Goldfish Swim School - Algonquin

About

Goldfish Swim School - Algonquin, located at 718 S Randall Rd, Algonquin, IL 60102, USA, offers a unique learn-to-swim experience for children of all ages, from infants to pre-teens. Known for its proprietary, gentle, and fun curriculum, the school focuses on teaching essential water safety skills in a vibrant, tropical-themed environment designed to make learning engaging and effective. They provide small class sizes, highly trained instructors, and flexible scheduling options.

The pool(s) at Goldfish Swim School - Algonquin are typically maintained at a comfortable 90 degrees Fahrenheit (approximately 32 degrees Celsius) to ensure a warm and inviting environment for all swimmers, particularly beneficial for infants and young children learning to swim.

What are people saying (AI review summary)? The reviews for Goldfish Swim School present a mixed picture. Positive feedback praises the adept, caring, and patient staff, noting their ability to make toddlers comfortable and achieve significant swimming progress. The facility is described as clean, and birthday party services received high commendation for wonderful decorations, delicious food, and empathetic staff who handled issues professionally. However, several negative experiences highlight major concerns, primarily revolving around inconsistent teachers, leading to a perceived lack of personalized attention, inability to track student progress, and a 'factory-like' environment with exhausted and disengaged instructors. One particularly distressing incident involved an instructor traumatizing a child by dunking them without assessing comfort, followed by poor customer service and a lack of empathy or follow-up from management. These negative experiences left some parents feeling disappointed, that their investment was a waste, and their children fearful of the water.

Location

Gallery

Amenities

• Accepts Credit Cards
• Accessible Entrance
• Accessible Restroom

Reviews

Listing Reviews

May 18th, 2025

Lindsay Christensen

Very adept and caring staff. They have been patient with my toddler son, giving him all the attention he needs to be comfortable in the water without me. Teachers are consistent. Facility is clean.

May 31st, 2025

Stacy Searle

this place is a joke. My child rarely ever has the same teacher week to week so there is no consistency. They have no way to know if hes improved or what he needs to improve. I've probably paid them about 600 dollars and hes never even been moved up a level. the teachers don't know the students. its run like a factory. There's no time for the teachers to review notes or anything (not that they'd ever have time to write a note because goldfish doesn't allow the teachers a second to breathe between classes). the teachers are exhausted and do not care. there was one teacher who was exceptional and he quit. we found him on facebook and he now does private lessons with my son. I have about 200 dollars worth of classes left and it's not worth my time to even go. I'm gifting this terrible franchise the money.

August 5th, 2024

Esme T

We recently hosted our son’s 7th birthday party with Goldfish Swim School. Despite an unexpected food delivery issue (with our own third party), the experience was fantastic. The decorations were wonderful, cupcakes were delicious, the kids had a blast and were still talking about it that evening. The staff was incredibly kind and empathetic. Their professionalism and dedication to customer service put us at ease in the stressful situation. I highly recommend Goldfish for any gathering, as their exceptional service truly made the day special. Our son also takes swimming lessons here and all I can say is that this has been a great investment. We are so proud of what he’s accomplished and are excited to see him progress even further.

August 6th, 2024

Abishag Klein

We love Ms. Naomi. My son just started coming to this class last May of this year and he showed a lot of improvements in his swimming ever since. Thank you for taking good care of my little boy ❤️

May 21st, 2025

Jessica A

My son attended his first Junior 1 class, and right from the start, the instructor dunked him underwater without checking his comfort level or speaking to us about his experience with water. This completely traumatized him, he was scared and refused to get back in the water. I was extremely upset and immediately spoke to the front desk, only to be told I needed to wait through three lessons for him to “get better” with the water. I also asked to speak with the manager, but no one followed up. We tried coming back one more time, but my son still refused to get in the pool. Eventually, I did speak with the manager, Emma, who said she had heard what happened but hadn’t called because she was “too busy.” I’m very disappointed in how the situation was handled. I brought my son here hoping he would learn to enjoy and feel confident in the water. Instead, his first experience left him fearful and unwilling to continue. I expected more care, communication, and empathy from a place that teaches young children how to swim.