! Fully hands-on discovery center with activities covering a full range of STEM activities. One note - if a child isn't reading independently, they may need assistance in figuring out what they're supposed to do! Small cafeteria with snacks and drinks and small meal options. Friendly, helpful staff.

I'm a squirrel and this is my heaven!…read more Oooo... nut. Rummage, burrow, oh that looks a nice tree. Strange large squirrel with no tails or fur on 2 wheels zipping underneath me. Nut. 4 legged squirrels that woof, argh. Nasty scary 4 legged squirrel. Look at all my trees, aren't I a clever squirrel to have so many. All mine, that nut is mine too. Nut.