Inspired by Olympic Swimming Feats? Dive In With a Lap Pool
You don’t have to be a Michael Phelps or Katie Ledecky to enjoy a backyard pool dedicated to lap swimming
This month, we’ve watched Olympic swimmers from around the world bring home the gold in Rio de Janeiro. You can perfect your backstroke in the comfort of your own backyard with the help of a lap pool, designed just like a racing lane.
Type: A traditional lap pool can be installed in or above the ground, and stretches across a long and narrow space.
Size: A traditional lap pool is a minimum of 8 feet wide, 30 to 40 feet long and 4 to 6 feet deep.
Permit: Check your local building codes for pool permit specifics in your area.
Typical project length: This depends on the type of pool you’re installing. It could be anywhere from a few days to a few weeks or months.
Cost: A traditional inground lap pool can run from $60,000 to $100,000 and up, depending on additional customizations. Check with local pool installers and designers for cost estimates in your area.
Find pool pros near you
Size: A traditional lap pool is a minimum of 8 feet wide, 30 to 40 feet long and 4 to 6 feet deep.
Permit: Check your local building codes for pool permit specifics in your area.
Typical project length: This depends on the type of pool you’re installing. It could be anywhere from a few days to a few weeks or months.
Cost: A traditional inground lap pool can run from $60,000 to $100,000 and up, depending on additional customizations. Check with local pool installers and designers for cost estimates in your area.
Find pool pros near you
Situated on the banks of Lake Austin, this luxurious Texas home was built for outdoor fun and entertaining. An exterior boardwalk connects structures throughout the home and extends over an integrated 75-foot lap pool near the entrance.
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A white interior and dark blue tiles brighten the space that houses this indoor lap pool on a renovated farmhouse property in Melbourne, Australia.
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This outdoor space in Australia includes a lap pool, spa, water feature and children’s pool. Each swimming space is individually heated via remote iPad and iPhone technology.
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Influenced by traditional Japanese design, this pool house in Whitefish, Montana, includes an infinity-edge pool, soaking tub, shoji screens and a rain shower.
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Gardens surround this 82-foot lap pool perched midslope on a multiterrace estate in Austin, Texas.
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This lap pool anchored into a hillside in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania, features a biofilter. Plants in the filter consume algae and nitrates to keep the water clean naturally, says Mike Ciarrochi, a pool designer at Armond Aquatech Pools.
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Black granite surrounds an infinity-edge pool in Vancouver, Canada. It includes multiple levels and swim-in-place jets for exercise.
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A home in Australia is modeled after a 1950s contemporary beach house, complete with an alfresco dining area on the pool deck.
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A lush backyard surrounds a lap pool next to a shingled cottage in East Hampton, New York.
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Located by a small airport in New York, this flight-focused home includes a lap pool with exterior lighting and a custom fire pit to enjoy the views day and night.
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A beach home in France’s Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, near Nice, includes a lap pool built above the ground with plenty of integrated seating for entertaining.
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With its crooked cobblestones and draped ivy, this lap pool in western Connecticut seems to belong to an ancient time.
A frameless fence keeps children and pets safe without affecting the aesthetic of this modern lap pool and deck in Melbourne, Australia.
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This modern home on the edge of Ashdown Forest in East Sussex, U.K., features a glass wall that opens to connect its indoor lap pool to the outdoors.
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Two lanes encourage friendly competition in this lap pool. The gym space also features full automation, a living wall and a workout area.
This pool in California’s Napa Valley was placed for optimal vineyard views. The space includes an outdoor dining area, fireplace and terraced spaces to relax in the shade.
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An indoor pool in Western Australia offers swimmers a starry ceiling simulating the outdoors.
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Clad with glass tile, this lap pool in New York’s West Village has floor-to-ceiling acrylic panels on one side, offering underwater views to (and from) an in-home gym.
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With a hot tub at one end, this lap pool in Connecticut is surrounded by a bluestone deck and stone retaining wall.
Flexible courtyards, a lap pool and roof terraces encourage homeowners in this Sydney house to enjoy the outdoors year-round.
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A tennis court in Los Angeles was upgraded with a lap pool, gym and spa below its base for a full home workout experience.
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Bluestone tiles cover an infinity-edge pool on Sunrise Beach in Australia, creating a reflection pool that seems to reach to the Pacific Ocean.
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Love a water workout but want to use less space? A swim-in-place pool like this one in Breckenridge, Colorado, averages 7 feet wide and 12 feet long; a machine produces a current to swim against, like a water treadmill. Though it’s not a true lap pool, this option offers a similar workout for less cost — generally $10,000 to $20,000 for an aboveground unit.
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World of Design: 15 Swimming Pools With Dream Views
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Whom to hire: A pool and spa contractor to install (some installers also offer design services). You also may want to hire a landscape architect to integrate the space with your home or its surroundings.
Best time to do this project: If you’re in a cold climate, it’s easier to build an inground pool when the ground isn’t frozen.