Sky & Swim · CA
Perfect weather, a walkable Gaslamp, and a bay that glows at sunset — San Diego's rooftop pools are less about the scene than the setting, and the setting is hard to beat.
5 picks · Gaslamp Quarter & Bayfront
The Pool House rooftop perches above 5th Avenue with a sun-drenched deck, cabanas along it, and sweeping Gaslamp and downtown views — the Gaslamp's most polished rooftop swim, and its strongest luxury reputation. If you aren't staying, the cabanas are yours Monday through Thursday only.
A heated, lap-size rooftop pool seven stories over the Gaslamp with a downtown skyline view, kept for hotel guests. Scene-y on weekends, genuinely swimmable on a weekday morning — pick your hour.
The Layover rooftop pool sits four floors up on the Embarcadero with San Diego Bay filling the view — cabanas, a proper bar, and the harbor traffic going by below. Pool access is included in the guest amenity fee.
Rebranded from the Kimpton Solamar in 2023 after a gut renovation, and the rooftop came out the other side as what the operator calls downtown San Diego's largest rooftop pool. The Gaslamp is right below and 5 o'Clock Somewhere handles the drinks — sillier than its neighbours, and a bigger swim than any of them.
FLOAT is the fourth-floor rooftop pool and lounge, looking over the harbor, the Gaslamp and the Coronado Bridge. It runs seasonally and weather permitting — and the hotel is mid-renovation under new management, so confirm before you plan around it.