Charles River Aquatics

CRA provides excellent, rigorously-​coached swim lessons for kids (and for adults too, but we haven’t used them) that have motivated our kids way more than any other program. They run a very tight ship in terms of processing lessons in and out of the old BU pool on 30-​minute intervals on Saturday mornings. Excellent communication with instructors and staff. Only downside is the pool and locker room are quite old and cramped, and hassle of making it to BU – however you’re that much closer to the Super 88 food court for lunch afterwards!

I can swim! Ok, *technically* I could kind of swim before in that I had those lessons when I was a tiny tot approximately 1 million years ago AND can easily beat my 10 year old niece from one side to the other of the pool at her apartment. What I wanted, and got, out of this class was learning the real rhythm and breathing again so that I can consider doing laps at a pool near me. Is it intimidating to take yourself down to BU and jump in a pool with a bunch of strangers? Absolutely! But from the first inquiring email (if I’m comfortable in the water do I really need to start at beginner? no was the answer, and I started at intermediate) to now, with just one class left, I have felt completely confident that I chose the right place. There are only 4 of us in my class (2 men and 2 women), which is just the perfect size, and we have the very best instructor (Tonio=awesome). Classes are at BU’s pool, and I have taken the T to every class, but they tell you where to park if you prefer to drive. I really want to take the next level class, but if I can’t get in I do feel confident that I can swim at least a lap (freestyle or backstroke) or two for now without looking too silly.
This feels great.

CRA is outstanding… My 7 and 8 year old have been with the group for 3 years. They worked hard and are very proud of what they accomplished. One child is level 5 the other child is level 7. This is one of the best run programs in the city. I will always be grateful for the life long lesson and training they received from CRA and the instructors.
Thank you CRA for a job well done!
RTH

I brought my 6-​year-​old daughter here for two private lessons last week and was extremely happy with her instructor — Rachel — and CRA in general. To start, my daughter is absolutely petrified of putting her head in the water. After taking lessons at BU FitRec, our town pool, a summer camp, and Boston Sports Club (where she had an absolutely awful experience), I was at my wits end about what to do. Before I registered her, I had a long conversation with Marilyn, the director, who listened carefully to my concerns and recommended lessons with Rachel. She also provided great information about strategies that we could use in the bathtub that would help with my daughter’s fear of the water. When we got to CRA for the first lesson, Rachel came right up to my daughter and was completely warm and friendly. Once the lesson started, Rachel was wonderful. She used all kinds of strategies to gain my daughter’s trust and make her feel comfortable in the water. By the end of the second lesson, my daughter was swimming from the shallow end to the deep end without Rachel’s help (but with a swimming «motorcycle») and blowing bubbles in the water. I know this doesn’t sound like much but when you’re dealing with a child who is deathly afraid of the water, it’s a huge step. I will absolutely register her for regular lessons when the next session opens. I understand that some reviewers say CRA is strict and, honestly, I can’t speak from personal experience about the group lessons. While my daughter was taking her second lesson I observed two other children having private lessons and spent a while talking to their moms. Both of their children had taken many group lessons and it was obvious from watching them, that they were strong swimmers. CRA is different from most places that offer swimming instruction in that their instructors are professionals. In comparison, we just completed four semi-​private lessons at Boston Sports Club where the instructor teaching my 8-​year-​old never stepped foot in the water. In the end, I don’t expect my child to be an Olympic swimmer but it’s very important to me that she feels safe in the water and she is a good, strong swimmer. Some reviewers complained about the outdated locker rooms and the small area for observing the kids during lessons. Personally, my biggest concern is the quality of the lessons. Based on my experience at five different swimming facilities, there’s no place that comes close to the instruction that you get at CRA.

My daughters started lessons this past session and love it. As a result, I felt compelled to write after reading the other reviews. Yes, the locker rooms situation is not ideal but remember, CRA rents the space. It is actually BUs responsibility for the upkeep and from what I understand, the CRA staff is constantly trying to get them to improve the conditions.
Regarding the staff, the instructors are all TRAINED and actually TEACH your kids how to swim. They don’t take themselves seriously; they take their job seriously. The rules are clear: No parents on pool deck. If you know that, why would they have to be flexible for you when there are many others of us who would rather watch from below as well? You have to draw the line somewhere.
As far as the children go, CRA states that if your child can’t be separated from you, then just wait to begin the program. There is no rush. The instructors are kind but if there are 3 kids waiting for a lesson to begin and one child crying, then it isn’t fair to the other three kids. This happened to us for the Level 1 lesson. I watched from the observation room as the instructor did her best to get the crying child into the water, but ultimately I am really happy that the child was removed from the class by the deck monitor so the teacher could begin the class. After bringing the child to his mother, she consoled him and he was brought back to class, still crying a bit, and HE GOT IN AND SWAM. Afterwards, he was all smiles and so was his mother.
I think some parents need to ask themselves if they are the hovering type. When are you going to separate from your child? My daughter is incredibly shy but I walked her to the mat, gave her a kiss, told her that I would be watching from the room, and left her in the hands of the instructor. If I had looked back, she may have started crying. But I snuck a look from the door and then watched from above. The instructor held the hands of two children and walked them down. They were nervous but after the class, my daughter asked when she was swimming again.
One more thing about the lessons… they teach differently. It is not to prepare everyone to be an Olympic swimmer, but it IS to prepare kids for proper technique in case they want to continue with swimming or water polo as a sport in the future (or if they need it for lifeguarding, sailing or crew). A CRA level 3 is like a level 5 or 6 in other programs. Don’t get hung up on the numbers. Assume your child is a level 1 and just look at the descriptions and move up from there. From what was explained to me, the fastest swimmers in the world make it look easy because they are so efficient. What CRA does is takes that perfect stroke and breaks it down to the basics because when you are efficient, you can survive for longer in case of an accident/​emergency. Head up swimming is exhausting and the only people who can do that and cross a river are those in the movies.
I’m giving them 5 stars based on the program (not the locker room which isn’t under their control.) It takes guts to teach differently from everyone else and while you can’t please everyone as noted from other posts, they must be doing something right as I sat in front of my computer refreshing my screen for sign ups last week along with a good number of other people. If you want your kids to learn how to swim, then let the experts do it and get yourself to the observation room.

