SLS Centre

My children recently have done swimming lessons and we will not be back for public swim or lessons. The staff are rude and the rules make no sense. It does not seem to be about safety but about authority. One man named Taylor was yelling at all parents to stop standing near the change room entrance (we were waiting for our children who were done in a few minutes). When I tried explaining this to him he continued to say "I have to be consistent." Consistent with what? The children are 3 and 4 years old and parents are waiting to collect them. He was demanding that we go and wait in the waiting room. To get there, you have to take off/put pack on your shoes and walk all the way around the front desk and past it through separate doors. He would not allow us parents to wait a few more minutes for our young kids which led to frustration & confusion amongst all of us parents. It made it completely unenjoyable but most of all, unsafe. When I went all the way to the waiting room, just to see my child alone, scared and confused, I rushed right back to get them (which takes about 2 minutes in a hurry to get through the front entrance and all through the change rooms and back to the pool). No one was with them, he was crying, cold, alone and the instructor was on to the next lesson. Anyone could have grabbed my child. This made me extremely uncomfortable and when I expressed this to the staff they said "these are just the rules." Rules should be about safety. When I have done the public swim, a lifeguard told us that we were welcome to be in the Therapy Pool but there was rules. When the lifeguards rotated and she was gone, a young man was yelling at us to get out of the Therapy Pool saying "children are not allowed." When I said we were just told we were allowed in there, no one was splashing and my child was in-fact doing Therapy and not disturbing anyone, he told me that previous life guard was "just being nice" and then threatened to go and get a supervisor to remove us from the pool altogether. We were so confused as we weren't breaking any rules and we were just enjoying the facility. Again, their rules don't seem to be about safety but about control. I notice a lot of the staff as they are teenagers are laughing while chatting in their microphones when maybe they should pay more attention to the safety aspect of the job. Some staff is kind but a lot of the staff I encountered are very rude and unfriendly to both adults and children. Unfortunately, we will not be back to this facility.

This review is for the pool. Swimming is TOO EXPENSIVE and even a monthly pass isn’t worth it if you just want to use the pool from time to time. Instead of charging per day, they should have an alternative way to allow people who just want to go for an hour or less. I have a baby and don’t want to go multiple times a day…a few times a week would be perfect but I’m not paying that crazy fee each time I go. Hard financially to do small things with your family from time to time. Currently visiting in another province and all pools I’ve gone to are 5$ swim. Lots of people feel the burden of this astronomical cost, please listen to the folks!

We attended a birthday party at the Cochrane SLS Centre pool and had such a great experience. The staff were lovely and genuinely helpful from start to finish. The pool area was incredibly clean, and the locker rooms were spotless, which is so important to us, especially with a one-year-old. We absolutely loved the hydrotherapy pool. It was warm and perfect for little ones. Our son also enjoyed the waves because they were gentle and not too intense, so we felt comfortable the whole time. It was such a positive experience, and we will definitely be back. Highly recommend for families with young kids!

I wish the front staff were as friendly as they are at the first door of SLS. This place is always packed with people, especially summer, as it's the only recreational place that gives a variety of family/kids' activities in one place. The parking could be challenging sometimes when it's hockey season. I wish there were more space for parking. When it comes to public skating, I wish they would clean/clear the floor after hockey games. Even though the public skating is scheduled only for 1-1.5 hours, clearing the floor would help young ice-skaters safely.

Was at the centre for a hockey tournament. While the arenas are great, things review of the aquatic centre. First of all, the water slide, indoor spray park and lazy river sprayers were down (no discount offered) Second, the water had an absolutely horrible taste, let me and my family’s mouths tasting like we had swallowed bile. Not sure what the sea is here. Lastly, it was freezing, the water in the main pool was cool and there was a freezing cold draft. I am disappointed in the aquatic centre. The arena side was fantastic though.