Canary Wharf is getting a floating Olympic-sized lido with saunas and year-round swims
Sea Lanes brings Brighton’s open-water swimming concept to London
Canary Wharf is about to get a very different kind of swim spot. From Friday the 19th of June, Sea Lanes Canary Wharf will open at Eden Dock in, bringing a floating, Olympic-sized lido to one of London’s most high-rise corners.
It is a 50-metre, six-lane pool sitting on natural water, operated by the team behind Sea Lanes Brighton, the UK’s first National Open Water Swimming Centre. While Canary Wharf already has an outdoor swimming area at Eden Dock during the summer months, this new addition is designed to take things further, offering year-round access to swimming in a controlled open-water environment.
The idea sits somewhere between a traditional pool and wild swimming. It is designed as a “stepping stone” for people building confidence in open water, but still wanting the structure of lanes, sessions and supervision. Swimmers of all ages and abilities will be able to use it, with both pay-as-you-swim sessions and membership options available.
Alongside the pool, the site will include two saunas powered by renewable energy, a community clubhouse and a waterside seating area serving food and drinks. It is very much pitched as a full dockside hangout rather than just somewhere to do a few lengths and leave.
Water quality at Eden Dock is regularly tested against EU Bathing Water Standards and is consistently rated “excellent”, which is doing a lot of the heavy lifting in making this feel slightly less like swimming next to office towers and more like an actual outdoor swim destination.
Joe McNulty, Director at Sea Lanes, said: “This is about so much more than swimming; it’s about creating a space where people can feel better, move more, and reconnect with nature and each other. Bringing open water swimming into central London in this way is something truly special, and we can’t wait to welcome people in.”
The lido opens on the 19th of June 2026 and will operate year-round, weather permitting, adding yet another option to London’s increasingly busy roster of places to take a cold dip and pretend you are living a healthier life than you probably are.
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