They take swimming and themselves quite seriously. Its not a «fun» place, but there is something to be said for the old-​school mentality at times. If your kid (and you) can put up with an ex-​Marine who thinks he’s training kids for the Olympics, your kid will do some growing up physically and mentally. The one time I felt a line was crossed was when the swim director implied that my child was not progressing as fast as she ought because of some character deficiency or lack of will rather than what goes on with many kids — the muscle memory and mind were just not quite there yet (she’s 8 and athletically is firmly in the middle-​of-​the-​pack).

The swimming lessons are great: they take teaching swimming seriously!
This is let down by the facilities. The locker rooms are really disgusting. They are dirty and haven’t been updated in years. Parents are not allowed onto the pool deck, and there is a tiny, tiny room that all parents get crammed into during the lesson (I’m talking knee to knee, and hip to hip, and that’s if you get a spot). The pool has needed maintenance twice in the past month, and instead of them honoring the lessons they provide a free swim (at a time that one cannot necessarily attend). This is not okay. Last, parking is a pain.
So, while I think the lessons are great, the whole experience is just too much hard work.

My daughter has been taking lessons here for almost 6 months. Initially we started out with one lesson a week on Saturday mornings. The 6 days in between lessons for a new swimmer was a little problematic for her. It took her about two sessions to get comfortable in the water. Then for the summer months we signed up for the summer session that is two weeks of lessons. Four lessons one week and four lessons the following week. This went wonderfully. Although my daughter is still in level one after several sessions I am fine with this. CRA is taking the time to teach her how to be a good swimmer. Initially I was frustrated by the fact that she was taking so long to move up to the next level. I now understand perfectly why this is. I want my daughter to be able to do more than just manage in the water. She needs to be able to know how to do more than float. I want her to be a competent swimmer. While this may be taking longer than I would like I am fine with it since the end result may save her life in the future.
A previous reviewer is correct. CRA does require that each skill at each level be mastered before a swimmer can move to the next level. I am learning why this is so important. It is easier to learn one skill at a time than to worry about straight leg kicks while also doing side breathing.
If you want your child to learn proper swim technique and learn how to swim CRA is definitely the place where you want them.

My daughter took a tiny tots class in the fall and she liked it so much that she is taking one in the spring too. We wanted to get her used to the water so she and my husband go in the pool together for the «lessons». The progam is really good for toddlers — the teachers are nice, they do a lot of singing and splashing to the music and have some water toys the kids play with. They also learn the basics of floating and in later classes use noodles and other floatation devices to try and get the hang of them. Basically it does a great job of getting the kids accustomed to and confident in the water. It’s a good introductory class.
The pool at BU is giant and very, very well-​maintained. There are always other levels of swimmers taking lessons in other parts of the pool and all the kids seem very engaged and seem like they are enjoying themselves.
The locker rooms leave a bit to be desired. They are not dirty but just a bit old and out-​dated. There is not a lot of bench space for all the parents who are trying to get their kids dressed and ready for class or undressed and out the door. It’s not terrible — everyone is polite — but just a little close for comfort sometimes. There are no bleachers for family to watch the class — BU is just not outfitted that way — but the waiting area is tiny and cramped. You can see into the pool from the waiting area but not always easily.
These two negatives (locker room and waiting room) are not really CRA’s fault as they have no control over BU’s facility but I felt I should mention them. We are liking the class and that is the important thing. My child is a toddler but I’d definitely send her here to take more classes in the future once she is older if she wants to continue.

My young lad is in his first week of lessons at CRA and loves it! The location (BU Case pool center) is super convenient, the times (4pm) are family friendly and our instructor (Jen) is a natural with the 3 year old age group which she is teaching. The rates are more than reasonable, and the max class size of 4 guarantees that your kiddo will receive ample personal attention.
They have a wide array of classes for all skill levels, and all the students seemed to be really enjoying themselves.
I’ll update when the results are more apparent, but initial indications are resoundingly positive.
–1 star because their clocks are 5 mins faster than every other clock in the world, and with short lessons and shorter time allowances to get the kids to the pool, every minute is at a premium.
We will likely be enrolling the little swimmer into the next phase of classes as well.