FAQs

We’re a naturist swim, open to all men over the age of 18, that has been running for over 20 years.

Arcadia Library & Leisure Centre, Yew Tree Avenue, Manchester, M19 3PH.

What 3 Words (front entrance):

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The swim is on every Thursday.

Arrival Time: 6:45pm – 7:15pm

Swim Time: 7:00pm – 8:30pm

As the swim is organised by volunteers, please try to arrive before 7:15pm.

The last swim of 2026 will be on Thursday, 17th December.

Don’t pay at the reception at Arcadia.

Once inside Arcadia, walk straight past reception (which is on the left), and keep walking to the end of the corridor. In front of you, at the end of the corridor, will be the viewing window for Pool 1.

Between 6.45pm and 7.15pm, the organisers will be sat at a table on one side of this space, just in front of the viewing window. Here they will meet you, introduce themselves, and take payment.

At 7.15pm, the organisers go through to Pool 2 to enjoy the swim. If you arrive after 7.15pm, you can still go through to Pool 2 where one of the organisers will take payment from you. As the mobile reception in the changing room area is poor, the payment is £10, exact cash only.

If you’d like to attend, you can just turn up.

We’re not a membership based event, and so you don’t need to give us prior notice.

Public Transport

There are local bus stops in front of Arcadia on the A6, with Bee Network bus services directly to and from Manchester city centre.

Levenshulme train station is just a three-minute walk away with frequent, direct services to and from Manchester Piccadilly.

There’s more information about local public transport on our Links page.

Car

Arcadia has free car parking to the rear. However, if you do drive to Arcadia, you will need to enter your vehicle’s registration plate once you walk inside the leisure centre. There is a white, all-in-one tablet and keyboard console, just before reception, where you enter your vehicle’s registration details.

If you don’t do this, your vehicle will be issued with a ticket by a parking enforcement company and subject to a fine. This is to clamp down on local people who have historically been using Arcadia’s car park, but not its facilities. If you’re not sure about any of this, please ask at reception.

If you are travelling by car, please remember that traffic congestion and therefore journey times will increase if there is any big event being hosted in or close to Manchester city centre on a Thursday evening. This could be, for example, a music concert or a football match. Please do check before travelling.

Cycle

Arcadia has cycle racks at the front, near the entrance. As organisers we can’t vouch for the security of these cycle racks, and accept no responsibility for the theft of any cycles from them.

Currently there are no Bee Network cycle racks close to Arcadia Leisure Centre.

A shower kit including shower gel, shampoo and towel.

Goggles and flip flops are optional.

A method of contactless payment and a £1 coin or trolley token for a locker.

Very occasionally, the swim can be cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances beyond our control.

As organisers we get very short notice of swim cancellations, usually less than an hour before the swim is due to start. However, we always put it on the website homepage as soon as we know ourselves.

The best idea is just to check the website before setting off to make sure that the swim is still on.

We have created a WhatsApp Swim Community for the swim, so that we can send out a push notifications to attendees if the swim is ever cancelled to prevent wasted journeys. If you’d like to be added to it, ask one of the organisers when you visit.

Naturism is commonly defined as:

“Communal nudity, or nudity practiced openly, sometimes in the belief that encourages self respect, respect for others and a feeling of being in harmony with nature”

Naturism is non-sexual and family friendly, although our swims are for over 18s only.

As swim organisers, we’ve noticed that naturism can boost self-esteem, body confidence, and mental health.

The term ‘naked’ can refer to anything clothes-free, and might be used to describe an event with a sexual element to it.

As our swim is completely non-sexual, we prefer not to have that association.

Arrival between 6:45pm & 7:15pm:

Card payment: £7.50

Cash payment: £10.00

Multibuy Pre-Pay card options available (see next question below).

The payment cost by cash is higher as we don’t carry change.

Our card payment terminal accepts Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Maestro.

Arrival after 7.15pm:

Cash payment only: £10.00

At 7.15pm, the organisers go through to Pool 2 to enjoy the swim. If you arrive after 7.15pm, you can still go through to Pool 2 where one of the organisers will take payment from you. As the mobile reception in the changing room area is poor, the payment is £10, exact cash only.

We have introduced a Pre-Pay Card for the swim from November 2025, which has replaced our previous stamp based loyalty scheme.

4 Swims = £30

5 Swims = £37

6 Swims = £39

Pre-Pay Card Terms & Conditions:

1. Any loyalty schemes, prepay cards or other perks can be changed or withdrawn at any time without notice.

2. This card can be used to purchase admittance to the swim only.

3. Multiple use is permitted, for instance, if you bring a friend, 2 or more stamps can be redeemed from the 1 card providing there is sufficient stamps available to cover the entry otherwise and additional payment to cover the admittance will be required.

4. You should treat this card like cash – if lost or stolen you will lose the balance.

5. No refunds will be issued for unused stamps or expired cards.

Unfortunately, yes.

The swim is a private hire, and therefore independent of Arcadia and any of its memberships or discounts.

This means that even if you are a member of Arcadia, you will still need to pay the same price as the other attendees.

Yes, the pool we use is completely separate from the main pool. It has its own showers, toilets, lockers and private cubicles. Full length blinds protect our privacy from the other pool for the duration of the swim.

The pool is 17m in length and 8m wide, with a stepped entrance at one end. The shallow end is 0.9m in depth and the deep end 1.5m in depth.

Arcadia aim to keep the temperature of the pool between 28 and 30 degrees centigrade each week.

The water temperature does vary from week to week, and so maybe lower than that stated above.

The organisers have no control over the temperature of the pool.

