It’s official: one of the best wild swimming spots in Britain is in London

If you think that London is all big tall buildings, crowded landmarks and heavy traffic, you’d be sorely mistaken. With more than 3,000 green spaces dotted about the city, leafy bliss is never too far away. Some are just small gardens beneath skyscrapers, but a lot of them rival the natural beauty of woodlands, heaths and parks far away in the British countryside.

One of the most beautiful of them all is, of course, Hampstead Heath, not least because of its three beloved swimming ponds (men’s, ladies’ and mixed). And it’s not just Time Out that thinks so. Last week National Geographic unveiled its pick of the seven best wild swimming spots in the UK – and the ponds at Hampstead Heath were ranked number six. 

Nat Geo said of the pools: ‘Each has its own loyal community, with strangers passing around flasks and offering tips for warming fingers, and long-held rituals, from New Year’s Day dips to solstice plunges. In summer, the grassy banks are lined with readers, nappers and sun-bathers. But autumn is when the location really shines, when the water turns amber with fallen leaves and the cold quietens the crowd.’

What makes them even more special, according to the mag, is that they’re ‘often shared with moorhens, dragonflies and the occasional heron’. 

The north London ponds were in very good (and gorgeous) company. Other al fresco pools to feature on the list were the Fairy Pools of the Isle of Skye, Bude Sea Pool in Cornwall and Black Moss Pot in the Lake District. 

If you’re partial to a dip in wild waters, you’ll love Time Out’s lists of the top 10 places in the UK for a natural swim, the best places for outdoor bathing close to London and the best lidos and outdoor swimming pools in London itself. So many options! 

A new free lido will open in east London this summer. 

Open water swimming has returned to Canary Wharf.