Morrison Hill Swimming Pool | 摩理臣山游泳池

Rating: 6 on a scale of 10. At 1:45 PM, there were at least four people in each of the two lanes that were set up. People swim any style, any speed. The rest of the pool was full-ish with people swimming slowly up and down but every which way. This is the emptiest it will ever be. Swimming in Hong Kong is an adventure.

This is now the better option for lap swimming in this part of HK than the hopelessly overcrowded Victoria Park Pool, but only if you go late (8:30 PM or later). No Hong Kong public pool is swimmable for laps right after work due to crowding. As with all HK pools: only two lap lanes, never more; slow, almost stationary swimmers; no kickboards allowed; no pace clock; very turbulent; no proper lane lines; no backstroke flags (sometimes there's a barely-visible rope); and it closes for seven weeks every year, right at the beginning of summer! (Check the website to avoid a wasted journey.)

The facility was very good and well kept. People were trying to swim laps on the open swimming side, but were bumping into each other. In the lanes most people were keeping to the left (with a few exceptions). One point to note: They don't allow any flotation devices or other training gear in the 50m pool, so don't bring paddles, fins, pull-buoys, etc. Overall, it's a very good pool that I visited four or five times while in HK on business. The best time to visit is after 8 PM, when there are not a lot of people.

This pool is crowded, but still one of the better pools for swimming etiquette in Hong Kong. The main pool is divided into lanes on one side and a free swimming area on the other. There are lanes dedicated to coaching and swimming squads, but there are always two lanes for the public. The lanes are thin to fit more in, so swimming is a little tight. It is best to come after 8:30 PM when much of the crowd has gone.

The one time I was there, the 50m pool was divided in half (length-wise). Half had no lanes - people were swimming laps trying not to collide. The other half had four lanes set up: two for classes/teams and two for fast and medium swimmers where people were following lap swim etiquette.