Yes, please remember to bring either a £1 coin or a trolley token for a locker to keep your valuables secure while you swim.

The organisers accept no responsibility for the loss of personal items that are not secured in a locker for the duration of the swim.

Yes, there is a sauna and a steam room, but these are not included in the price of the swim and must be booked separately.

Please contact Arcadia directly for more details, and remember to bring shorts as those facilities are shared with other users of the leisure centre.

Arcadia Leisure Centre

Yes. Arcadia is on one level from the front door to poolside. The pool we use has a pool hoist which can be assembled in minutes. It also has a shower, cubicles and lockers for wheelchair users.

Yes. The entrance into the pool itself is by six tiled steps that span the whole width of the pool. These steps are shallow, edged in black tiles for visibility, and feature several tubular handrails to aid the entrance to and exit from the pool.

Numbers vary, and there’s no seasonal pattern. We might host 14 attendees one week, and then 25 the next week.

We have a limit of 30 maximum in the pool, to comply with insurance.

It’s rare that the swim fills up completely, although this has happened occasionally in the past.

If this does happen, any attendees who arrive after the 30 limit has been reached will be turned away.

The key is to arrive as soon as possible to get the best chance of attending the swim.

The swim is a perfect event for a first-time naturist.

As the focus of the swim is a normal fitness activity, it distracts from the thought of being naked in front of others. Being immersed in water helps too, as it means not being on show and therefore no need to worry about appearances.

The physical activity of swimming is good exercise and even better without a costume. It requires breath control that helps regulate heart rate and calms any first-time nerves.

The social activity of the swim also helps. Talking to various other attendees – who were themselves nervous newbies once too – will also aid relaxation and boost your confidence.

The organisers will also try to check-in with any newbies whilst in the pool, to get feedback about their experience.

All types of men have attended our swim, and all men are welcome to attend regardless of difference. We’re inclusive of all ages, shapes, sizes, ethnicities, cultures, and abilities.

Our swim has attracted men from all over the UK, and those visiting from countries including mainland Europe, the US, Canada, Asia, and Australia.

Although the swim has a certain number of regulars, the overall mix of attendees is random and changes every week. This means that there will always be new people to talk to and get to know.

Due to the random attendance pattern of our swim, it’s impossible for us organisers to tell if or when a certain demographic of swimmer will attend, and so it’s unfair to ask us as we simply won’t know.

No. The swim has all abilities of swimmer attend – there are no lanes or restrictions, and no expectations regarding ability.

If you’d prefer, you can just sit in the shallow end of the water and chat to fellow attendees.

Our swim initially started as a swim event organised by gay men for gay men, who welcomed the opportunity to swim and socialise exclusively with other men.

However, positive word of mouth soon spread after the swim started, and due to popularity we began to welcome men of any sexuality, with no questions ever asked.

Whilst no inappropriate activity is tolerated at the swim, as organisers we still don’t think that the swim is a suitable event for children to attend.

The lack of children at our swim also appeals to many of our regular attendees who prefer a quieter, adults only naturist swim.

No, the swim is not trans inclusive.

Our swim is a single gender environment which provides a protected and safe space to swim for biological and fully post-SRS men, regardless of age, shape, size, ethnicity, sexual orientation or ability.

This means that trans people or females will not be able to swim with us.

We understand that this is an emotional and contentious issue, with no perfect answer.

Trans people who would like to try a naturist swim could contact the organisers of the Withington and Worsley swims, details of which are on the Links page.

The atmosphere is friendly, welcoming and outgoing. It’s what has kept us going for so long. There’s no attitude or negativity.

Many attendees appreciate the social aspect to maintain their mental health, as much as the more committed attendees appreciate the swim aspect to maintain their physical health.

We like to think that our swim goes against the trend of the toxic ‘plastic perfection’ ideal present both on social media and in the gay community.

One thing we have noticed as swim organisers is that those who’ve complained in the past about it being cliquey have also been those most likely to stay in cliques themselves.

This happens a lot less often than men fear it will. If it does happen, try not to think about it. Once you’re in the pool and either chatting or swimming, it’ll soon fade away anyway.

As organisers, we know the difference between awkward, nervous excitement and blatant exhibitionism and so there’s no need to worry about it.

Sadly, no.

Everyone else attending the swim will have gone to the effort of undressing completely to swim, and so there’s no reason why you can’t do the same.

As stated in the Terms & Conditions:

“Our swim is a community-run social naturist swim. It is not clothing optional; no costumes are to be worn. We simply offer the opportunity to swim naked to those who wish to do so”.

The wearing of body piercings, including Prince Albert piercings, and related jewellery, is allowed, as well as tattoos of any body part.

However, the wearing of genital (cock) rings and chastity devices is strictly prohibited.

No, the lifeguards are fully clothed, and maybe men or women.

They are employed by Arcadia and need to stay fully clothed to liaise with the emergency services, should an incident occur.

No, sadly not. Photography is not permitted in either the pool area or the changing area that we use.

Most attendees just go home, however several of the regular swimmers go for a drink at the nearby Blue Bell pub on Barlow Road. It’s a short walk or drive from Arcadia and has its own car park as well as on street parking nearby.

As it’s a Samuel Smith pub, mobile devices are banned, however contactless payment is accepted there as well as cash.

The Blue Bell Inn, 170 Barlow Road, Levenshulme, Manchester, M19 3HF.

What 3 Words for The Blue Bell:

porch.shaky.blaze

The swim has been going since 2004, changing venue to the current pool we use in 2015. There’s more information on the History page.

There’s more information on the Links page about other naturist swims, both locally and nationally.

If there’s still a question which we haven’t answered above, you can contact us by using the form below.