Franconia Rec Center - Alexandria, Virginia

biggiwolf

I love the pool for my lap swimming. What I don’t like is the ladies locker room. It is half the size of the mens room and always crowded. The water is just trickling out of the few shower heads and it takes a while to rinse off the soap while you are literally standing butt on butt with the next person. Not good at all!!!

janice

Has alot for a county recreational area. Inside pool - check. Soccer fields, check. Baseball fields, check. No real football field but plenty of green spaces to practice. Playgrounds galore. Genius - the playgrounds have tents so kids can run around avoiding sun and light rain. Hand ball courts, basketball courts, tennis courts AND volleyball court (with sand). They have one playground where people can go on a carousel or in the summer, waterpark (Our Special Harbor Spray Park). They also have a trail for young kids and an amphitheater. Parking can be a bit tight with all the games going on at the same time, but one can park in other areas and walk. Tons of tables and green spaces. Just missing a petting zoo...

Pablo B.

I went to the splash area and playground only, not inside. A few of the splash features do not work anymore like the water cannons, but overall it still has a lot of working fountains and splash areas, for being free it is awesome. The playground is in great shape and large enough for tons of kids to play there without it getting too crowded.

Annie H.

I like the gym a lot. It’s never too crowded in there, and the equipment is good. Reception staff are also very nice.

I’m knocking off 3 stars because of the pool. Often times their schedule online does not reflect the schedule in person. For example, I show up at 6:45pm prepared to hop in a lane opening up at 7pm. Only to find that the group actually isn’t getting out until 7:30pm, and the lifeguards couldn’t be bothered to rewrite the sign to let people know the lanes are occupied until 7:30pm. It’s a dry-erase whiteboard. Not hard to fix.

And, I believe the pool is unsanitary. Firstly, you can smell the pool right as you walk in.
That is not a good sign, that means there are high levels of combined chlorine (combined chlorine is when free chlorine combines with pee and bacteria). Secondly, when I’m swimming, the air makes my chest hurt. I cough if I breathe in too sharply, even long after I’ve left the pool. That’s because combined chlorine particles are most concentrated in the air 6 inches above the water. I’m not surprised the pool is dirty, considering they allow people to swim who aren’t wearing real swimsuits (clogs pool filters), nor do they make people shower off before entering the pool.

For swimming, I recommend Audrey Moore or Oakmont Rec center any day before Franconia.

Jennifer B.

Overall this place is great. Although we joined during covid and most of the activities aren’t up and running we’ve really enjoyed the pool with our two children. The staff is friendly and caring. The facility is clean and they’re following all Covid precautions.

Beautiful S.

Is a nice family-friendly place where kids can enjoy playing with water and breathe fresh air from nature.

Vanessa R.

I go to workout everyday. I love the soccer fields, football field, tennis, pool, playground, and much more. Is a great park for practice many sports.

Amro S.

Save your $55. Filthy. Rude employees. Fan blowing in the locker room next to the pool got me sick twice. I asked they turn it off they ignored me. Too lazy to mop the floor in a pool locker room so they blast air on our wet heads and the floor is still wet. Just a waste of money and energy!