Birchwood Recreation Center

Thank you Palatine Park District for actually having your pools open until Labor Day weekend. We were planning on going to another park district’s pool, but they had been closed in mid-​august! I thought all pools were open until Labor Day weekend? Guess not, but luckily for us, Birchwood’s pool was open!
it’s a pretty decent place, clean locker rooms and the main pool is a decent size. they have a smaller kid area with a splash pad and a kiddie pool that goes up to 1’6″ deep from zero depth with a small water slide in the middle of it. It’s also gated so your little ones don’t run towards the main pool without being impeded.
They also have adult swim times and swim lanes, if that is your thing. Also a short water slide that dumps you into a deep end. We were there with my almost 2 year old so we did not really get to check out those areas of the pool. They did also have a concession area, but for some reason it was closed and they weren’t selling anything.
Overall, this place was pretty decent and bonus points for being open until labor day! It was somewhat pricey though, $ 11 pp for non-​residents. I’ve paid $ 9 at other park districts and not being a resident. We’ll probably be back again next year if other pools in the area aren’t open, so maybe this should really be a 3 star review, but hey, it was open when others weren’t!

I took my niece and nephew here on Wed afternoon. It was my first time but the kids have a season pass.
This is their first year participating in day camp. They seem to love it. The kids look forward to swimming and seeing their friends from school.
I tried the water slide yesterday. It really hurt my back. I didn’t think I’d sink so far into the pool. It’s not the park’s fault. I think I’ve become too old for waterslides.
The concession stand is convenient and the price is nice. I think families should be allowed the option of bringing a sandwich or their snack of choice.