Want to learn to swim? Have a fear of the water? You’re not alone. Become one of our thousands of success stories.
Since 2001, Chicago Blue Dolphins has been the premier destination for adult swimming lessons in Chicago—especially for those starting from scratch or overcoming fear of the water. Our Adult Learn-to-Swim program is built to help you feel safe, confident, and strong in the water, no matter your starting point.
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Is This Program Right for You?
Join us if:
- You feel anxious or fearful in the water.
- You’ve never learned a stroke.
- You can swim only short distances before tiring out.
We’ll help you master strokes and skills so you can:
- Enjoy beach vacations without worry.
- Swim and play with your kids.
- Use swimming for fitness—or even start training for a triathlon.
Entry Requirements
Great news! There are no entry requirements for this program because we assume no swimming skills or background to do our Adult Learn-to-Swim 1 class. Even if you have had some experience or prior lessons, we recommend you start in the Level 1 class to ensure you get all the foundations down before moving onto advanced drills.
If you would like to see if you qualify for a more advanced class, sign up for a private skills assessment lesson. Our coach will run you through some exercises to see where you fit in the class sequence. To schedule a skills assessment lesson, you can contact our office at (773) 342-7250 or schedule it online.
Class Sequence
Learn-to-Swim Core Classes
Our focus is on foundational skills—floating, breathing, and basic strokes on your front and back—before moving to freestyle or breaststroke. By the end, you’ll be able to swim comfortably in both shallow and deep water.
Water Adjustment and Basic Skills (Level 1)
You’ll learn to float, glide, kick, and swim short distances. Our top priority is eliminating tension so you can relax and enjoy the learning process.
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Simple Strokes and Advanced Skills (Level 2)
Add breathing to your strokes and increase your distance. You’ll also practice advanced floating for even greater confidence. Prepares you for our deep water classes.
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Adult Deep Water 1
Learn to handle yourself in water too deep to stand in—jumping in, resurfacing, treading, floating, starting/stopping mid-swim, and swimming across the deep end.
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Adult Deep Water 2
Put your deep-water skills into real-life safety scenarios. By the end, you’ll be able to swim through deep water, tread for a full minute, and swim underwater through the shallow end to retrieve objects from the bottom.
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Stroke Development Classes
Once you can swim confidently, we’ll teach you the four competitive strokes—freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly—so you can swim farther, faster, and with less effort.
Stroke Development I (Level 3)
Master the balance, arm and leg action, rotation, and streamline positions that make freestyle and backstroke efficient. We’ll also spend time improving your kicking form and integrating it into the movements.
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Stroke Development II (Level 4)
Build full, simplified freestyle and backstroke strokes you can swim independently at the pool. We’ll also introduce the foundations of breaststroke and butterfly to give you a taste of those strokes.
At the conclusion of Stroke Development II, you should feel like you move up and down the pool in multiple ways that build fitness and make your pool time more enjoyable. If you’ve caught the swim bug and want to learn more, you will move on to our Stroke Refinement classes courses, either Freestyle 1 or Three Strokes 1.
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What to Expect
Class Size
Small groups for personal attention—maximum 3:1 ratio in Swim Studio classes and 4:1 in deep water classes.
Class Length & Sessions
Each adult class is 60 minutes long.
Each class is 60 minutes. Sessions run 4–5 weeks with skill evaluations at the end.
Testimonials
We have nearly 20 years of success stories from our adult swim students. Here are first-person accounts from just a few:
We also encourage you to check out our online reviews:
Tuition, Billing, & Schedule
Tuition & Membership
Our group classes run year-round with open enrollment—no set end date. You may stay enrolled as long as you’d like. For best results, we recommend a minimum three-month commitment so you can see significant progress in your swimming.
Tuition & Billing
- The tuition for each group class is $302/month
- Tuition is billed automatically each month.
- Enrollment may be discontinued at any time.
- Any unused credits can be (a) kept on your account, (b) transferred to another swimmer, or (c) applied to other services
Membership & Fees
Private Lessons
Yes—25-minute and 50-minute private and semi-private lessons are available. We generally recommend a 50-minute private lesson for our adults to give you more time to learn new skills and practice the old ones. If you’ve taken lessons before or if you are unsure if private or group classes would be more appropriate, we offer 25-minute skills assessment lessons to help you make that decision.
Lesson Type
|
25 Minute Single |
25 Minute Five Pack |
50 Minute Single |
50 Minute Five Pack |
| Skills Assessment |
$62.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
| Private |
$92.00 |
$437.00 |
$179.00 |
$850.25 |
| Two Swimmers (Per Person) |
$62.00 |
$294.50 |
$123.00 |
$584.25 |
| Three Swimmers (Per Person) |
$46.00 |
$218.50 |
$92.00 |
$437.00 |
Purchase a 5-pack and save 5%. The $25 annual membership fee applies as with group lessons.
Set Up a Private Lesson
Billing
Registration & Billing
- When you register, your credit card will be charged for the first month of tuition.
- You’ll then be placed on automatic monthly payments on that same date going forward.
- Auto-pay continues until you move into a class with a different tuition or you choose to discontinue enrollment.
Membership Fee
- A non-refundable $25 annual membership fee is charged at registration to cover insurance and safety costs.
- This fee is renewed on each enrollment anniversary if you continue with us (and we hope you do!).
Cancellation Policy
Class Schedule
We know that life is busy with packed schedules—here’s how to find the class time that works best for you. You can view the
complete swim class schedule below. Use the filter icon (☰) to sort by
day, time, class name, or instructor for the options that best fit your family’s needs.
For tuition and membership details, see “What is the Cost for Group Classes” above.
Ready to Start?
Please fill out the information below to request registration in our swim classes or private lessons.
We’d love to send you a few helpful emails from info@chicagobluedolphins.com explaining how adult swim lessons work — no spam, just guidance to help you decide.
To make sure our emails reach you, please check your inbox for a quick confirmation message and click the link inside.
Prefer to speak with someone directly? Call us at (773) 342-7250 during office hours:
- Mon–Fri: 9 am – 7 pm
- Sat–Sun: 9 am – 5 pm
