Best Indoor Pool Stays in St. Catharines

The Hampton Inn St. Catharines Niagara offers rooms with air-conditioning, private bathrooms and free WiFi, a fitness centre, an indoor swimming pool and an outdoor seating area. An American buffet breakfast is served daily, and the on-site restaurant offers brunch, lunch and dinner. With a rating of 8.8 across 471 reviews, it is the best known of the three, and I would choose it for a simple family stay where breakfast and a swim are the priorities. The pool and the restaurant mean you rarely need to leave the building in bad weather. The outdoor seating area is a pleasant extra in mild weather, and the on-site restaurant keeps meals simple when you travel with children.

The Staybridge Suites St. Catharines Conf Ctr by IHG has family rooms with air-conditioning and private bathrooms, each with a sofa bed and a work desk. Guests use a saltwater indoor pool, a fitness centre and a games room, and the hotel has a 24-hour front desk, an electric vehicle charging station and a family-friendly restaurant serving Greek and American cuisines. Its rating is 8.7 across 57 reviews, a small sample. I would choose it for a family that wants a games room and a saltwater pool. The family-friendly restaurant keeps dinner simple after a swim, and the sofa bed gives a family extra flexibility in a single room.

The Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites St. Catharines-Niagara by IHG has an indoor pool and free WiFi and is a 20-minute drive from Niagara Falls. Each room has a flat-screen TV, a microwave and a refrigerator, and guests get complimentary parking, a 24-hour front desk and an on-site fitness centre. A bowling alley is in the adjacent building. Its rating is 8.4 across 255 reviews. I would pick it for a family trip where a bowling evening and a pool swim fit the plan. The adjacent bowling alley gives children and adults something to do on a rainy evening without a drive, which is the main reason to choose this hotel.

Before you book, check the pool's opening hours and any age rules for children, because indoor pools often have set times. If you want a free breakfast on the way out, the Hampton Inn lists one. If you want a saltwater pool, take the Staybridge Suites. If you want a bowling alley beside the hotel, take the Holiday Inn. Our editorial advice is to pick on the extra, since the swimming itself is comparable across the three. Ask each hotel whether towels are provided at the pool and whether children may swim without supervision, since the listings do not state these rules.