Swimming Pool Games

Swimming pool games!!!! Woooooooooooooooooooooo Hooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!! Let the fun begin!

I don’t know about your guests, but mine are pretty insistent about having some games to play with while they’re in the pool. I’m perfectly happy to “bob” in the water all day, but other folks want action, and lots of it!

There are literally tons of swimming pool games, toys and inflatables available to meet all of your pool fun needs. Check out some of the toys listed below at PoolCenter.com (opens new window) This site offers games, floaties, masks, slides, fitness aides, balls, and more!

Some of the more popular items are:

• basketball games
• volleyball games
• polo
• ring tosses
• rockers and riders
• noodles – for those of you who aren’t familiar with these babies, they’re about 5 feet long, and about 4 inches in diameter, and you can use for a whole heaping load of fun in your pool!
• lounge chairs – many of which come equipped with cup holders of course, so you can have your sparkling beverage within arm’s reach
• beach balls – seriously, if you own a pool, you cannot have enough balls!
• diving games – kids LOVE to play diving games (actually, so do adults), competition starts flying with some of these swimming pool games come out

Sidebar: By “diving” I mean dunking your head under water, and gently swimming to the intended location. Please be careful when swimming in your pool. Too many accidents happen when both children and adults dive into their pool when water levels are too low! Know the appropriate diving depth of any pool. My pool is no more than 4 ½ feet, so diving from the sides is NOT an option.

• inflatable toys and floats – not only lounge chairs, but slides, see-saws, water monster floats, and lots more
• inner tubes
• goggles-fins-snorkels
• children's life vests
• and more...

I'm particularly a big fan of the floatation vests and swimming suit “float ware” for kids! Seeing my niece fearless in my pool last year, makes me acutely aware of how necessary these items are.

Here’s a couple of swimming pool games that don’t need many “props.”

• Whirlpool -

  This works best if you have a round pool and a good number of people (although not too many to actually do damage to the pool!) Have everybody get in the pool and line up around the edge of the pool. Everyone should start walking around the edge in the same direction for a few minutes working their way up to a run. Once you’ve got a good whirlpool action going, everyone should turn around at the same time and try to go the other way. Laugh hysterically as people “fall out”, and give into the current!

• Diving for Leaves -

  This one works best with younger children, as you’ll see in a minute (or adults who don’t realize you’re putting them to work!) Set a time limit, say 5 minutes, and start the clock ticking...whoever can get the most leaves from the bottom of the pool wins! Everyone has to put their leaves in a pile on the side of the pool, there should be a judge to count the leaves, and there should be specific rules about small vs. large leaves and the number of points each one gets. Make sure you have some type of cool “prize” for the winner of this game to make it worthwhile! I can think of no better way to clean your pool. : )

Do you have ideas for swimming pool games to share? Make sure they’re safe and all in good fun, and post them on this website!

Know any good swimming pool games?

You can never have enough ideas for fun in the pool! We'd love to hear yours!

Click below to find out about all types of swimming pool fun...

Have fun in your pool!