Germany has more than 7,000 public swimming pools, half of which are Freibäder (“free pools”). Does this mean they are free? Unfortunately not. Although Freibad translates to “free pool”, this type of freedom has little to do with entrance fees. A Freibad is an outdoor swimming pool, or an open-air swimming pool.
Germans like to define things very specifically, so they have many words for “swimming pool”, depending on the type of pool they’re talking about. The general word for swimming pool is Schwimmbad. If the pool is inside, it’s called a Hallenbad (“hall pool”) or Allwetterbad (“all-weather pool”). If it’s a pool for exercise it would be called a Sportbad. As we just learned, an outdoor pool is called a Freibad.
And a Freibad can have some elements of the other pools as well; Freibäder often have a mix of attractions, including a section for exercise swimming and a section for recreation (often with water slides and other attractions). Freibäder are often accompanied by food vendors where Germans can order an ice cream or french fries. With so many things to do, it is possible to spend an entire day at a Freibad.
And those who want to work on their tan can hang out at the nearby Liegewise.
By Nicole Glass, Editor of The Week in Germany
