Avalon Rockpool is a rock pool at the southern end of Avalon Beach, close to the village shops and cafes, with a shallow area for children. It is free and open all year apart from scheduled cleaning.
Key facts
- Type
- Rock pool
- Good to know
- Toilets, Change rooms, Parking, Cafe nearby
- Facilities and access
- Change rooms, toilets, pay-and-display parking (car park off Barrenjoey Road), playground, skate bowl, cafes in Avalon
- Managed by
- Northern Beaches Council
- Cost
- Free
- Lifeguards
- Not at the pool
- Parking
- Pay-and-display off Barrenjoey Road
- Best time to go
- Early morning; check the cleaning roster
- Water quality
- GoodAvalon Beach, 0.2 km away. Sampled 26 Oct. Source: NSW Beachwatch.
- Cleaning
- Dated roster published through 2026-12-01Council roster entry: Fri 30 Oct 02:30AM to Fri 30 Oct 05:00PM. Times change with weather and tides.
- Town
- Avalon Beach, NSW
What it's like
The pool sits on the rock shelf below the southern headland, so you get the beach, the headland and the pool in one view. It is a popular lap pool for locals and a safe place for children who are not ready for Avalon's surf, which can be strong.
It has grown in stages over a century. A small rectangular pool was first cut into the rock shelf, then lengthened in 1922, when a ladies' dressing room was also built. It has been widened and deepened several times since.
When to go
Early mornings for laps, mid-morning for families. Council publishes a dated cleaning roster, and the pool is out of use for about three hours before each listed cleaning time and up to twelve hours after, depending on the seas. Check before you go.
Getting there and facilities
There is pay-and-display parking off Barrenjoey Road behind the beach. Change rooms and toilets are close by, along with a playground and a skate bowl, and the cafes of Avalon village are a short walk away. Buses from the city and Manly stop in Avalon.
Good to know
There are no lifeguards at the pool itself. In big swell, waves break over the outer wall.